Is Tayammum permissible for a person who is injured or sick and fears harm from using water?
Chapter on Tayammum
Al-Mughni
Book of Purification
Primary text
It is permissible for the injured or sick person to perform Tayammum if they fear harm to themselves from using water. This is the view held by the majority of scholars, including Ibn Abbas, Mujahid, 'Ikrimah, Tawus, Al-Nakha'i, Qatadah, Malik, and Al-Shafi'i. The evidence supporting this is the verse: {And do not kill yourselves} (Quran 4:29), and the hadith of Amr ibn al-'As when he performed Tayammum due to fear of cold, and the hadith of Ibn Abbas and Jaber concerning the injured man. Furthermore, if Tayammum is permitted out of fear of thirst or fear of a predator, it must also be permitted out of fear of self-harm from water, as the condition of fear itself is not differentiated, only its source.
Supporting text
Ata' did not permit Tayammum for this reason except when water is entirely absent, based on the apparent meaning of the relevant verse. Similar strong caution was narrated from Al-Hasan concerning a leprous man in a state of Janaba, who stated that Ghusl (full washing) is mandatory.