Drying the Body Parts after Purification

‘Uthman ibn ‘Affaan, al- Hasan ibn ‘Alee, Anas ibn Maalik, al-Hasan al-Basree, Ibn Seereen, ‘Alqamah, al-Aswad, Masrooq, ad-Dahhaak, ‘Abdullaah ibn al Haarith, Abu Ya’laa, Abul Ahwas, Ash-Sha’bee, Ath-Thawree, Ishaaq, Ibn ‘Umar in a narration, and Abu Hanifah, Maalik, Ahmad, and the Shafi’ee Madhhab in one saying,

All say that it is permissible after both wudoo and ghusl to dry the body-parts.

And their evidence is what ‘Aa’ishah (radhiAllaahu ‘anhaa) reports – she said:

Rasoolullah (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) had a cloth which he used to dry himself with after making wudoo .

[Reported by at-Tirmidhee who declared it to be da’eef]. 
Then al Ainee states that an-Nasaa’ee records it in ‘al-Kunaa’ with saheeh isnaad.

We say: And it has other narrations which support and strengthen it.

(See Fiqh al-Imam Sa’eed, 1/70). 
Al-Albaanee declares the hadeeth to be hasan. (Saheeh ul Jaami’, 4706).

Salmaan al-Faarsee narrates that the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) made wudoo , then turned up a woollen cloak he had and wiped his face with it.

[Reported by Ibn Maajah (no.468)]. In az-Zawaa’id it is said: Its isnaad is saheeh.

We say: In its isnaad is al-Wadeen ibn ‘Ataa who is sadooq but has a bad memory as al-Haafiz Ibn Hajr says in ‘Taqreeb ut-Tahdheeb’, so its isnaad is da’eef!! – but it is strengthened by the previous hadeeth of ‘Aa’ishah to the level of hasan – and Allaah Knows best.

Some others hold it to be makrooh to dry the body-parts after Purification and their proof is:

What is established from Maimoonah (radhiAllaahu’anhaa) who described the Prophet’s (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) ghusl from Janaabah and said:

Then I brought him a cloth but he refused it.

[Al-Bukhaaree, and Muslim – and the word is his].

The Final word: Is that drying the body-parts is one of the desirable actions as shown by the hadeeth of Aa’ishah (radhiAllaahu ‘anhaa) – as for the saying that it is makrooh then that is not acceptable as the saying of Maimoonah (radhiAllaahu ‘anhaa) “but he refused it” does not amount to the fact that it is makrooh – and Allaah Knows best.