Quran
Hadith
Islamic Text
It is not Makruh to urinate in the shower, since there is a drain and the water flows through. It is Makruh to urinate and wash in the same place if the water is stagnant and the urine remains present.
لاَ يَبُولَنَّ أَحَدُكُمْ فِي المَاءِ الدَّائِمِ الَّذِي لاَ يَجْرِي، ثُمَّ يَغْتَسِلُ فِيهِ
The Prophet ﷺ said, ‘None of you should urinate in stagnant water which is not flowing and then wash in it.’ (Sahih al-Bukhari, 239).
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: لَا يَبُولَنَّ أَحَدُكُمْ فِي الْمَاءِ الدَّائِمِ ثُمَّ يَغْتَسِلُ مِنْهُ
(Sayidina) Abu Hurairah (May Allah Most High be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said, ‘None of you should urinate in stagnant water and then wash from it.’ (Sahih Muslim, 282 – 95).
The above narrations from Bukhari and Muslim make it clear that it is not permitted to urinate in water that is stagnant and then wash in the same place. However, this does not apply to flowing water. Therefore, the following Hadith must be understood in light of these Sahih narrations.
عَنِ الْحَسَنِ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مُغَفَّلٍ، قَالَ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: لَا يَبُولَنَّ أَحَدُكُمْ فِي مُسْتَحَمِّهِ، فَإِنَّ عَامَّةَ الْوَسْوَاسِ مِنْهُ
Hasan (al-Basri) narrated from Abdullah bin Mughaffal (May Allah Most High be pleased with him) that the Prophet ﷺ said, ‘None of you should urinate in the place where he washes, for most Waswasah comes from that.’ (Sunan Ibn Maja 304, weak).
This Hadith is weak since (Imam) Hasan al-Basri did not explicitly mention that he heard directly from the Sahabi Abdullah bin Mughaffal (May Allah Most High be pleased with him). After narrating the Hadith Imam Ibn Maja narrated that this Hadith is not applicable to a situation where one has flowing water.
قَالَ: أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنُ مَاجَةَ: سَمِعْتُ عَلِيَّ بْنَ مُحَمَّدٍ الطَّنَافِسِيَّ، يَقُولُ: إِنَّمَا هَذَا فِي الْحَفِيرَةِ، فَأَمَّا الْيَوْمَ فَلَا، فَمُغْتَسَلَاتُهُمُ الْجِصُّ، وَالصَّارُوجُ، وَالْقِيرُ، فَإِذَا بَالَ فَأَرْسَلَ عَلَيْهِ الْمَاءَ، لَا بَأْسَ بِهِ
Abu Abdullah bin Maja said: ‘I heard Ali bin Muhammed At-Tanafisi say: ‘This (prohibition) applies to cases where it gathers. But nowadays this does not apply, because the baths they use now are built of gypsum, Saaruj and tar. So, if a person urinates and then pours water over it, then it is fine.
It is obligatory to consider all relevant evidence when discussing a particular issue. Unfortunately, some people have failed to do so and thus inform people that it is wrong to urinate in the shower. They quote the above narration and others similar to it. However, they fail to consider the Sahih narrations mentioned above. And other similar narrations:
أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ: نَهَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنْ يَمْتَشِطَ أَحَدُنَا كُلَّ يَوْمٍ، أَوْ يَبُولَ فِي مُغْتَسَلِهِ
(Sayidina) Abu Hurairah (May Allah Most High be pleased with him) narrated, ‘The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prohibited that anyone amongst us should comb (his hair) every day or urinate in the place where he washes.’ (Sunan Abi Dawood 28, Sahih).
The scholars of the Hanafi Madhab commented on the issue of urinating in the shower or one’s place of washing, after considering all of the evidence. Therefore, they clarified that it is only a concern if the water is gathering and not flowing.
فَإِذا بَال وَأرْسل عَلَيْهِ المَاء فَلَا بَأْس. (عمدة القاري شرح صحيح البخاري)
If he urinates and then makes water flow over it, then there is no harm. (Imam Badr al-Deen al-Ayni, Umdatu al-Qari).
وَإِنَّمَا نُهِيَ عَنْ ذَلِكَ إذَا لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ مَسْلَكٌ يَذْهَبُ فِيهِ الْبَوْلُ أَوْ كَانَ الْمَكَانُ صُلْبًا فَيُوهَمُ الْمُغْتَسِلُ أَنَّهُ أَصَابَهُ مِنْهُ شَيْءٌ فَيَحْصُلُ بِهِ الْوَسْوَاسُ كَمَا فِي نِهَايَةِ ابْنِ الْأَثِيرِ. (رد المحتار على الدر المختار)
It is only prohibited if there is no outlet for the urine to flow through, or if the place is solid such that the one washing thinks he has been splashed with it, as it causes Waswasah. As has been mentioned in al-Nihayah by Ibn Atheer. (Imam Ibn Abideen, Radd al-Muhtaar).
قَالَ الْخطابِيّ إِنَّمَا نهى عَن مغتسل يكون جددا صلبا وَلم يكن لَهُ مَسْلَك ينفذ مِنْهُ الْبَوْل. (عمدة القاري شرح صحيح البخاري)
(Imam) al-Khattabi said, it is only prohibited if the place of washing is solid and hard. Whilst there is no outlet for the urine to flow through. (Imam Badr al-Deen al-Ayni, Umdatu al-Qari).
لَوْ كَانَتْ أَرْضُهُ بِحَيْثُ لَا يَعُودُ مِنْهَا رَشَاشٌ أَوْ كَانَ لَهُ مَنْفَذٌ بِحَيْثُ لَا يَثْبُتُ فِيهِ شَيْءٌ مِنَ الْبَوْلِ لَمْ يُكْرَهِ الْبَوْلُ فِيهِ إِذْ لَا يَجُرُّ إِلَى وَسْوَاسٍ. (مرقاة المفاتيح شرح مشكاة المصابيح)
If the ground is such that splashes do not return, or there is an outlet such that urine does not gather, then it is not Makruh. Since, it does not cause Waswasah. (Imam Ali al-Qari, Mirqaat al-Mafateeh).
حتى لو كان بحيث لا يعود منه رشاش أو كان فيه منفذ بحيث لا يثبت فيه شيء من البول لم يكره البول فيه إذ لا يجره إلى الوسوسة حينئذ. (حاشية الطحطاوي على مراقي الفلاح شرح نور الإيضاح)
If it is such that splashes do not return, or there is an outlet such that urine does not gather, then it is not Makruh to urinate. Since, it does not cause Waswasah in such a case. (Imam Ali al-Qari, Mirqaat al-Mafateeh).
As seen above, the Hanafi scholars clarified that if the water is not gathering, rather it is flowing, then it is not Makruh to urinate. This is normally the case in the shower. Therefore, it is not Makruh to urinate in the shower unless there is a blockage and water is gathering.
And Allah Most High Knows Best.
-Answered by Shaykh Noorud-deen Rashid (08.11.2022)
See also:
Can you perform Istinja without water?
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