The reasons that make ghusl necessary
What janabah is, why ghusl becomes obligatory, and the detailed rulings for the release of semen, a wet dream, and intercourse.
Someone who needs to make ghusl is called junub, and the reason for it is called janabah. Ghusl becomes fard (necessary) for these reasons:
Reasons ghusl becomes necessary
- A discharge (semen) leaves the body together with a feeling of desire, whether while awake or in a dream.
- A husband and wife have been intimate together, even if nothing else happens.
- A woman's monthly bleeding ends.
- A woman's bleeding after having a baby ends.
A husband and wife who have been intimate together must both make ghusl, once each of them has reached the age of responsibility (baligh), whether or not anything else happened.
A person who is in need of ghusl for one of these reasons is called junub, and the state itself is called janabah.
The reasons ghusl becomes obligatory
- Emission of semen with sexual desire.
- Experiencing a wet dream (ejaculation during sleep).
- Sexual intercourse.
- The end of menstruation (hayd).
- The end of postnatal bleeding (nifas).
Emission of semen with desire (the first reason) applies specifically to semen released with desire while awake (whether through touch, looking, thought, or a deliberate act) even if no desire is felt at the exact moment the semen leaves the body.
If semen is released with desire and the person makes ghusl before urinating, sleeping or walking, and then prays, and afterwards more semen exits without desire, ghusl must be repeated, but the earlier prayer does not need to be repeated.
If semen exits without desire (for example from lifting something heavy, falling from a height, or another physical impact), ghusl does not become obligatory.
A person with a medical condition causing semen to flow continuously is not obligated to make ghusl on that account.
Ghusl is not obligatory where only pre-ejaculatory fluid (madhy) or post-urinary discharge (wady) is released.
A wet dream (ihtilam) is ejaculation occurring during sleep, whether or not it comes with the sensation of intercourse.
| Situation | Ghusl obligatory? |
|---|---|
| Certain the wetness is semen, even without recalling a wet dream | Yes |
| Certain it is madhy, but recalls a wet dream | Yes |
| Uncertain whether it is semen or another discharge, but recalls a wet dream | Yes |
| Certain the fluid is not semen but is madhy or wady | No |
| Uncertain whether it is semen, madhy or wady, and did not recall an erection before sleeping | No |
| Recalls a wet dream, even the sensation of ejaculation, but finds no trace on the body or clothes | No: this applies to women as well |
Intercourse is defined as the entry of the head of the man's private part (hashafah) into a woman's private part, or into the back passage of a man or a woman.
Both the person performing and the person receiving intercourse must make ghusl, regardless of whether ejaculation occurs, provided both are mature (baligh). If only one of them is mature, only that person is obligated to make ghusl, though the minor should still be taught to make ghusl, to build the habit of cleanliness.
Intercourse with an animal, with a deceased person, or with a very young girl not yet an object of desire, does not make ghusl obligatory unless ejaculation occurs.
One obligated to make ghusl by any of these causes is termed junub, and the cause itself is termed janābah.
The reasons that make ghusl obligatory
- Emission of semen (manī) with sexual desire (shahwah).
- A wet dream (ihtilām): ejaculation during sleep.
- Sexual intercourse (jimāʿ).
- The end of menstruation (ḥayḍ).
- The end of postnatal bleeding (nifās).
The first cause applies specifically to semen released with shahwah while awake (whether occasioned by touch, sight, thought or a deliberate act) even where no desire is felt at the precise instant the semen leaves the body.
Where semen is released with desire and ghusl is performed before urinating, sleeping or walking, and prayer follows, and afterward further semen exits without desire, ghusl must be repeated for the second emission, though the prayer already performed need not be repeated.
Emission without desire (from lifting a heavy weight, a fall, or another physical impact) does not oblige ghusl.
One whose semen flows continuously owing to a medical condition (istihādah-like flow) is not obligated to ghusl on that account.
Ghusl is not obligatory for the emission of madhy (pre-seminal fluid) or wady (post-urinary discharge) alone.
Iḥtilām is ejaculation occurring during sleep, whether or not accompanied by the sensation of intercourse.
| Situation | Ghusl obligatory? |
|---|---|
| Certain the wetness is semen, even without recalling a wet dream | Yes |
| Certain the fluid is madhy, but recalls a wet dream | Yes |
| Uncertain whether the fluid is semen or another discharge, but recalls a wet dream | Yes |
| Certain the fluid is not semen, but is madhy or wady | No |
| Uncertain whether the fluid is semen, madhy or wady, and did not recall an erection before sleeping | No |
| Recalls a wet dream, even to the point of the sensation of ejaculation, but finds no trace on the body or clothes | No; this ruling applies equally to women |
Jimāʿ is defined as the entry of the ḥashafah (the glans of the man's organ) into the specific area of a woman's private part, or into the back passage of either a man or a woman.
Ghusl is obligatory on both the active and the receiving party to intercourse, regardless of whether ejaculation occurs, provided both are bāligh. Where only one party is bāligh, the obligation falls on that party alone, although the minor should still be instructed to perform ghusl, so as to instil the discipline of cleanliness.
Intercourse with an animal, with a deceased person, or with a very young girl who is not yet an object of desire, does not oblige ghusl unless ejaculation occurs.
Terms on this page
Related
- Menstruation, postnatal bleeding, and the rulings of major impurity What hayd and nifas are, how long they last, what is forbidden during major impurity, and when prayer and intercourse resume.
- What ghusl is, and when it is required The definition of ghusl, the occasions it is fard, wajib, sunnah or mustahabb, the conditions for it to count, and its three obligations.
- Severe and light impurity, what is excused, and what is not impure at all What counts as severe or light impurity, how much of each is excused on the body or clothes, and things that are not impure at all.
- When wudu is fard, wajib, sunnah or mustahabb The occasions on which wudu is obligatory, necessary before an act, recommended, or simply preferable.