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Is it permissible for someone suffering from urinary incontinence to perform ablution (wudu') only, without washing the affected area, if their ablution is nullified inside the mosque, after they had already washed the area and performed ablution for the first time upon the entry of the prayer time, in order to avoid washing it again in the mosque's restrooms?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Whoever is afflicted with whisperings (waswas) is advised to ignore them. As for one who suffers from urinary incontinence or similar issues, they must perform istinja' (washing the private parts) and purify the affected area, then tie a cloth around it after the time for prayer has begun. After that, they should perform wudu'. If their wudu' is nullified, they must repeat the washing and bandaging. This is the sounder opinion according to the Shafi'is. However, repeating the washing and bandaging for every prayer is not obligatory, to avoid hardship, unless there is negligence. Re-washing the area and securing it is preferable, but if that is difficult, there is no harm in repeating the wudu' without renewing the washing and bandaging.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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