Unfamiliar terms and constructions:
- “lā yabūlanna” (let none of you urinate): the particle lā is prohibitive; the verb is therefore in the jussive mood, and its final vowel is rendered fatḥa because it is followed by the heavy emphatic nūn.
- “alladhī lā yajrī” (that does not flow): an explanatory gloss for al-dāʾim (standing), referring to water that remains fixed in place, such as ponds in the wilderness or public reservoirs.
- “thumma yaghtasilu fīhi” (and then he bathes in it): the verb is in the indicative according to the predominant reading. The whole clause serves as the predicate of an implied subject—i.e., “he then bathes in it.” This subject–predicate clause is coordinated with “lā yabūlanna” and, like it, stands in the jussive position.
- “lā yaghtasil” (let him not bathe): jussive in form because of the prohibitive lā.
- “wa-huwa junub” (while he is junub): a circumstantial clause in the accusative, indicating that the person is in a state of major ritual impurity.
Overall meaning:
The Prophet ﷺ forbade urinating in standing water that does not flow—such as storage tanks, cisterns, ponds in open country, and wells from which people draw drinking water—lest it be polluted and become repulsive to others. Such filthy waste is a known cause of the spread of deadly diseases.
He also forbade washing by immersing one’s body, or even part of it, in non-flowing water so as not to spoil it for other users. Rather, one should scoop the water out. The prohibition is even stronger if the person bathing is junub (in a state of major ritual impurity).
If the water is running, washing—and even urinating—in it is not objectionable, although it is preferable to avoid urinating there because it serves no benefit and still risks contamination and harm to others.
Scholarly disagreement:
The scholars differed: is the prohibition absolute (ḥarām) or merely disliked (makrūh)?
• The Mālikīs hold that it is disliked.
• The Hanbalīs and Ẓāhirīs maintain that it is forbidden.
• Some scholars say it is forbidden when the quantity of water is small and disliked when it is great.
The plain wording of the ḥadīth indicates prohibition regardless of quantity, but vast bodies of water are exempt by unanimous agreement.
They also debated standing water into which urine has been passed: does it retain its purifying quality (ṭahūriyyah) or become impure? If the water’s properties have changed because of the impurity, there is unanimous agreement that it is impure, whether the amount is small or large.