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Fatwa CenterExcessive use of water in taking bath
Question
Assalaamu alaykum. I am very fond of taking long hot showers, be it for the ritual bath or as a regular bath. I take long time to finish it and I enjoy it. It helps me relax and has many other benefits for me. On the other hand, Prophet Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, discouraged excessive use of water even for ablution. Does this mean that excesive use of water in ablution and Ghusl (ritual shower) is haram? Or is it merely disliked? Am I sinful for liking and taking such long showers, or can I continue doing this?
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
The fact that you love hot showers does not justify the excessive use of water. In fact, excessiveness does not take place except in what a person loves; he would not excessively use what he does not love. Israaf (extravagance) is going past limits in using what is permissible. Ibn ‘Aabideen 
wrote, “Israaf means consuming or using what is lawful in excess beyond moderation...” [Radd Al-Muhtaar]
A number of scholars held that Israaf is prohibited, including Shaykhul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah who said, “Israaf in permissible matters means going beyond the limits of moderation; it belongs to the prohibited transgression...” [Majmoo’ Al-Fataawa]
He said about using too much water for Ghusl, “The one who pours water in excess until he makes Ghusl with a Qintaar of water (about 50 kilograms) or more or less is committing a religious innovation and is going against the Sunnah (of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam).”
He also said, “He is not allowed to pour water excessively, because this is prohibited in an absolute sense. In a public bath, it is forbidden in order to preserve the right of the bath owner, because the water therein is part of his assets that has a value. He must abide by the Sunnah in purification; neither be miserly, like the Christians, nor excessive, like the Jews and those who suffer Waswasah (obsessive doubts) in this regard...”
The Shaafi‘i book An-Najm Al-Wahhaaj fi Sharh Al-Minhaaj reads:
“It is disliked to use water extravagantly. Al-Mutawalli held that it is decisively prohibited, based on the following hadeeth which was cited by Al-Bayhaqi in his book Ash-Shu‘ab and narrated on the authority of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr, who related that the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, passed by Sa‘d while he was performing ablution, and he said, ‘What is this extravagance, O Sa‘d?’ He replied, ‘Is there extravagance in ablution?’ He, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said, ‘Yes, even if you are on the bank of a flowing river.’”
So we advise you, dear Brother, to stop using water excessively when taking a bath, and you should be moderate in this regard. For more benefit, please refer to fatwa 96559.
Allah knows best.
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