To Pray or Not to Pray (Part 2)

Not too long ago, I had the privilege of joining a Rabata workshop ( https://ribaat.rabata.org) which discussed in detail the 4 Madhab (or schools of thought) and their opinions/rulings on the different aspects of the menstrual period.  The following below are my notes from the workshop. I’ve kept the information in notes and bullet form, the way I had originally written/typed them out during the workshop. I have not added anything outside of what was taught during the workshop. Anything good and of benefit for you is from the each Speaker (whose names I have added below).  Any mistakes are my own. (May Allah (swt) forgive me for those mistakes)  I understand there continues to be a lot of confusion among us women, in regards to our menstrual cycle and when we must stop and resume praying each month. Everybody’s body, cycle and situation is different. These are the basics and a maybe a little more. For more specific and unique questions or concerns, please do reach out to any of the follow speakers in addition to your OBGYN/Physician.  Once again, I hope that this in conjunction with my post “Part 1”, you, my sisters will find benefit and will be more at ease in your specific situations, questions and concerns. May Allah accept it.

By: Anse Marah Dahman- Shafi’i Perspective

• Hayd: menstrual blood flow from the vagina of a woman who is free of illness which could cause such flow.
• Any derivative of any red color. pink, orange, black. Mostly blackish. Basically any shade of red.
• Minimum age is 9 years, no maximum.
• Istihadha; any blood we see outside of the period time. For Example: Post-partum.
• Shortest duration of menstrual period: 24 hours. One day, one night. Happens in younger ages. Don’t be surprised if you are changing. Age, stress, weather, etc, can all effect your period.
• Maximum length: 15 days (and nights)
• Average menstrual period: 6-7 days and nights.
• Minimal Ritual purity: 15 days, no maximum. You might not see your period for a long time, and all that time you are pure.
  • Remember we are pure all the time.
• Menstrual cycle generally is 30 days. It can change. It is not necessary for it to be 30 days, these are general numbers.
• Chart shows that Minimum and maximum days of purity.
• Sometimes the later the period is the longer it lasts. So for example, some people don’t get there period for 3 months but then when it comes it lasts like 20 days.
• If you see pink and then nothing for a day or two and then red, this is ALL part of your period!! (pink, pause and then red) If you know this is your habit, then that is all that matters, then it is all your period, and you have to stop praying.

Considerations and signs of finishing period:

• Any color before white discharge is period.
  • Pink, beige, brown, yellow.
  • Unless you totally see white, you are in your period.
  • Don’t rush it, and we rush it because we are not at peace with our period. We don’t accept it, we feel guilty when we are having it, we try to rush through it to finish.
• How to check: while you are seated check with a white tissue or cloth. Check frequently if you can. Check between Salah times.
• Yellow is not period unless it’s at the end of the period. If its at the beginning its NOT period.
• So first yellow and then white. After white you are done with your period.
• No need to insert. Just hold it there and check. You can even check every 15 minutes, to make sure you are done if there is an hour left of salat, for example.
• If Salat is going to end soon, you can do a quick shower/ghusl 5 min, doesn’t need to be a full on 20 min shower at that point.
• If you are out and find out you are done with your period and there is no way to do ghusl outside, you can do Tayammum instead of ghusl. That is if ghusl is impossible, do Tayammum, wudu, and pray.
• That is how sacred Salat/prayer is.
• This is the way you will never miss a salat.
• It has to be white or clear.
• If you see white, then you are fine and you can do ghusl.
• If AFTER the white you see beige, or yellow or cloudy— this is NOT period.
• If you see no white at all, dryness only. If you don’t see anything, at this time you can insert a little tissue, you can see if you see any white. If you still don’t you can wait a maximum of a day 24 hours/5 prayers, (some say max is 3 prayers) and try again the next day to see if you see any white.
• Its all about habit.
• If you ALWAYS See yellow then note when your pink ended, because maybe you miss the small window of white discharge.
• If you see yellow or beige or brown AFTER the white, it is NOT your period.
• But if you see red after the white discharge that indicated your period end, then THAT red is according to where you in your month. If that red is within the 15 days it is still your period. But if the red has come after your 15 days, then its Istehada.

Istihadha:

• The pathological blood outside of the menstrual period is time is Istihadha, including bleeding caused by IUD.
• It can be different in color or flow from the regular menstrual period.
• It might be less in flow, it might be bright in color. (Menses blood is usually darker red or blackish)
• If Istihadha blood is not different the woman should refer to her menstrual habit. For example: Ask yourself what is your regular menstrual habit, its usually 6-7 days, and I cannot tell if its Hayd or Istihadha, so I will wait 6-7 days and then pray.
• Habit is established with ONE time. One cycle. Unless your circumstances have changed. Such as some thing drastic: you moved, major stress, IUD placement, contraceptive pills etc.
• But Allah allows us to establish and follow our habit, once.
• Women can do anything during Istihadha as they do during the ritual purity. For example: holding Quran, reading Quran, praying, fasting, intercourse etc.

Period or Istihadha?

• 15 days or less is considered all period.
  • Even if your habit 6-7 days and for some reason or another bleeding continues longer than that, that is still part of your period. All period. As long as it continues for 15 days. Its period.
• If your blood passes 15 than you can consider Istihadha. Meaning your 15th day has started and gone and bleeding has still not stopped. That is Istihadha. Misconception is that 15 days of period and then two extra days that I bled is Istihadha. This not true. ???
• So if your bleeding passes 15 days, go back and see when period ended and Istihadha started? To see when period ended and Istihadha started. It doesn’t mean that all was period. What is your habit? 6-7 days. And now the rest is Istihadha. So at 15 days make ghusl even if you are still bleeding. Now your period is actually over. And the bleeding you are having now after the 15 days is Istihadha.
• As women we feel guilty, we are leaving prayer, but you are doing this to establish habit for the first time. Make your habit once.
• So now if you figure out that the habit is 6-7 days of period and the rest was isthihada, then the fast and prayers you missed in those days after period (6-7 days) you need to make up because they were istihadha.
• 15 days is minimum of ritual purity needed.

• Another example:
  • You bleed and then think it stops in the middle and then after a day starts again, under the 15 days mark this is all still period. Its not over yet. You didn’t check with cloth or tissue for the whiteness and therefore you thought period was over but it really was not and kept going. As long as its under the 15 days, regardless of the pause, its all still period. Cannot pray or fast in this time if you are still bleeding.
  • But lets say you have your period, its pauses or “stops” and then you start bleeding again and that second bleeding is continuing beyond 15 days, all that blood after the Pause/stop is Istihadha. The Istihadha after the stop or pause  means you are responsible for fasting and praying.
  • Most of the Istihadha is at the end. The beginning is usually menses.

• 30 day cycle
  • Lets say you saw your period blood for 8 days at the beginning of the 30 days and then no blood. And then in the same 30 days at the end you see more blood or bleeding again at the 25th day. So you bled for 8 days, stopped and then started bleeding again at the 25th day. This blood is not istihada its your period again. Because you already had 15 days of purity in this cycle. (after the 8 days and prior to the 25th day where bleeding started again, you had 17 days of purity.)
• Use your calendar or app down to the minute. According to prayer times or regular times.

During Istihadha:

• Wudu for each Fard Prayer
• Wash before wudu.
• Wudu after the call to prayer
• Pray as much desire Nafl or reading the Quran etc. with the same Wudu unless Wudu is nullified for other reasons.

Prohibitions during Menstrual period:

• Obligatory Ghusl
• Prayers, tawaf
• Fasting
• Reading Quran out loud
• Touch Quran or holding it
• Staying in the masjid, passing by is ok
• Intercourse
• Divorce

Waqad Idrak: make up what you missed without sin or fault attached. So if Dhuhr prayer athan happened and you did not pray and then your period started, you are responsible for making that up after you finish your period. If Athan happened and then you got your period 2 minutes later, then of course you are not responsible for the prayer bc that was not enough time for prayer. But other wise you are responsible for it after your period ends.

-standing in prayer while in doubt is same as missing a prayer, same sin.

Source:

-Fiqh al-Ibadat- Jurisprudence of worship

Ustadha Farzana Chowdhury- Hanafi Fiqh Perspective

• Types of Vaginal bleeding
  • Hayd: Menstrual Bleeding, earliest 9 years old. Anything before that is Istihadha.
    • Minimum is, 3 days 72 hours. Less than this is Istihadha.
    • Maximum is 10 days, 240 hours.
    • Colors: red, pink, yellow, black, brown, earthy tones. All considered menstrual discharge. Seen in the days of menses is Menstrual blood/Hayd
    • Starts: once the blood flows from inner lips of the vagina, regardless if it flows out or not. You have to actually see it for it to begin. Disliked to insert anything into the vagina, like tampon or menstrual cups.
    • If a day passes without bleeding and falls in the 10 days of menstruation period, it is considered continuous flowing blood. There are going to be times when you won’t have blood flow.
    • For example: you have 3 days of bleeding and then you don’t see bleeding for one day, and then bleeding starts again for another 2 days. ALL 6 days are considered Hayd. Despite there being a day you did not have bleeding.
    • Days of Purity:
      • Minimum: 15 days of purity, between cycles. Example: you have hayd for 3-10 days and then it stops. 15 days have to pass without period for you to consider the next bleeding to be hayd again. Even if you are bleeding in these 15 days in between, you are still in state of purity bc its not part of your menses/hayd. That bleeding in those 15 days of purity will be considered Istihadha.
      • Maximum: no maximum. Can extend months to years.
    • Understand your Habit: Very important. Determined the number of days of bleeding and purity a woman experienced in the PREVIOUS month. Use apps or calendar to establish this habit. Note the times/salat times. Habits can change.
    • If bleeding continues the maximum of 10 days, refer back to the habit of the previous month.
      • Example: bleed for 3 days, thats your habit. in January. in February she bleeds for the 3 days plus the 4th day. SO now her habit becomes 4 days. March she bleeds for 4 days, has an extra bleeding day making it 5. 5 days becomes the habit. April comes and she bleeds 5 days and then extra 2 days of bleeding. April has become 7 days. May comes she bleeds for 7 days plus 4 more days. (this surpasses the maximum of 10 days for period). So now in May you have to look at the previous month, April which was 7 days habit. So now bc April’s habit was 7 days the 4 extra days she bleed in May will be considered Istihadha. 
    • So when something changes or bleeding goes more than the 10 days max, look back at your previous month of bleeding and the habit that was established then.

• Prohibitions while in Hayd:
  • Prayers
    • No prayers. No Fard, or Nafl. No sajdahs of any kind, including shukoor or sajdah of tilawat.
    • Prayers missed during period do not need be made up.
    • If period starts during Fard prayer, it does not need to be made up. The prayer is invalidated and she does not need to make it up.
    • But if it is a Nafl or Sunnah prayer, and starts bleeding during that prayer, that prayer is invalidated but needs to made up after Hayd.
    • Bleeding starts at the end of prayer time, and she did not pray and starts bleeding, she does not need to make it up. For example: you have not prayed Dhur yet, and she begins to bleed, she does not need to make this prayer up later.
  • Fasting
    • Prohibited from all fasting during Hayd
    • Fasts missed during Hayd in Ramadan have to be made up.
    • If you start bleeding while fasting, break the fast and she will have to make the fast up later. Any fast, fard or nafl fast.
    • After the maximum of 10 days of bleeding, if a woman stops bleeding at night, (or even if she does not stop bleeding, even if she continues to bleed, the max of 10 days has been reached so she will have to start fasting) she will have to fast the next day. meaning before Fajr. Even if you stop bleeding a minute before dawn. Bc you have already reached your maximum limit of 10 days and in state of purity now, Hayd has finished. Do Ghusl and fast that day.
    • If you’re bleeding stops in the middle of the day and you do ghusl in Ramadan. That fast obviously cannot be counted for that day. But she should go on as if she was fasting until sunset. Even though her fast will not count. But she should behave like a fasting person. (different from when she starts her period, because at that time she can eat and drink whatever/whenever you want etc)
    • If she stops to bleed at night, in Ramadan, before the maximum of 10 days are over, and you have time to bathe and say takbeer to start prayer, then you have to fast that day too. You have time to do this you have to fast that day. But if you did not have time to finish your shower/ghusl before the sunrise, in time, you will not fast that day. And you will have to make up those prayers. You will behave like a fasting person, but the fast will not count. If she had time and did NOT take the bath, she WILL fast that day. Key is having the time to take a shower/bath/ghusl.
  • Quran:
    • Rules for Touching:
      • Prohibited to touch the Quran
      • Cannot hold the Quran if the covering is permanently attached to the Quran. But If it’s a temporary separate cover you can use that to hold the Quran. It has to be something separate from you, not part of your sleeve or dress/garment to use to hold the Quran. It cannot be a glove you are wearing. Cannot be attached to you.
    • Rules for Reciting:
      • Cannot recite a single verse. A word is ok or half of a verse.
      • الحمدُلله is ok
      • Bismillah is ok
      • But not a verse.
      • If  verse is for supplication/dua, and it is being recited for the intention of dua, and the verse contains words of dua or supplication, that is ok to recite. Ex: Rabbana, Allahuma duas, Surah Fatiha.
      • If a woman is teaching Quran to students she should not recite all of the verse. Take a breath in between. Break it up, saying a little at a time.
      • All others, such as sending Salawat is fine, reciting other duas of forgiveness, Dhikr is fine, etc.
  • Masjid:
    • Cannot perform tawaf around Kaaba.
    • Cannot enter mosque. Musullah, a temporary prayer room is ok to enter. Just not the Mosques.

• Marital relations:
  • Cannot have intercourse.
  • Naval to knee must be covered during period. There has to be a cloth between them.
  • All other intimacy is allowed. Like eating, sleeping, drinking together is fine.
  • If habit changes, and the period ends sooner. Intercourse is still not allowed until the duration of the normal habit.
  • Can have intercourse after period has ended, without ghusl first if:
    • if menses ends after 10 days and nights.
    • if prayer times in which the woman was obligated to pray, permissible to have intercourse without ghusl.
    • It is still recommended to bath before.
• When does Hayd end?:
  • when bleeding stops and discharge is clear. Pure white or no discharge.
  • After this she should do ghusl. And pray if she has entered a prayer time.
  • If you showered, prayed/Dhur and then you bleeding again within 10 days: She should delay another bath until the end of the next/Asr prayer time, check again and bathe again. Its possible that habit has changed.
• Ghusl: rinse all areas, naval, openings, piercings. If braids, does not have to undo the braid as long as water reaches the hair. Water reaches the outer vagina.
• If she starts to bleed at the time of Dhur, she does not have to make up the Dhur prayer after period is over. ( This is different from the Shafi’i perspective)
• Miscellaneous:
  • if she needs to take a bath for something else and starts bleeding, can wait to do ghusl until period is over.
  • Disliked for a menstruating woman to bath a deceased person.
  • If she hears a verse of prostration, she does not have to do it.
  • Recommended to make wudu, sit in place of prayer, do Dhikr to not lose habit of prayer.

• Istihadha: Dysfunctional uterine bleeding. Less than 3 days or more than 10 days.
  • Nullifies Wudu, must redo it.
  • Prayer and fasting are still obligatory.
  • Intercourse is allowed at this time.
• Excused person:
  • Istihadha person, constantly bleeding. Continuously bleeding, during the full prayer time. And so cannot make wudu and pray without bleeding. If this is the case, she is considered an excused person. She performs wudu for each prayer time. She can touch and read Quran in that prayer time. When the prayer time ends, she needs to redo wudu again. Refresh wudu for each new prayer time.
  • Having blood in the prayer time, once. You are still an excused person. As long as there is blood during prayer time. If you pass through a prayer time and no bleeding, you are out of excused state.
• Exceptional cases:
  • Continual bleeding, doesn’t know how many days, just remembers when it started. She will abandon her prayer, for 3 days, from the first day when the period normally begins, because this will be considered her normal hayd. For the following 7 days she has to do a bath for each prayer, because uncertainty if the this  blood is hayd or istehadha. With every prayer she will also do a makeup of the previous prayer because these 7 days you are uncertain about when she became pure. For the next 20 days she will do wudu with each prayer.
  • Best to keep track and have a calendar! For this exact reason
  • Another case: she knows how many days, but doesn’t know when it started. She is also bleeding continuously. If she can recall the number of days in her habit. But doesn’t know when. But she is constantly bleeding.

Dr. Haiffa Younis- Hanbali Fiqh

• Worshipping Allah has to be based on what He wants us to do. It’s not about what we want.
• Submit to Him and He will show you the reason
• Imam Ahmed studied the book of Hayd for 9 years!! This shows that it’s not something that is very easy to understand but in fact quite difficult.
• There is little attention given to this subject. Both men and women need to understand this.
• There are major obligations and prohibitions in the days of bleeding and non bleeding, and we all need to know these. Because it is related to the worship.
• Allah prescribed it on all women, the bleeding
• Motherhood is highest state of honor and reason for it is it to have a period. So remember in order to get pregnant there needs to be this cycle. So never feel bad about it. This is the way Allah has made us.
• This is an obligation to learn, not complimentary to learn this.
• There is one ayah in the Quran about menstruation.
• Types of discharge:
  • White: normal
  • Yellow: usually if you are dehydrated
  • Green: infection
  • The original rulings were that this discharge, nullifies the wudu. Due to recent research, because it is now known that the vaginal discharge does not come out from the same hole as the urine and stool come out of, the discharge does not negate the wudu. But it is good to always keep and maybe take the original rulings.
• Hayd: flow, flow of bleeding.
  • Natural normal blood that the women’s uterus releases in the state of health and comes at a regular, known time. Its healthy. Its not an illness.
  • Blood due a cyst, polyp or injury is not period. Blood from fibroids is not healthy or menses.
  • Although praying is the most beloved action to Allah, in these days of bleeding, my act of worshipping Allah is to NOT pray.
  • During Ramadan she does not fast, and makes them up later, she does not pray and does not need to make it up later.
  • Tawaf not allowed.
  • Reading Quran, moving lips is not allowed. Touching the Quran without a barrier not allowed. But touching with a cover or gloves is allowed.  Reading even from Phone is not allowed. Can listen to recitation. Touching and reading a translation or commentary is allowed where most of the words on the pages are not in Arabic/words of Allah.
    • The exceptions:
      • For a woman who is a Hafidah already. Meaning you have already memorized the Quran.
      • If you have are in the process of memorizing.
      • Or you are a teacher.
  • Staying in the masjid is not allowed. Masjid is not a musallah.
    • Btw when there are numerous or different opinions, it is best to take the safest opinion. So for staying in the mosque, if there is no reason for you to stay there, best to stay away from mosque during your bleeding days when you don’t need to be there.
  • Menses starts at the age of 9 years old. Used to be 13, 11, now its 9.
• (Btw don’t need to follow a specific madhab, can take things from different, but easier to follow one school. If you pick and choose you will want to just pick and choose the easier stuff and leave out the hard)
  • Menses usually stops at the age of or in the 50’s.
  • Colors: black, red, yellow, brown, turbid, (between black and white).
  • Minimum duration: 24 hours ( a day and night)
  • Maximum duration: 15 days.
  • Day 16 is not period/Hayd.
  • Days have to be spiritually clean (to pray and fast): 13 days minimum in a month.
• How to know period has ended:
  • In regular circumstances. Normal times.
  • Dryness or white discharge.
  • Stop to see anything with or without discharge, period has ended.
  • As long as you have colors at the end of period, its still part of your period.
  • Do not be hasty until you see a white discharge.
  • No bleeding and see no colors, only white or clear discharge.
• Rulings in certain circumstances:
  • Scenario #1: Young normal woman in 20-30s has normal period 3-5 days. All of a sudden due to no reason its starting to get longer. This can happen due to stress, travel, ramadan, as we get older, IUD, Loop. IF the change is for the first time, do not regard this change as anything. For a period to become a habit it has to continue for 3 months. So now it has changed and its a new habit that you will be following, a longer period. Also it can become shorter. This happens as we get older. As long as its longer than a day and a half ? and then ended, its your period.
  • Scenario #2: Bleeding on and off throughout cycle. February 1, I start bleeding, February 5 I stop bleeding ( 5 days of bleeding), 3 days later I start bleeding again for 5 days again and then stop bleeding. and then in another few days I start bleeding again for 5 days. This means all the bleeding days added together are menstrual/Hayd equaling a total 15 days. (This is the max). The days of no bleeding inside the menstrual frame is considered as days of no bleeding.
  • Scenario #3: Daughter is seeing bleeding first time. Menarche. First 24 hours of this first time, first month of bleeding ever, is considered the bleeding, the rest of the days after the 24 hours are Istihadha. This will continue this way for 3 months so she can establish her habit.
  • OCPs are allowed/halal:
    • No harm comes to me and I do not harm anyone else
    • Meaning it does not harm my body
    • Must be in agreement with husband to use them. Does not harm my relationship with husband.
    • So yes you can use it to delay period, bleeding or pregnancy.
  • Abnormal bleeding:
    • Definition: seeing blood outside time of normal period bleeding that can come from anywhere not only the uterus.
    • Usually need to go see physician for this.
    • How can I differentiate it from period blood:
      • Period blood is darker, more black in color. It’s thicker. Because the lining of the uterus is shed with its tissues and enzymes. Blood is darker. It’s clots outside.
      • Smell of period blood is specific.
    • Miscarriage: at an early stage.
      • If the fetus and the head and arms of the fetus were seen on the Ultrasound. The bleeding that happens due to miscarriage is Nifaas ( post-partum bleeding).
      • If bleeding occurs before these were formed then that is abnormal bleeding. (Isthihadha)
    • No minimum for Nifaas (post partum). Do not need to wait for the 40 days. Sometimes bleeding stops within 10 days after C-section, that is fine if you are not bleeding anymore, you can ghusl and start praying and etc normally.
    • If you nullify your wudu ( with discharge or etc) during Tawaf: if you can leave the tawaf and easily make wudu again then do so. But if its too crowded, its Ramadan or Hajj, or its your farewell Tawaf, then you don’t need to redo it and can continue your Tawaf. If there is hardship to leave, then leave it.
    • What if you cannot form a habit in 3 months:
    • The more hardship I am going through the more Allah will reward me.
    • Tawaf exception: if I can stay longer, then stay longer. If i cannot stay longer, then you can do your Tawaf of Eid/Hajj in the state of menses because this is the exception for this dire situation. Wear proper pads to make sure there is no leaking from inside to outside onto garments etc.

Ustadha Mona Elzankaly- Maliki Fiqh Perspective

• Menstruation is blood ( Sufrah or Kudrah) that exits on its own from the vaginal area of the one who could normally become pregnant.
• Types:
  • Blood: all different shades
  • Sufrah: Puss water covered yellowish color
  • Kudrah: Murky Brownish discharge
• Any colors can come in any order.
• According to Shariah
  • It has to exit on its own. If something caused it (such as a Pap smear) that is not considered menstruation.
  • Has to be from the vaginal area, not from anus or from the urinary tract.
  • Has to come from one who could normally become pregnant
    • Before 9 years of age or after 70 years of age, not considered menstruation.
    • Between 9-13 years old or between ages of 50-70 years, then we ask the woman if its menstruation.
    • Between 13-50 years of age its definitely menstruation.
• Types of women:
  • Beginner
  • Experienced
  • Pregnant (bleeding during pregnancy is considered menstruation according to Maliki)
• All 3 are equal in the minimal cycle
• Maximum cycle differs.
• Minimum cycle: one gush, one drop. Even one drop of blood means they are in mensuration states. A drop means an entire day of menstruation.
• Maximum cycle
  • Beginner: 15 days
  • Experienced: it is her max cycle that she has ever had. If it continues past the norm then she adds to it 3 days as long as it does not go past 15 days.
    • example: previous max is 13 and then this month it goes past 13, max she can go up to 15 days. Max 15.
  • Pregnant:
    • first two months: she is like an “experienced” woman
    • After entering 3rd month: it is 20 days
    • After entering the 6th month: it is 30 days.
• A day in Shariah is defined as from Maghrib to Maghrib.
  • So if she gets her period after Maghrib on Monday, her Day One is starting from Tuesday not Monday.
• Minimum Purity interval: between two cycles. Has to be 15 consecutive cycles. There is no limit on the maximum number of purity days.
• Calculating days of the cycle: if cycle flows intermittently, days of bleeding should be added together. The days in between bleeding do not count as part of the menstruation cycle nor do they count for the purity interval. But they are pure days that one must do ghusl, pray, fast etc.
  • So if one’s cycle comes for a few days and then stops for a few days and then starts again, as long as it does not stop for fifteen continuous days and one has not reached the maximum cycle for that month, this new blood is considered continuation of the previous cycle. Here the new bleeding days would be added to the previous days until one reaches maximum cycle. Once one reaches the maximum, what comes after is Istihadha.
  • Example: Khadija’s max cycle is 5 days.
    • For the current month the maximum she can go up is 5 + 3 days = 8 days.
    • So she gets her cycle for 5 days
    • Then its stops for 3 days
    • Then starts again for 5 days
    • Those 3 days in the middle do not count towards menstruation or the fifteen consecutive days of purity. But they are clean days, and it is an obligation to fast and pray etc during them.
    • Since she can only go up to 8 days this month. Her first 5 days of bleeding are menstruation and 3 out of the following 5 days of bleeding are also menstruation.
• Signs of the end of the cycle:
  • Qassah: thick white fluid that comes at the end of the cycle. This is the clearest of the 2 signs.
  • Dryness, none of the three different types of menstruation are still exiting from vagina.
  • What will for sure determine the end of the cycle:
    • Either one has reached their maximum cycle for that month and is now in the state of Istihadha
    • Or one has completed the minimum purity interval.
• When to Check:
  • Must check at the beginning of every prayer and before going to sleep.
  • It is disliked to wake up before Fajr to check, because its an extreme that the Jews used to do. One must wake up for Fajr to check.

Istihadha:

• Goes under the category of incontinence, where you have no control of it, or such as having no control or wind or urine.
• Irregular bleeding occurs when a woman goes over the maximum # of days of her cycle. Upon entrance of Maghrib of the day she reaches the maximum of her cycle. She performs Ghusl and starts to pray.
• If Istihadha comes:
  • For less than half of the prayer day, that breaks wudu, and it is obligatory to perform wudu from it.
  • If it comes half the prayer day or more, it does not break Wudu, but it is recommended to perform wudu
  • If it flow continuously it is no longer recommended to perform wudu. Meaning its always there when you wipe and check.

Impermissible for Menstruating women

• Pray or sajdah Tilawah or any sujood which requires one to be in the state of Wudu.
• Fast ( these have to be made up)
• Tawaf (bc tawaf is like prayer, except Allah has allowed in it speech) if you break your wudu in tawaf, you redo wudu and start from circuit number 1, start over. It breaks the entire tawaf and one has to redo it.
• Quran
  • Impermissible to touch Mushaf:
  • It is permissible to recite Quran from memory, using a commentary or a Quran that has translation along the side of it
  • If she is a student of the Quran or teacher, it is permitted for her , as a Rukhsah, to a use a Mushaf with that intention. As long as the intention is to learn or to teach. Otherwise cannot touch it even with barrier.
• Enter the masjid or Musullah. As long as the area is defined as an area for prayer. Even if that area is the musullah at their home. Even community centers that have defined areas for prayers. Cannot sit or pass through these areas or masjid. Unless she fears for her life.
• Divorce, but if he does, it counts as one.
• Private parts and whatever is between naval and knees is impermissible for her husband.

Sources:

-Notes from Rabata workshop, “Is my period over”?

Definitions:

-Istihadha (Arabic: اِسْتِحَاضَةٌ; flowing blood) represents a disturbance of the menstrual cycle of the woman which makes it difficult for her to perform some religious rituals (ibadah).

-The Hayd (حيض menses) is the religious state of menstruation in Islam.