Bathing

Bathing is the washing of the body with a fluid, usually water or an aqueous solution, or the immersion of the body in water. It may be practiced for personal hygiene, religious ritual or therapeutic purposes. By analogy, especially as a recreational activity, the term is also applied to sun bathing and sea bathing.

Bathing can take place in any situation where there is water, ranging from warm to cold. It can take place in a bathtub or shower, or it can be in a river, lake, water hole, pool or the sea, or any other water receptacle. The term for the act can vary. For example, a ritual religious bath is sometimes referred to as immersion, the use of water for therapeutic purposes can be called a water treatment or hydrotherapy, and two recreational water activities are known as swimming and paddling. The city of Bath (known during ancient Roman times as Aquae Sulis) is famous for its public baths fed by hydrothermal springs.

Throughout history, societies devised systems to enable water to be brought to population centres.

Ancient Indians used elaborate practices for personal hygiene with three daily baths and washing. These are recorded in the works called grihya sutras which are in practice even today in some communities.

Ancient Greece utilized small bathtubs, wash basins, and foot baths for personal cleanliness. The earliest findings of baths date from the mid-2nd millennium BC in the palace complex at Knossos, Crete, and the luxurious alabaster bathtubs excavated in Akrotiri, Santorini. The Greeks established public baths and showers within gymnasiums for relaxation and personal hygiene. In fact, the word gymnasium comes from the Greek word gymnos, meaning naked.

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