Question

I need to construct a toilet and sink in a very small washroom. In order to be able to do wudu in that washroom, I will need to install the toilet in such a way that the person will end up facing the qibla or have their back towards it. If I don't do this, I won't be able to have a sink for wudu. Please could you advise what I can do?

Answer

While attending the toilet, to face the direction of qiblah or to have one’s back towards it is prohibitively disliked (makruh e tahrimi) because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

‘When you relieve yourself, do not face the qiblah nor have your back towards it, but face towards the east or the west’ [Muslim].

As a result, to construct the toilet in such a direction is not permitted.

It is stated Bahar e Shari’ah with reference to Radd al-Muhtar:

At the time of urinating or defecating or while cleaning [after attending the toilet], neither should the face be towards qiblah nor should the back. This ruling is general; be it in one’s home or in a field. If one unintentionally sat down facing the qiblah or with one’s back towards it, then upon remembering, change your position immediately, for there is hope that he will be forgiven immediately.

It is in Fatawa Ridawiyyah:

While defecating or urinating, it is neither permissible to face the qiblah nor have your back towards the revered direction of qiblah. [4/601 & 608]

As a result, you should construct the toilet in such a way that when a person sits, neither his face nor his back is towards the qiblah. This will have to be done at the expense of placing a sink for wudu. You can always do wudu elsewhere in the house and Allah knows best.

Muhammad Kalim
21 Ramadan 1438

Verified by Mufti Zahid Hussain al-Qadiri