Sixty Questions on Rulings Related to Menstruation and Post-Partum Bleeding
Praise be to Allah, and may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad, his family, his Companions, and those who follow them with righteousness untill the Day of Judgment.
Since scholars receive many queries on rulings pertaining to menstruation in connection to acts of worship, we decided to list the frequently asked questions concisely for the sake of brevity.
Given the importance of having good understanding of the religion, we collected these questions for you to have an easy access thereto, and to worship Allah based on sure knowledge.
Notice: On browsing the book for the first time, some questions may seem repeated, but on contemplating the answers, it will be clear that there is additional information in some answers, apart from others, which we liked to highlight.
A woman attained purity from menses right after dawn. Should she refrain from eating and drinking, as well as other invalidators of fast, and fast on that day so that it will be considered a day of valid fast for her, or would she have to make up for that day?
Answer no.1: There are two scholarly opinions regarding the case of a woman who attains purity from menses right after dawn:
First opinion: She is required to fast for the rest of that day, even though it will not be counted for her as a day of valid fast. Making up for that day is obligatory for her as per the famous opinion of Imam Ahmad’s School of Fiqh.
Second opinion: She is not required to fast for the rest of the day, since it is not valid to fast on such a day where she was menstruating at its beginning. Hence, refraining from acts that invalidate the fast is pointless here. Moreover, she is obligated under Shariah to refrain from fasting at the beginning of that day, rather, it is prohibited for her to do so when she was still in menstruation, so it was not a time she had to show veneration to by keeping away from fast invalidators.
According to Shariah, fasting is to refrain from all acts that invalidate the fast, as an act of worship to Allah Almighty, since the break of dawn till sunset.
As you see, this opinion is more preponderant than the other that suggests she is required to fast for the rest of the day. Both opinions, however, make it obligatory for her to make up for that day.
A woman attained purity from menses and performed Ghusl (ritual bath) after Fajr prayer. Then, she offered the prayer, and fasted the rest of the day. Is it obligatory for her to make up for that day?
If a woman attains purity from menses before dawn, even one minute before dawn, and she is sure of being pure, she is required to fast on that day if it is during the month of Ramadān. Her fast is valid in this case, and she is not required to make up for the fast, because she fasted it when she was pure from menses, even though she took a bath after the break of dawn.
Likewise, if a man is in a state of Janābah (sexual impurity) due to sexual intercourse or a wet dream, then he has the Suhūr (pre-dawn) meal, but he does not take a bath until after the break of dawn, his fast is valid.
Here, I would like to stress another point in this regard. Some women who have their menstruation after having fasted the day in full, yet before offering the ‘Ishā’ prayer, believe that their fast is invalidated due to that.
This is baseless. In fact, if she has her menses even one moment after sunset, her fast is complete and valid.
Question no.3: Is it obligatory for a woman experiencing her post-partum bleeding to fast and pray if she becomes pure before the completion of forty days?
Answer no.3: Yes. Once a woman becomes pure of post-partum bleeding, it is obligatory for her to fast, if this happens in Ramadān. She is required to pray as well, and her husband may have sexual intercourse with her (after sunset), because she is ritually pure, and there is nothing that prevents her from fasting, offering the prayer or having sexual intercourse with her husband.
Question no.4: A woman usually experiences menstruation for eight or seven days per month. Yet, it happens that once or twice her menses lasts a bit longer. What is the relevant ruling?
Answer no.4: If a woman has her menses for six or seven days in average, yet sometimes it lasts longer, such as eight, nine, ten, or eleven days, then she must refrain from prayer until she becomes pure. This is because the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) did not fix a specific limit for the menstruation period. Moreover, Allah Almighty says: {And they ask you about menstruation. Say: “It is harm...”} [Al-Baqarah: 222] So, as long as a woman is experiencing menstrual bleeding, the relevant rulings apply to her until she becomes pure and makes Ghusl, in which case she has to pray. If in the following month, her menses lasts for a shorter period, she makes Ghusl once she becomes pure, even if the two periods are not the same.