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How to urinate in Islam?

It must be done in a secluded area, away from the eyes of others to protect his aurah. Must be done carefully to avoid any splashes of urine on one's clothing.

maktabahalbakri.com - 256: Urinating Standing - Maktabah al Bakri

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Question:

Assalamualaikum ustaz. Is it permissible to urinate standing up, especially now that there is an increase in the number of urinals provided in public restrooms? Hope for an explanation.

Answer:

Waalaikumussalam wrt. wbt.,

Alhamdulillah, praise and gratitude to Allah SWT for His countless blessings for us all. Praise and salutations to our beloved Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his family, companions, and all those who follow his footsteps until the Final day.

We’ll begin with the statement of Allah SWT:

لَقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِي رَسُولِ اللَّهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِمَنْ كَانَ يَرْجُو اللَّهَ وَالْيَوْمَ الْآخِرَ وَذَكَرَ اللَّهَ كَثِيرًا “There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern for anyone whose hope is in Allah and the Last Day and [who] remembers Allah often.” [1] Commentary scholars stated that the above verse means that every word, action and situation of the Prophet PBUH is an example so that everyone can follow and emulate them. Hence, hold unto the sunnah of the Prophet PBUH, they are held unto by those who are hopeful (for the blessings) of Allah and (rewards of) the hereafter. [2]

The Najis Status of Urine

Basically, human or animal urine is najis according to a hadith from Abu Hurairah RA, where Rasullullah PBUH said:

وَهَرِيقُوا عَلَى بَوْلِهِ سَجْلاً مِنْ مَاءٍ

“…and pour a bucket of water over (what he has passed),” [3]

Ibn Battal in his syarah stated by jurists who agreed that the urine (of human) is najis and should be washed (cleaned). [4]

Urinating Standing

Regarding this matter, there is a hadith from Aisyah R.Anha, she said:

مَنْ حَدَّثَكُمْ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم كَانَ يَبُولُ قَائِمًا فَلاَ تُصَدِّقُوهُ مَا كَانَ يَبُولُ إِلاَّ قَاعِدًا “If anyone tells you that the Prophet used to pass water standing, do not believe him. He never passed water but when sitting.” [5] The above hadith shows that Rasullullah PBUH never urinates standing, rather he would sit. However, from Aisyah’s statement, undeniably some claimed the Prophet PBUH urinates while standing. [6] This is as mentioned in a hadith narrated by Huzaifah RA, he said: أَتَى النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ سُبَاطَةَ قَوْمٍ فَبَالَ قَائِمًا، ثُمَّ دَعَا بِمَاءٍ فَجِئْتُهُ بِمَاءٍ فَتَوَضَّأَ. “Once the Prophet (ﷺ) went to the dumps of some people and passed urine while standing. He then asked for water and so I brought it to him and he performed ablution.” [7]

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The above hadith, if considered in passing would seem as though it contradicts the previous hadith, however, if one truly analyze them both, they aren’t contradictory, for there is a possibility that the Prophet PBUH did both – urinate while standing – because the Prophet PBUH couldn’t find any appropriate or clean place to sit or to explain to mankind of its permissibility and not a prohibition. This matter is as stated by Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani saying, the Prophet PBUH urinate standing to explain its permissibility. This is due to the fact that most times the Prophet PBUH urinate sitting. [8] Al-Nawawi stated that the scholars of madhhab al-Syafie stated that urinate standing is makruh tanzih if there isn’t any debility and it isn’t ruled as makruh if one experiences a debility. Likewise, it is sabit from Umar bin al-Khattab, Zaid bin Thabit, Ibn ‘Amr and Sahl bin Sa‘d that they once urinated standing. [9] Moreover, according to the majority of scholars’ opinion, urinating standing without any debility is makruh tanzih for the act contradicts the norm of the guidance of the Prophet PBUH (which is the sunnah of the Prophet PBUH) as understood from the denial of Aisyah R.Anha that the Prophet PBUH did as such. [10] Furthermore, it is undeniable that urinating by sitting or squatting is the best position for men to urinate. According to the Chief Medical Officer of Columbia Asia Hospital – Cheras, Dr Mohd Fadhli Mohd Yusof, in this position, the lower abdominal muscles, pelvic muscles and back muscles of the body are in a state of maximum rest. Not only that, a group of researchers at Leiden University Medical Center, the Netherlands revealed that men who urinate squatting can empty their bladders completely different from those who urinate in a standing position, where the pelvic muscles are tense and it makes it difficult for the urine to be excreted completely. In addition, according to Dr Mohd Fadhli again, the disadvantages of urinating standing can be seen from the aspect of hygiene, where urinating in a standing position can significantly increase the velocity of urine, thus causing the individual to be more susceptible to urine splashes that will stain his body and clothes, besides from also dirtying the toilet from the splashes of urine. In fact, most urinals are not equipped with a water source for the purpose of washing the genitals, causing many not to or rarely ever wash their genitals cleanly after urinating standing up. As a result, the genitals that are not washed clean will increase the risk of infections in the genital area such as candidiasis (fungal infection) and balanitis (infection of the head of the penis). [11]

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Conclusion

According to the above discussion, in our opinion, urinating sitting is prioritized and better, following the guidance of the Prophet PBUH. However, urinating standing is makruh tanzih if there isn’t a need to do so and it is fine if one experiences a debility such as inappropriate place or there is no clean place for him to sit and urinate. Furthermore, urinating sitting follows the syarak in the aspect of maintaining one’s hygiene as we’ve stated previously. We’d also like to state that scholars who ruled urinating standing also specified the following matters: It must be done in a secluded area, away from the eyes of others to protect his aurah. Must be done carefully to avoid any splashes of urine on one’s clothing. May Allah SWT grant us all a clear understanding in this religion. Amin.