Praise be to Allah.
Can We Drink Water While Standing in Islam?
It is permissible to drink standing and sitting, but drinking whilst sitting is preferable.
It says in Fatawa Al-Lajnah Ad-Da’imah (22/133):
The basic principle is that one should drink sitting down, and this is preferable, but one may drink whilst standing. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did both, to demonstrate that the matter is broad in scope. (End quote)
Should You Face Qiblah While Drinking?
With regard to facing the Qiblah whilst drinking, no Hadith has been narrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) concerning that.
Is It Recommended to Face the Qiblah When Drinking Zamzam Water?
The jurists (may Allah have mercy on them) regarded it as recommended to face towards the Qiblah when drinking Zamzam water, and they quoted as evidence for that the report narrated by Ibn Majah (3061) from Muhammad ibn `Abd Ar-Rahman ibn Abu Bakr (may Allah have mercy on him) who said:
I was sitting with Ibn `Abbas, and a man came to him and he said: Where have you come from? He said: From Zamzam. He said: Did you drink from it as you should? He said, How is that? He said: When you drink from it, turn to face the Qiblah and mention the name of Allah, drink three draughts and drink your fill of it. When you have finished, then praise Allah. The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The sign (that differentiates) between us and the hypocrites is that they do not drink their fill from Zamzam.”
It was classed as inauthentic by Shaykh Al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) in Da`if Sunan Ibn Majah. (See also: Al-Mawsu`ah Al-Fiqhiyyah, 1/91)
The Hadith quoted above is inauthentic, as stated, hence the more correct view is that it is not recommended to face towards the Qiblah whilst drinking, whether one is drinking Zamzam water or anything else.
Shaykh Ibn `Uthaymin (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Some of them said: … and he should face the Qiblah. But this is a weak opinion, because the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) drank Zamzam water and it is not narrated that he faced towards the Qiblah (whilst doing so). (End quote from Ash-Sharh Al-Mumti`, 7/348)
And Allah knows best.
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