Purity: Wiping the Skin or Hair of the Head

Practical Laws of Islam as per the teachings of Ayatullah Sistani

Ruling 250

It is not necessary that the wiping of the head be on its skin; rather, it is also correct (ṣaḥīḥ) to wipe the hair on the front of one’s head. However, if the length of someone’s hair at the front of his head is so long that, for example, were he to comb it, it would fall onto his face or it would reach other parts of his head, then he must wipe the roots of the hair. If he gathers at the front of his head the hair which falls on his face or which reaches the other parts of his head and then wipes it, or if he wipes the hair that has come to the front part of his head from other parts of his head, then such a wiping is invalid.

-Ayatullah Sistani, Practical Laws of Islam, Purification (Taharah)