Does Doing Istinja’ in the Shower Make the Bathtub Impure?

Answered by Ustadh Sufyan Qufi

Question

If you do istinja’ in the shower with dry impurities, does the shower water and bathtub floor become impure? I’m sure no impurity spread.

If the bathtub is impure, I’m worried it will contaminate my feet and house. What should I do?

Answer

In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,

I pray this finds you in the best of states.

As long as you are using running water (such as water coming from a showerhead) to perform Istinja’, you can rest assured that no filth has spread if no traces of filth are manifested in this running water. [Shurunbulali, Nur al-Idah]

Traces of filth are smell, color, and taste. [Ibid]

And if these traces are at the beginning of this process, then this running water has become filthy. But you can rest assured that this filth will be cleaned by the continuous running water coming from the showerhead that will be soon free of any traces of filth. Indeed filth is removed by using pure running water. [Ibid]

Thus, you can be confident that at the end of this process, your body and the bathtub will be completely pure.

Allah, Most High, says: “And He sent down rain from the sky to purify you.” [Quran, 8:11]

And Allah knows best.
Wassalam
[Ustadh] Sufyan Qufi
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Sufyan Qufi is an advanced seeker of knowledge. Originally from Algeria, he grew up in France. He began searching for reliable ways to learn Islam and was disappointed at the answers he found locally.

Then he connected with various traditional teachers and gradually connected with SeekersGuidance. He embarked on his journey of learning through the various teachers at SeekersGuidance, including his mentor Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.

He studied numerous texts in Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith, and other areas with Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and other teachers, including Shaykh Abdurrahman al-Sha‘ar, Shaykh Ali Hani, and others.

He is an active instructor at SeekersGuidance and answers questions through the SeekersGuidance Answers Service.