Am I Obligated to Check for Stool Leakage before Each Prayer?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Shaykh Irshad Patel
Question
I have a problem that happens sometimes, but not all the time. Sometimes after I defecate and wash my anus thoroughly, I wipe and make sure that there is no impurity left. However, after I clean myself and get dressed, I feel discomfort in the area, and when I wipe with a dry tissue to check, sometimes there is a trace of impurity. The impurity does not leak out onto my clothes. It stays inside.
Sometimes this happens during an entire prayer time and even longer. No matter how much I wash, it keeps happening. What do I do in this situation? Am I obligated to check to see if impurity came out after cleaning myself? Can I pray like this and perform wudu?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
As you mention, there is no issue after you wash and clean yourself. You have some discomfort; maybe it is due to some medical condition or is it due to an overwashing habit. I suggest you do not go back and check the area again, even if you experience some discomfort, as it is probably a misgiving. Also, seek medical attention if you have loose stool leakage and some pain. Once you have relieved yourself and washed the area, do not go back to check again until you have a bowel movement.
If the filth moves beyond the exit hole and is more than what is excused, it is obligatory (fard) to remove it with water. [‘Ala‘uddin Ibn ’Abidin, Al-Hadiyyah al-‘Ala’iyyah]
In your case, you only need to worry if filth goes beyond the exit hole; this is when one is relieving oneself and not to worry about returning to check again after washing.
Kindly check these links:
Wet Dreams and Ritual Purity: A Reader – SeekersGuidance
Prayer Reader: The Ultimate Guide To Prayer in Islam – SeekersGuidance
Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on Seekersguidance?
SeekersAcademy (seekersguidance.org)
May Allah (Most High) give you ease and relief from doubts and misgivings.
I pray this helps with your question.
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied within UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan and Turkey.
He started his early education in UK. He went onto complete hifz of Qur’an in India, then enrolled into an Islamic seminary in UK where he studied the secular and Alimiyyah sciences. He then travelled to Karachi, Pakistan.
He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for a number of years. He has taught hifz of the Qur’an, Tajwid, Fiqh and many other Islamic sciences to both children and adults onsite and online extensively in UK and Ireland. He was teaching at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences.
He currently resides in UK with his wife. His personal interest is love of books and gardening.
