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Does the ghusl become invalid if performed with water and soap, even if its sunnahs are applied, given that ghusl is performed with water only?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Scholars differed on purification with water altered by a pure substance, such as soap, holding two views:

The first: Non-permissibility, because it is not absolute water. This is the view of Malik and Al-Shafi'i, and one narration from Ahmad.

The second: Permissibility, because it is still called water and nothing else has overwhelmed it. This is the view of Abu Hanifa and the other narration from Ahmad, and it was preferred by Ibn Taymiyyah, who cited as evidence Allah’s saying: "Then find no water."

Accordingly, it is permissible to bathe with water mixed with soap, though it is more cautious to bathe with water alone. However, if the intention is to wash the body with soap and then pour water over it with the intention of purification, then the washing is undoubtedly valid.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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