Ghusl is a ritual bath that lifts a state of major ritual impurity (hayd, nifas, janabat, istihada beyond a tier threshold). It is performed with a specific intention (niyyah) and either by sequence (tartibi: head/neck → right side → left side) or immersion (irtimasi).
When a Shia woman performs ghusl
- Ghusl al-hayd. When menstruation ends. Required before she can resume prayer.
- Ghusl al-nifas. When postpartum bleeding ends.
- Ghusl al-janabat. After sexual intercourse or wet dream.
- Ghusl for istihada Mutawassiṭa. Once a day, pre-Fajr cascade (A. Sistani 393).
- Ghusl for istihada Kathīra. Three times a day. Fajr alone, Zuhr+Asr combined, Maghrib+Isha combined (A. Sistani 394). Each ghusl replaces wudu for those prayers.
Method (A. Sistani)
The two valid methods:
- Tartibi (sequence): intention → head and neck → right side of body (top to bottom) → left side of body. A. Khamenei muqallids should perform right-then-left as obligatory precaution; the order is a known divergence point.
- Irtimasi (immersion): intention → submerge the entire body in water at once.
For full step-by-step, the Tuhr app ships an in-app ghusl guide for each ghusl type per the user’s marja.
Related
Primary sources
- A. Sistani · 393 Medium istihada (mutawassiṭa). One ghusl per day plus wudu
For medium istiḥāḍah, a woman must, based on obliga tory precaution, perform one ghusl daily for her prayers, and she must do the things that were mentioned in the previous ruling with regard to slight istiḥāḍah. Therefore, if she experiences medium istiḥāḍah before or during morning (ṣubḥ) prayers, she must perform ghusl for ṣubḥ prayers based on obligatory precaution. If she intentionally or forgetfully does not perform ghusl for ṣubḥ prayers, she must perform ghusl for midday (ẓuhr) and afternoon (ʿaṣr) prayers. And if she does not perform ghusl for ẓuhr and ʿaṣr prayers, she must perform ghusl before prayers after sunset (maghrib) and evening (ʿishāʾ) prayers, whether the bleeding has stopped or not.
- A. Sistani · 394 Heavy istihada (kathīra). Three ghusls per day
For excessive istiḥāḍah, a woman must, based on obligatory precaution, change or purify with water the piece of cotton [or sanitary pad/another absorbent item]. It is also necessary for her to perform one ghusl for ṣubḥ prayers, one for ẓuhr and ʿaṣr prayers, and one for maghrib and ʿishāʾ prayers. Furthermore, she must not delay between ẓuhr and ʿaṣr prayers nor between maghrib and ʿishāʾ prayers; if she delays between them, she must perform ghusl again for ʿaṣr and ʿishāʾ prayers. All of this applies when blood continuously soaks the piece of cotton [or sanitary pad/another absorbent item] and reaches the bottom of it. However, in the event that there is a delay in the blood soaking the piece of cotton [or sanitary pad/another absorbent item] and reaching the bottom of it to the extent that the woman can perform one or more prayers in that time, the obligatory precaution is that whenever the blood soaks the piece of cotton [or sanitary pad/another absorbent item] and reaches the bottom of it, she must change or purify it with water and perform ghusl. Therefore, if a woman performs ghusl and, for example, she performs ẓuhr prayers but before ʿaṣr prayers or during ʿaṣr prayers blood soaks the piece of cotton [or sanitary pad/another absorbent item] and reaches the bottom of it, then again, she must perform ghusl for ʿaṣr prayers based on obligatory precaution. However, in the event that the delay is to the extent that in that time, the woman can perform two or more prayers – for example, she can perform maghrib and ʿishāʾ prayers before blood reaches the bottom of it again – then for those prayers [i.e. maghrib and ʿishāʾ], it is not necessary for her to perform another ghusl. In each case, for excessive istiḥāḍah, ghusl suffices in place of wuḍūʾ.