Part 37

‘Let no one from you clean himself lafter having a bowel movement] with less than three stones,"

The Etiquettes Of Going To The Bathroom

1) Avoid Relieving Yourself In Three Places Mu’aadh Ibn Jabal # related that the Messenger of Allah 2 said,

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“Stay away from the three Malaa’in (its exact meaning will become clear in the following discussion): [Excreting] stool (Biraaz) in Mawaarid (pathways that lead to water], in the middle of the road, and in the shade.’"]

Abu Hurairah # reported that the Messenger of Allah #% said,

“Beware of Al-La’aanain (again, we will discuss its exact meaning in the ensuing discussion).”

The Companions # asked, “And what are the Al-La’aanain, O Messenger of Allah?” He ¥ said,

“The one who relieves himself in the pathway of people or in their shade,’"73

In one hadith, the word Malaa’in is used, and in the other, AlLa’inain. What is meant by both words? First, both words are derived from the word La’an, which means cursing. La’inain, which is in the dual form, means two matters that lead to people cursing. So the perpetrators of the actions described in the hadith do deeds that lead to other people cursing them. La’inain could also mean, in a more general sense, ‘cursed,’ so that the meaning of the hadith becomes, “Avoid two actions the perpetrators of which are cursed.” The wisdom behind the prohibition is that, by relieving himself in the said three places, a person sullies the ground with impurities and harms believers

who frequent those places for common benefits (drinking water, a path to walk on, and a shade to sit under). And it is made clear in Allah’s Book that it is forbidden to harm believers:

") Related by Abu Daawood (26), and Al-Albaanee gave a ‘Hasan’ grade to

“And those who annoy believing men and women undeservedly, bear on themselves the crime of slander and plain sin.” (Qur’an

Related Issue: Taking on the same ruling as shade are spots wherein the sun is especially felt during the cold days of winter. Ash-Shaikh Ibn ‘Uthaimeen - may Allah have mercy on him - said, “This is a case of clear (and unmistakable) analogy.” It is forbidden for a person to relieve himself in the shade because people seek out the shade for comfort during harsh weather; it is likewise forbidden for a person to relieve himself in a spot wherein the sun’s heat is especially strong during the winter, again, because people seek out that spot for comfort during harsh weather. Since there is a clear reason behind the prohibition, the prohibition applies whenever that reason is present, even if the circumstances differ in form or shape.

Another Related Issue: The aforementioned Ahadeeth seem to indicate that the prohibition applies to feces but not to urine, which is why, in explaining, “The one who relieves himself in the pathways of people and in their shade,’ An-Nawawee commented, “It means, the one who defecates in a place that people frequent or pass through.” Some scholars include urine in the prohibition, and the reasons why there is a disagreement are, first, because the words used in the hadith could be construed to mean either feces alone or feces and urine; and second, even if the intended meaning is feces alone, the question arises - is urine given the same ruling through the principles of analogy? In refuting An-Nawawee’s view, Al-’Azeem Abaadee addresses both issues: ‘““An-Nawawee’s interpretation of feces only is not sound, and even had it been sound, urine would have been given the same ruling through the principles of analogy.” He then went on to explain that words used in the hadith for relieving oneself, At-Takhallee and Al-Biraaz, are comprehensive terms, covering both feces and urine. He conceded that Biraaz might be taken to mean feces only, but even if that is the case, then urine is given its

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tuling through the principles of analogy, for like feces, urine too spoils a spot where people find shade in.

Question: It is known that when the Prophet #% would relieve himself, he would seek cover - so no one would see him - under a group of date-palm trees. Given that such a group of trees surely give shade, how can we find harmony between the Prophet's action and his prohibition?

Answer: The shade under which it is forbidden to relieve oneself is the shade that people go to and sit under to protect themselves from the heat of the sun. What we understand from the Prophet's action, then, is that he would seek cover in a shade that was undesirable and that people wouldn’t go to in order to find protection from the sun’s heat.

2) The Prohibition Of Urinating In Stagnant Water (i.e., Water That Does Not Flow)

Jaabir 2 reported that the Messenger of Allah 2¢ forbade the practice of urinating in stagnant water (i.e., in water that does not flow, such as a pond). The reason behind the prohibition is evident: urine is very likely to contaminate a supply of stagnant water. If urinating in stagnant water is bad, then defecating in it is even worse. The hadith implies that the prohibition does not apply to flowing water. An-Nawawee said, “Because of the implied meaning of the hadith, it is not prohibited to urinate in source of water that flows and that is abundant (such as a large, flowing river).”")

" Related by Muslim (281), Ahmad (14258), An-Nassaaee (35), and Ibn Maajah (343).

"2! Sharh sahih Muslim, Vol. 1 (2/152). It is true that scholars give a more detailed ruling in this issue, but I did not want to go into too much length, so 1 kept the discussion brief. For a more detailed ruling, refer to the explanation of sahih Muslim, by An-Nawawee; and the explanation of sahih Al-Bukhaaree, by Ibn Hajr (1/413, 414).

3) It Is Disliked To Take Into The Toilet (Or Any Place That Is Commonly Used For The Same Purpose) Anything That Has The Remembrance Of Allah 4 In It

To preserve Ailah’s Name from abuse and debasement, you should not take into the toilet anything that has the remembrance of Allah 4¢ in it, unless you have a valid Islamic excuse, in which case doing so is not Makrooh (disliked). So for example, if, in your pocket, you have paper money that has Allah’s Name written on it, and if you are about to enter a public washroom, you most likely have no choice but to take the money with you inside. By leaving the money outside of the washroom, you might later forget, and if the door to the washroom is on the outside of a building, the money might blow away. Furthermore, if there are other people around, there is a chance of theft. All of these reasons apply to money or to anything else that has Allah’s Name written on it.

As for a Mushaf (copy of the Quran), it is, without a doubt, forbidden to take it inside of a place that is regularly used as a toilet. Scholars agree on this point, though they ruled that it is permissible to take it inside if one fears that, left outside, it will be stolen. Nonetheless, a Muslim must fear Allah 3€ and try his best to keep Allah’s Speech safe from debasement. He should try his best to find an alternative solution, such as giving the Mushaf as a trust to someone until he comes out. But if there is no alternative, then Allah 3 does not charge a soul with more than it can bear.

4) The Prohibition Of Facing The Qiblah Or Turning One’s Back To It When Using The Toilet

In regard to this issue, there a number of authentic Ahadeeth that seem to contradict one another, and as a result, scholars disagree in how they find harmony between them. First we will relate some of those Ahadeeth, and then we will discuss the scholarly views in this issue.

Abu Ayyoob Al-Ansaaree . related that the Messenger of Allah #8 said,

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“When one of you goes to defecate, then he should neither face the Qiblah nor turn his back to it, but rather it should be to his east or west (i.e., to his left or to his right).””

Muslim and others narrated the hadith with this wording:

“..Then neither face the Qiblah nor turn your backs to it with urine or feces, but instead let it (the Qiblah) be to your east or west (to your left or right).’"41

Waasai’ Ibn Hibbaan related that ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar & used to say, “Verily, people say that when you sit down to relieve yourself, you should face neither the Qiblah nor Jerusalem. One day, I climbed onto the roof of a house that belonged to us, and I saw the Messenger of Allah # on two bricks, facing Jerusalem, while he was relieving himself...”7! In another hadith, Jaabir Ibn ‘Abdullah said, ‘The Prophet # forbade us from facing the Qiblah and urinating at the same time. Then, one year before he died, I saw him facing it [while he #% was urinating].”"! And in yet another narration, Mirwaan Al-Asfar related that he saw Ibn ‘Umar make his camel kneel facing the Qiblah; he then sat

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") Related by Bukhaaree (144), Muslim (264), Ahmad (23003), Abu Daawood (9), An-Nassaaee (21), and Ibn Maajah (318). And the wording for the first narration mentioned above is from Bukhaaree’s narration of the hadith.

"I Related by Bukhaaree (145), Muslim (266), Ahmad (4592), An-Nassaaee (23), Abu Daawood (12), Ibn Maajah (322), Maalik (455), and AdDaarimee (667). And the wording mentioned above is from Bukhaaree’s narration of the hadith.