THE OBLIGATORY BATH (GHUSL)
Allah Ta'ala states in The Holy Quran:
'And if you need the obligatory bath (for janabah) then purify yourselves well'
(Surah Al-Ma'ida. verse 06)
Hazrat Aa'isha(Radi Allaahu Anha) narrates when the Beloved Prophet ﷺ would take the bath of janabah, he ﷺ would commence by first washing his blessed hands. Thereafter, he ﷺ would perform ablution like for the prayer. He ﷺ would then dip his blessed fingers into the water, wetting the roots of his blessed hair. He ﷺ would thereafter pour three handfuls of water thrice over his blessed head and he ﷺ then would pour water over his blessed body.
(Bukhari, Muslim).
METHOD OF PERFORMING GHUSL
Make intention in your heart. 'I intend to perform ghusl to purify myself'.
1. Wash both hands up to your wrist three times.
2. Wash your private parts regardless of whether or not you can see any impurity.
3. Wash any impurity off your body (if any).
4. Perform wudu except washing of the feet.
5. Rub water on the whole body like oil.
6. Pour water over your right shoulder three times, and then three times over your left shoulder.
7. Pour water over your head and the rest of the body three times.
8. Step aside from where you were standing and wash your feet if you did not wash them during wudu.
9. Do not face the kabah whilst performing ghusl.
10. Rub your hands all over your body whilst washing.
11. If there is no enclosed area, then men should cover their private parts (navel to knees) with a thick piece of cloth, because a thin piece of cloth will stick to the body when wet, allowing the colour of skin to be visible.
12. Women should be extra cautious whilst performing ghusl.
13. Do not recite any dua or talk whilst performing ghusl.
14. There is no harm in drying yourself with a towel once you have finished.
15. Put on your clothes immediately after performing ghusl.
THE OBLIGATORY (FARZ) ACTIONS OF GHUSL
If there is a shortcoming in any of them, the ghusl will be invalid.
The first obligatory action is to rinse the mouth: To allow the water to pass through the entire mouth, over every nook and corner, up to the back of the throat, between the gaps in the teeth and over every part of the tongue, up to the edge of the throat. Remember that if something is trapped in the base of the teeth or in the gaps between the teeth, thereby obstructing water from passing through, then it must be removed. In essence the whole mouth should properly be washed.
The second obligatory action is cleaning the nose, i.e. to rinse both nostrils up to the soft area by sniffing (sucking) the water into the nostrils. Not a single area equivalent to a hair should be left unwashed; otherwise the ghusl will become invalid. If mucus has dried up inside the nostrils, it is obligatory to remove this. It is also obligatory to wash the nose hairs.
The third obligatory action is to wash the surface of the entire body, i.e. to pass water over the surface of the entire body, making sure that water passes on every limb and every fine strand of hair on the body. Many in the general public (i.e. laymen) and also some educated people think that to merely pour water over the head and then run the hands over the entire body suffices as ghusl, whereas there are certain parts in the body that unless one does not pay special attention to them, they will not be washed and the ghusl will become invalid.
SUNNAH ACTIONS OF GHUSL
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1. To make the intention (niyat) of ghusl.
2. To wash both hands three times up to and including the wrists.
3. To wash the private parts, if there are traces of impurity (najasat) evident or not.
4. To wash away any impurity (najasat) from anywhere else on the body.
5. Perform ablution (wudu) like one does in prayer but do not wash the feet at this time. However, if one is sitting on an elevated place, like a platform or on a rock etc. then one may wash the feet.
6. Rub water over the body like one applies oil. This should be done especially in winter.
7. Pour water over the right shoulder three times.
8. Pour water over the left shoulder three times.
9. Pour water three times over the head and the entire body.
10. Then move slightly away from the actual place where you made ghusl and if you have not as yet washed your feet during wudu, wash them now.
11. Do not face the direction of qiblah when bathing.
12. Run your hands over the entire body.
13. Rub the hands over the entire body.
14. Perform ghusl in such a place where none is able to see you.
15. If this is not possible then it is necessary to at least cover the area between the navel and below the knee (This is for males only. Females must perform ghusl in an enclosed area). If one is not able to fulfil even this requirement then one should perform tayammum. However, this is something that is very rarely needed.
EXTRA CARE TO BE TAKEN WHILST PERFORMING GHUSL
For men, if the hair is braided, then it is necessary for him to open the braids and wash them from the roots right to the edges.
1. Women need to wash the roots only without opening the braids. But, if the braids are too tight for water to reach the roots, then they will have to open them. (Fatawa Alamgiri)
2. For pierced nose and ears, it is obligatory (farz) to make sure that the water flows through the piercing of both the nose and the ears. For wudu, water only needs to flow through the piercing of the nose.
3. The hair behind the ears has to be lifted to wash the back of the ears.
4. The head has to be lifted upwards to wash the joint between the chin and the throat.
5. The arms have to be lifted to wash the armpits.
6. The whole of the back has to be washed properly.
7. Women have to make sure that every part of the body has to be washed properly.
8. For bandages wrapped over a wound, if opening it is difficult or will be harmful, then only wiping over the bandage will be sufficient. Similarly, if washing a limb causes harm due to an illness or pain, then only one can wipe it with his hands.
WOMEN NEED TO TAKE NOTE
1. It is obligatory (farz) for women to remove nail polish from their fingernails for ghusl to be valid.
2. If the woman is performing ghusl at the end of her menses or after childbirth bleeding, it is desirable for her to use a piece of cloth to clean blood residue from within the private part.
3. All the external parts of the private parts need to be washed.
4. The line where the abdomen and the breasts meet needs to be washed.
5. The breasts need to be lifted to wash underneath.
WHEN GHUSL BECOMES OBLIGATORY?
Discharge of sperm-when it leaves its origin due to lust.
1. Wet dreams.
2. Physical intimate or sexual relationship with ones spouse.
3. After the termination of menses.
4. After the termination of pro-child birth bleeding.
PERFORMING GHUSL IN FLOWING WATER i.e. A SHOWER, RIVER OR A STREAM
If you are performing ghusl in flowing water, then remaining in the water or under the flowing water for a little while fulfils the sunnah of washing the limbs three times.
However, performing ghusl in still water (swimming pool etc) necessitates one to move their limbs three times or move to three different areas of the pool to fulfil the sunnah of washing the limbs three times.
If someone stands in flowing water, a big pond, or under the rain for the time it takes to perform ghusl or wudu, then he has performed the complete sunnah.
(Durr e Mukhtar)
When performing ghusl in the rain, rivers and stream, or swimming in a pool, a thick piece of cloth should be used over your trousers to prevent the colour of your thighs being exposed.
Women need to take extreme caution.
Performing ghusl whilst exposing ones satr in front of others is haraam.
(Fatawa Razviyah)
It is a sunnah to perform ghusl on Fridays, Eid Ul-Fitr, Eid Ul-Adha, on the Day of Arafat (9th Dhul Hijjah), and before wearing ihraam.
(Fatawa Alamgiri)
Prophet Muhammadﷺ said, 'angels do not enter a house in which there are pictures, dogs, and people who are in need of ghusl'.
(Abu Dawood)
