How To Achieve Ritual Purity With a Bandaged Face?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalamu’alaikum,

An 80 year old lady has had an eye operation and doctors have said that no water must go on or near the bandage covering the eye or even around the head. Can you please explain how she should do her wudu considering she cannot wash or even wipe her face or head with water?

Can she perform tayammum in place of wudu when she recovers considering her weakness and her past difficulty in using water due to feeling ill?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,

I pray that you are in the best of health and faith, insha’Allah.

If she cannot wash her eye and the surrounding area, it is excused, and she need not wash it.

However, she would wash the remainder of the limbs and complete the rest of the ablution (wudu) as normal.

As for whether or not she can perform the dry ablution (tayammum) due to feeling sick, you should consult a doctor and a local scholar to determine if she has sufficient excuse to be able to do so.

And Allah alone gives success.

wassalam,

Tabraze Azam

Checked & Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani