Chapter: The Ritual Bath (ghusl) for Major Impurity (janābah)
Ghusl—with a ḍamma on the letter ghayn—means bathing the whole body with water.
The root meaning of janābah is “to be distant.” One who has had intercourse or from whom semen has issued is called junub because his fluid has left its natural place and “distanced” itself.
This chapter sets out the rulings connected to the ritual bath, clarifies its causes and etiquette, and discusses related matters. It belongs to the broader category of purification prescribed for prayer and is a form of cleanliness that Islam strongly encourages, over and above the bodily and spiritual benefits it affords. Allah, Exalted is He, says: “But if you are in a state of major impurity, then purify yourselves” (Q 5:6).
When a person engages in intercourse and the semen—considered the very extract and essence of the body—exits, he experiences a degree of strain and fatigue, together with lethargy, indolence, mental dullness, and a slowing of the blood’s circulation. Out of mercy, the All-Wise, All-Aware has prescribed this full ablution, which restores the body’s strength, stimulates blood flow, and brings back vitality. How many wisdoms and secrets lie in Allah’s Law! May He enable us to grasp them and to believe in them.
Hadith One
Abū Hurayrah reported that the Prophet ﷺ met him on (1) one of the roads of Medina while he was junub. Abū Hurayrah said, “So I slipped away from him, went off, performed ghusl, and then returned.” The Prophet ﷺ asked, “Where were you, Abū Hurayrah?” He replied, “I was in a state of major impurity and did not wish to sit with you while I was without purification.” The Prophet ﷺ said, “Subḥān Allāh! A believer does not become ritually impure.”
Unfamiliar Vocabulary
1 – “Slipped away (inkhanastu)”—with nūn, ḵhāʾ, and sīn—derives from khunūs, meaning to withdraw and hide; that is, I stole away and concealed myself. Ibn Fāris said: “al-khanas denotes quiet departure; ‘khansa’ of men means they held back.”
2 – “from him”: that is, on account of him, because I regarded myself impure in comparison to his purity and majesty ﷺ.
3 – “I was junub”: meaning, “I was in a state of janābah.” The term applies to the singular and the plural, male and female alike.