READ DISCLAIMER BEFORE PROCEEDING
1) Ritual Bath (ghusl)
a) It was mentioned earlier that all four Sunni Schools of
Islamic law agree that the emission of semen (many) with sexual desire
from a man, and ejaculatory fluid upon orgasm from a woman necessitates a ritual
bath (ghusl). As such, after having sex, one is in a state of major ritual impurity
(janaba) and is termed a junub. A junub is prevented from
praying, reciting or touching the Qur'an, entering a Mosque, and other forms of
worship until one purifies oneself. Allah Most High says:
" ... If you are in a
state of major impurity (janaba), cleanse yourself well [by taking a
bath]."
(Qur'an 5:6)
Sayyiduna Abu Hurayra (r) relates that the Messenger of Allah (sa) said:
"Beneath every hair is an
impurity (janaba), hence wash the hair [of the body] and clean the skin.
(Sunan al-Tirmidhi 106 & Sunan Abi Dawud 252)
Apart from the emission of
semen, major ritual impurity also comes about through penetration, with or
without ejaculation, necessitating a ritual bath. Once the head of the penis
enters the vagina, a ritual bath is necessary. In other words, emission of
semen and sex are both independent causes of major ritual impurity and both
necessitate the ritual bath. If semen is discharged without sex, but with
sexual desire, or sexual intercourse takes place without ejaculation, a ritual
bath is necessary in both situations.
In terms of sex without
ejaculation being a cause of Janaba, the following Prophetic narrations
are reported: Sayyiduna Abu Hurayra (r) relates that the Messenger of Allah (sa) said:
''When a man sits amidst four
parts [of the woman] and then exerts pressure on her, a ritual bath becomes
obligatory upon him." And in the hadith reported by the narrator Matar,
there is a further addition, "Even if he does not ejaculate."
(Sahih
al-Bukhari 287 and Sahih Muslim 348, the wording is of Muslim)
Sayyida 'A'isha (r) relates that the Messenger of Allah (sa) said:
''When the [man's] organ goes
beyond the [woman's] organ, a ritual bath becomes necessary."
(Sunan
al-Tirmidh'i 109 and Musnad Ahmad)
Amr ibn Shu'ayb relates from
his father, from his grandfather (r) that the Messenger of Allah (sa) said:
"When the two organs [of
the man and woman] meet, and the top part of the penis is hidden, a ritual bath
becomes necessary."
(Sunan Ibn Majah 611 and Musannaf Ibn Abi
Shayba 1:112)
Imam Nawawi states in his
commentary of the [first] hadith recorded by Muslim: 'The meaning of the hadith
is that the necessity to bathe is not restricted to the ejaculation of semen,
but rather, when the head of the penis becomes hidden into the vagina, a ritual
bath is necessary on the man and woman. There is no difference of opinion on
this today. Some of the Companions and those after them disagreed, but then a consensus
(ijma') was reached on what we just stated." (Al-Minhaj Sharh Sahih
Muslim P: 400)
In regards to the emission of
semen without sex being a cause of Janaba, the following Prophetic
narration is reported: Sayyiduna 'Ali (r) relates:
"I asked the Messenger of Allah
(sa) [through someone else] regarding pre-ejaculatory
fluid (madhy), so he said, "Upon the emission of pre-ejaculatory
fluid, a ritual ablution is obliged, and upon the emission of semen (many), a
ritual bath is obliged."
(Sunan al-Tirmidh'i 114, Sunan Ibn Majah
504 & others)
If a woman ejaculates, even
during sleep, by having an orgasm or achieving sexual climax, she too is
required to have a ritual bath. In this regard, the following Prophetic
narration is reported: Umm Salama, the mother of the believers (r) relates:
"Umm Sulaym, the wife of
Abu Talha, came to the Messenger of Allah (sa) and said, "O Messenger of Allah, surely, Allah is not shy from
the truth. Is it necessary for a woman to take a ritual bath after she has a
wet dream?" The Messenger of Allah (sa) replied, "Yes, if she notices a discharge."
(Sahih
al-Bukhar'i 278)
Imam Ibn Qudama states, 'The
emission of semen with force and desire necessitates a ritual bath for men and
women [i.e. orgasm], whether awake or asleep. This is the position of the
generality of the jurists, as Tirmidhi said, and we are not aware of any
disagreement on this." (Al-Mughn'i 1:197)
Thus, both spouses must ensure
that they take an obligatory ritual bath after having sex, even if there is no
ejaculation. If either of them achieves sexual climax and ejaculates, whether
during foreplay or sleep, they must also take a ritual bath. When taking a
bath, care must be taken that one's whole body is washed properly, ensuring
that water reaches parts of the body that are not washed easily. If the couple
is unaware of how to take a ritual bath properly, they must learn the Islamic
guidelines in this regard.
b) As regards to semen coming
out from the man after he has taken a ritual bath, according to the stronger
position within the Hanafi school and the position of other schools, sexual
gratification (shahwa) and forceful emission (dafq) of semen at
the time of it exiting the private parts are not conditions for the obligation
of a ritual bath, provided the initial cause was sexual climax, and not due to
lifting a heavy object etc. The condition of the initial cause being sexual
climax is specific to the Hanafi school.
According to the"Shafi’i
school, whenever semen exits, a ritual bath is obligatory, regardless of the
initial cause. Given this, the discharge of semen remaining in the passageway
after completing a ritual bath, requires another bath.
However, according to the Hanafi
school, if semen is discharged after urinating, sleeping or excessive walking,
it is not necessary to repeat the bath, as these movements are considered to
have cleaned the passageway and halted the dripping of all semen. As such, any
semen discharged after this is not attributed to the initial gratification and
is considered to have exited without sexual climax. However, a new ablution (wudu) is necessary, since something
has come out of the private parts. As for the prayers, they are valid because
they were performed in a state of purity, given that the bath was invalidated
after the prayer.
If a woman sees fluid exiting from her after taking a
ritual bath, then if she is confident that these are her own fluids, and not
those of the man, the ruling mentioned above applies. If, however, she is in
doubt, she does not need to repeat her bath or any prayers that she may have performed.
This is the position of the Hanafi school.
According to the Shafi’i
school, if she achieved orgasm during sex with her husband, it is obligatory
for her to repeat her bath. This is because her "achieving an orgasm"
is a strong indication that it is her own sexual fluid, and so it is necessary
for her to repeat the bath. However, if she did not achieve an orgasm, she does
not need to repeat her bath, but it does invalidate her ablution, because what
is exiting from her is her husband's semen and not her own fluid. (See: Al-Hidaya
1: 31, Radd al-Muhtar 1: 159-161 and Mughno al-Muhtaj 1: 117-118)
In light of all of this, it is
best for both spouses to make a habit of urinating before taking the obligatory
ritual bath. This will help avoid problems later on, Insha' Allah.
To Be Continued....
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