One of the greatest blessings of Allaah upon the family and a major part of the family is the child. These gifts from Allaah are shown compassion, love and care by their parents, relatives and other people male and female; by carrying them, hugging them kissing them and so on. In the process, they pass urine on us Bearing in mind that the urine of humans are filth (najaasah), what are the provisions of the Shariah on the handling of this urine?
Is there any difference in the handling of the urine of baby boy and that of the baby girl? Does the baby’s urine vitiate the ablution of the one carrying the baby? If it happens while the one carrying the baby is in Salaah, does it invalidate the Salaah?
Pouring Water and Washing: Umm Qays bint Muhsin (RA) reported that, "she came with her baby boy who had not started eating to the Messenger of Allaah (salallahu alayhi wa sallam). The Messenger of Allaah sat him on his laps and he urinated on his clothes. So, he requested for water and poured it to it but did not wash it." (Bukhaari and Muslim).
Also, Umm Fadl Lubaabah bint al-Haarith (RA) said, "Hussain bn Ali urinated on the laps of the Messenger of Allaah (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) and I said, O Messenger of A1laah! Give me your clothes and wear another so that I wash it. He said, The urine of the infant male is to be poured water while the urine of the (infant) female is to be washed." (Abu Dawud, Ahmad and others)
From the above, it is clear that for male infants who have not started eating i.e. who besides their breast milk do not take other than the date fruit with which their tahneek is done or the honey which they take for medical purposes and (other) similar things (Naylul Awtaar), their urine is to be poured water while the urine of female infants is to be washed. Also, it is obvious that the urine of the male infant was poured water when he had not started eating. Hence, Qataadah (RH) said, "This is when they both have not started taking food. When they take food, they are (i.e. urine) are all to be washed." (Ahmad and Tirmidhee)
Therefore, al-Imaam lshaaq bn Raahwayh said, "This is what the Scholars among the companions and those who came after them were upon and it was not heard from the Messenger (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) or other than him until the period of the Taabioon that anyone equated between (the treatment of the urine of) male and female infants." (Tuhfatul Maodood).
Does it vitiate Wudhoo? Given that the urine of babies both boys and girls, are also filth with which contact should be avoided and which we are to get rid of when contacted, the urine of children does not vitiate our ablution. This is because the things that nullify the ablution are tawqeefiyyah (based on textual proof) and no proof has been mentioned to show that contact with filth in this form nullifies ablution.
Secondly, it is also noteworthy from the narrations quoted above that the Messenger (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) was not reported to have performed ablution as a result of the urine of the children but rather, he got rid of the filth in the manners mentioned. This conclusion would imply that the single act of a mother who had performed ablution and washes up her child’s urine or feces does not vitiate her ablution.
This article was culled from the publications of Deen Communication Limited