Rishama (ablution)

It is performed daily, before sunrise, with hair covered and after evacuation of bowels, or before religious ceremonies.

[2][3]: 16 Tamasha (ṭamaša) is another type of ablution performed by Mandaeans in which the entire body is fully immersed three times in water.

[1] Although the term for the Mandaean daily minor ablution is also spelled the same in written Classical Mandaic (rišama), the word for 'minor ablution' is pronounced in Modern Mandaic as rešāmā, while 'head priest' is pronounced rišammā.

Below is a list of rishama procedures by Shadan Choheili of the Ganzibra Dakhil Mandi in Liverpool, New South Wales, Australia.

John D. Turner and other scholars have noted that in Sethianism, rituals reminiscent of Mandaean ablutions (i.e., the rishama and tamasha) are mentioned in Nag Hammadi texts such as the Trimorphic Protennoia, since they involve triple immersion in water, signing, and other similar features.

Mandaeans performing rishama at the Karun River in Ahvaz , Iran
Instructions in Arabic on how to perform rishama (photograph taken at Yahya Yuhana Mandi in Sydney, Australia). Summary:

1. Wash the hands
2. Wash the face 3 times
3. Wash the forehead 3 times
4. Wash the ears 3 times
5. Wash the nose
6. Wash the seat
7. Wash the mouth 3 times
8. Wash the knees 3 times
9. Wash the legs 3 times
10. Throw water on the head with the fingers of both hands
11. Dip right and then left foot in water