Prayer TimesIn colostomy, stool is discharged uncontrollably into a bag attached directly to the abdominal wall. Patients in this situation are considered to have a valid excuse (uzr) and may benefit from the concessions granted to such individuals in acts of worship. For other religious duties outside of ablution, they act like those without an excuse.
According to the Hanafi school, a person with a valid excuse performs ablution for each prayer time, as the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) instructed a woman with such a condition to do so. (Bukhari, Wudu’, 63 [228]) Unless another factor that nullifies ablution occurs apart from their excuse, the person may perform as many obligatory, necessary, sunnah, make-up, Friday, and Eid prayers, circumambulate the Kaaba, and touch the Mushaf as they wish with the ablution taken within the prayer time. (Marghinani, al-Hidaya, 1/34) However, the ablution of a person with an excuse is invalidated when the prayer time ends, so they must renew their ablution for the next prayer time.
The ablution of a person with an excuse is also nullified by anything else that would normally break ablution, apart from their excuse. (Kasani, Bada’i, 1/28) For example, a person considered excused due to incontinence would also lose their ablution if they experienced a nosebleed or passed wind.
According to the Shafi’i school, a person with an excuse must perform a separate ablution for each obligatory prayer within a prayer time, as their ablution ends with the completion of the prayer. With this ablution, they may perform as many voluntary prayers as they wish. (Shirbini, Mughni’l-muhtaj, 1/282)
According to the Maliki school, the ablution of a person with an excuse is not invalidated by the entry or exit of prayer time, but only by something else that would normally break ablution. (Ibn Rushd, Bidayat al-Mujtahid, 1/41; Desuqi, Hashiya, 1/114-118) If the condition causing the excuse leads to significant hardship and serious difficulty in performing ablution, one may follow this opinion of the Maliki school.
It should also be added that blood, pus, urine, stool, or other impure substances that come out from the site of the excuse and soil the clothes of a person with an excuse do not prevent prayer. The amount of impurity does not change the ruling, as it is unavoidable due to the ongoing excuse. However, if these impurities will not soil the clothes or garment again, they should be washed. (Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar, 1/306-307)
Source: T.C. Diyanet İşleri Başkanlığı, Din İşleri Yüksek Kurulu
This content was drafted with AI assistance and reviewed by an editor.