❖ Introduction
This article is based on the work of Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Ameenpuri (حفظه الله), revised for clarity and structured with headings for easier comprehension. It critically examines the narrations regarding the purity of the Prophet Muhammad’s ﷺ excreta and the scholarly verdicts concerning them.❖ The Narration of Umm Ayman (رضي الله عنها)
It is narrated that Umm Ayman (رضي الله عنها) once drank from a clay pot in which the Prophet ﷺ had urinated, thinking it contained water due to thirst. In the morning, she informed the Prophet ﷺ, who said:"أما إنّک لا یتجعن بطنک أبدا"
"Indeed, you shall never suffer from stomach illness ever again."
Al-Mustadrak ʿala al-Ṣaḥīḥayn (4/63–64), Ḥilyat al-Awliyāʾ (2/67), Dalāʾil al-Nubuwwah (2/380–381), al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr (25/89–90), Talkhīṣ al-Ḥabīr (1/31), al-Bidāyah wa al-Nihāyah (5/326), al-Iṣābah fī Tamyīz al-Ṣaḥābah (4/433)❖ Critique of the Chain of Transmission
This narration is severely weak due to the presence of:- ʿAbd al-Malik bin Ḥusayn Abū Mālik al-Nakhaʿī — a rejected (matrūk) narrator.
Taqrīb al-Tahdhīb (Entry 8337) - The isnād in Abū Yaʿlā's version omits Abū Mālik al-Nakhaʿī, who should have connected the chain.
- Disconnection (inqiṭāʿ) exists between Nubayḥ al-ʿAnazī and Umm Ayman, making the chain defective.
- Additionally, Muslim bin Qutaybah and al-Ḥusayn bin Ḥarb, both found in the chain, are unverified.
❖ Another Version of the Narration
Another version states:"فما مرضت قطّ حتّی کانت مرضہا الذی ماتت فیہ"
"She never fell ill again, except for the illness in which she died."
Talkhīṣ al-Ḥabīr (1/32)Critical Issues:
- The chain is severely disconnected and mudallas.
- Both ʿAbd al-Razzāq and Ibn Jurayj are mudallis narrators, and the informant is unknown (majhūl).
❖ Additional Narration: The Incident of Barakah
Narrated from Umaymah (رضي الله عنها):The Prophet ﷺ had a wooden cup which he would use to urinate in and place under his bed. A woman named Barakah, who had come from Abyssinia with Umm Ḥabībah (رضي الله عنها), mistakenly drank it. When asked, she admitted to it. The Prophet ﷺ said:
"You have shielded yourself from the Hellfire" — or said something of similar meaning.
Al-Āḥād wa al-Mathānī (3342) – hasan chain, al-Istiʿāb (4/251) – hasan chain, al-Muʿjam al-Kabīr (24/189), al-Sunan al-Kubrā by al-Bayhaqī (7/67) – ṣaḥīḥ chainClarification:
This appears to be an accidental act. The spiritual reward she received could have been due to the discomfort and repentance she experienced, not from the act itself. Allah compensates the believer for every hardship.
❖ Narration of Salma, the Wife of Abū Rāfiʿ
It is said that Salma drank from the leftover water of the Prophet ﷺ’s bath. The Prophet ﷺ responded:"حرّم اللّٰہ بدنک علی النار"
"Allah has made your body forbidden for the Fire."
Majmaʿ al-Zawāʾid (8/483)Critique:
- Maʿmar bin Muḥammad is a narrator in the chain and is declared a liar (kadhdhāb).
Majmaʿ al-Zawāʾid (8/270) - Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar states:
"وفی السند الضعف" — “There is weakness in the chain.”
Talkhīṣ al-Ḥabīr (1/32)
❖ Legal Ruling on the Purity of the Prophet's ﷺ Excreta
There is no definitive Sharʿī evidence establishing that the Prophet’s excreta (such as urine or feces) is pure (ṭāhir).However, Zakariyya Kāndhlawī, a Deobandi Tablighi author, wrote:
“The excreta, feces, and urine of the Prophet ﷺ are all pure.”
Tablīghī Nisāb, p. 185This exaggerated and baseless claim is refuted by Ashraf ʿAlī Thānawī, another prominent Deobandi scholar:
"طہارت (پاک ہونے) کا دعویٰ بلا دلیل ہے"
“Claiming purity (for such things) is without any evidence.”
Bawādir al-Nawādir, p. 393❖ Conclusion
The claim that the Prophet’s excreta is pure lacks any sound, Sharʿī evidence. The narrations cited in its support are either weak, fabricated, or misinterpreted. Exaggerated claims regarding such matters must be avoided, and Islamic beliefs should remain grounded in authentic evidence.وَاللهُ أَعْلَم، وَعِلْمُهُ أَحْكَم!
