Answered by Shaykh Abdurragmaan Khan
Question: Assalam alaykum,
Standing urinals are common place where I am from. I understand that it is disliked for men to pass urine while standing, and that there is a narration regarding punishment in the grave for not cleaning oneself properly after passing urine.
Would it be fine to use those urinals while ensuring proper istinja’ using water and/or tissue?
Answer: Wa alaykum al-Salam
You are correct that standing and urinating is makruh and that carelessness in avoiding najasah in the lavatory will be one the great causes of punishment in the grave.
Consequently, the usage of standing urinals is disliked or makruh. This means that Allah will not take to task the one who does so; as how he will similarly not earn reward from Allah. In the instance of using such urinals, extra care should be taken to ensure that no najasah touches one’s clothing. In the instance that najasah does spill on his clothing, the area will have to be washed before praying therein. In addition, care should be taken that one’s awrah cannot be seen by others using the lavatory. If the awrah could be seen by others, the usage of the urinal will be impermissible.
Finally, as cautious as one may be, standing urinals are generally places of filth and not ideal for Muslims. Muslims pride themselves on cleanliness, especially in the lavatory. Thus, as far possible, the usage of such urinals, though not necessarily haram or impermissible, should be avoided.
And Allah knows best
Wassalam
[Shaykh] Abdurragmaan Khan
Shaykh Abdurragmaan received ijazah ’ammah from various luminaries, including but not restricted to: Habib Umar ibn Hafiz—a personality who affected him greatly and who has changed his relationship with Allah, Maulana Yusuf Karaan—the former Mufti of Cape Town; Habib ‘Ali al-Mashhur—the current Mufti of Tarim; Habib ‘Umar al-Jaylani—the Shafi‘i Mufti of Makkah; Sayyid Ahmad bin Abi Bakr al-Hibshi; Habib Kadhim as-Saqqaf; Shaykh Mahmud Sa’id Mamduh; Maulana Abdul Hafiz al-Makki; Shaykh Ala ad-Din al-Afghani; Maulana Fazlur Rahman al-Azami and Shaykh Yahya al-Gawthani amongst others.