Hadith: I poured water for the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) to take a ritual bath

عن ميمونة رضي الله عنها قالت: «صَبَبْتُ للنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم غُسْلا، فَأَفْرَغ بيمينه على يساره فغَسَلَهُما، ثم غَسل فَرْجَه، ثم قال بِيَدِه الأرض فَمَسَحَها بالتُّراب، ثم غَسلها، ثم تَمَضْمَضَ واسْتَنْشَقَ، ثم غَسَل وجْهَه، وأفَاضَ على رأسِه، ثم تَنَحَّى، فغسل قَدَمَيه، ثم أُتِيَ بمنْدِيل فلم يَنْفُضْ بها».
[صحيح] - [متفق عليه]

Maymūnah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported: I poured water for the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) to take a ritual bath. So he poured water with his right hand on his left hand and washed them. Then he washed his private parts then rubbed his hand on the ground and cleaned it with dust then washed it. Then he rinsed his mouth and nose. Then he washed his face and poured water over his head. He then moved aside and washed his feet. A towel was brought for him, but he did not dry himself with it.
[Authentic hadith] - [Narrated by Bukhari & Muslim]

Explanation

Maymūnah (may Allah be pleased with her) reports that she prepared water for the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) to take ritual bath. He held the water container with his right hand and poured water on his left hand then washed both hands together. Because the hands are used to transfer the water, he washed them first to make sure that they are clean and free of impurity. Another narration of Maymūnah's report by Al-Bukhāri reads: "he washed his hands two or three times." Following that, he washed his private parts with his left hand to remove traces of semen and any other impurity. The expression 'private parts' here refers to the frontal parts (the anus is excluded), as indicated in the narration of Al-Bukhāri: "then he poured water on his left hand and washed his penis and testicles." "Then he struck his hand on the ground": this was his left hand, as the narration of Al-Bukhāri reads: "then he struck the ground with his left hand and rubbed it vigorously" to eliminate any filth or foul smell. Then he washed his left hand with water to remove dust and any other filth. Then he rinsed his mouth and nose then washed his face. This Hadīth does not state that he performed ablution. However, we know from Maymūnah's report narrated by Al-Bukhāri and Muslim that "he then performed the ablution that he performs for prayer." There is a also a report by ‘Ā'ishah to this effect. He then poured water on his head. Maymūnah's other narration says that he poured three handfuls of water on his head and then washed the rest of his body. Pouring water on the head once is sufficient if the water reaches the whole body. Then the Prophet moved away from the bathing place and washed his feet, meaning that after he had completed his ablution and bathing, he washed his feet again. Finally, a towel was brought to him but he did not dry himself with it. The other narration says that Maymūnah gave him a towel but he declined it. A third narration says that he was brought a towel but he did not touch it, and, instead, he shook the water off his body.