Assalaamu alaykum. I have a problem that disturbs me in my worship, personal life, and family life. This problem relates to ablution. In my fingernails, some of the upper nail layer is peeling. Must water enter under these peels? I have harmed my nails alot. Must water reach only the surface of the nail or also under it? My nail (nailbed) is cracked because I harmed it. Please understand that this causes me to take 30 min to do my ablution, due to which I miss prayers. And I have a urine problem; when something presses against the tip of my penis, some fluid comes out. This bothers me too, because it is chronic, meaning that it persists. Are my prayers valid, and does it invalidate my ablution? May Allah reward you, Shaykh.

All perfect praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

First of all, you should avoid Waswaas (obsessive whisperings), repel them, ignore them, and  not pay any attention to them.

You should perform ablution normally and not wash any part more than three times, no matter how much the devil whispers to you that the water did not reach it.

You do not have to wash underneath those peels; it is enough to make water reach the outer part of the body, including the surface of your nails, even if they are cracked.

As regards the urine discharge that you have, then if it reaches the extent of incontinence to such an extent that you do not find a period of time that is enough to performing the prayer with a correct [valid] purity during its time, then, in such case, you perform ablution after the time of the prayer has started and you pray whatever you wish of obligatory and supererogatory prayers [Nawaafil prayers] with this ablution until the time of that prayer ends.

However, if this incontinence is interrupted for an interval of time which you know to be enough to perform ablution and the prayer, then wait until that time comes and then perform ablution and pray during this time. For more benefit, please refer to fatwa 85661.

If this feeling is a mere illusion, then ignore it and do not consider that you have discharged anything unless you are very certain, with such a degree of certainty that you can swear to it.

Allah knows best.