English Translation

Ya'qub told us, my father told us, from Ibn Ishaq: Muhammad ibn Yahya ibn Habban al-Ansari, then al-Mazini of Banu al-Najjar, told me, from Ubaydullah ibn Abdullah ibn Umar, who said: I said to him: Tell me about Abdullah ibn Umar's performing ablution for every prayer, whether in a state of purity or not — what was the basis of that? He said: Asma bint Zayd ibn al-Khattab told him that Abdullah ibn Hanzalah ibn Abi Amir, Ibn al-Ghasil, told her that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, had been commanded to perform ablution for every prayer, whether in a state of purity or not; but when that became difficult for the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, he was commanded to use the tooth-stick before every prayer instead, and the obligation of ablution, except from an actual state of impurity, was lifted from him. He said: Abdullah used to think he had the strength for that, and he continued doing it until he died.