Fatwa ID: 07749
Answered by: Alimah Maryam Badshah
Question:
Assalamualiakum
What are the rules regarding wudhu and prayer when going through the time period before menopause (Perimenopause)? Specifically for one of the possible symptoms which is having longer periods than usual. For example, some of my family members had periods up to 3 weeks and one even bled for 40 days.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
Assalaamu ‘Alaykum,
There are no separate rules regarding a person who is about to reach menopause (i.e. perimenopause), therefore your family members would still need to follow the rules of Ḥaiḍh. In the situation where your relatives are bleeding for over 10 days, the rules of Istiḥāḍhah would need to be observed.
The rules of Istiḥāḍhah require two pieces of information. The first is the length of the last normal ḥaiḍh (this is the ḥaiḍh where Istiḥāḍhah did not occur), and the second is the length of the last normal clean interval (which occurred between two normal ḥaiḍh). When the bleeding exceeds the 10th day, they are to consider whatever bleeding that occurred longer than their last normal ḥaiḍh (e.g. 7 days) as the first of their clean days and the start of the Istiḥāḍhah. The length of these “clean days” will be according to the last normal clean interval (which is a minimum of 15 days). As for any bleeding that exceeds these “clean days”, it would be considered your second ḥaiḍh if it fulfils the conditions of ḥaiḍh (i.e. a minimum of 3 days and a maximum of 10 days). Qadha will need to be done for any salah missed during Istiḥāḍhah (e.g. starting from day 7).(1)
Regarding wudhu, if the Istiḥāḍhah bleeding is intermittent (spotting) the wudhu will break each instance the bleeding occurs. However, if the bleeding is continuous they would fall under the rulings of a ma’zhur (excused person). As a ma’zhur, they would only need to renew their wudhu once each salah time, and this wudhu would only break if a different nawaqid occurs (e.g. sleeping).(2)
To qualify as a ma’zhur this bleeding would need to be such that, during a single salah time, there was no time in which they were clean long enough to have performed both the faraa’idh of wudhu and a fardh salah. After qualifying as a ma’zhur the bleeding does not need to be continuous in the following salah times. A person ceases to be a ma’zhur once an entire salah time passes and no bleeding occurs.
As a final note, it is necessary for married women to try and stem the flow of blood when it is safe and possible to do so. This is in order to stop being ma’zhur. Something akin to an interlabial pad or cotton (kursuf) can be used, and so long as the bleeding does not exit past the labia minora (farj al-kharij) wudhu would not be broken.(3)
Only Allah (عز و جل) knows best.
Written by Alimah Maryam Badshah
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
References:
(1)
لَوْ رَأَتْ الدَّمَ بَعْدَ أَكْثَرِ الْحَيْضِ وَالنِّفَاسِ فِي أَقَلِّ مُدَّةِ الطُّهْرِ فَمَا رَأَتْ بَعْدَ الْأَكْثَرِ إنْ كَانَتْ مُبْتَدَأَةً وَبَعْدَ الْعَادَةِ إنْ كَانَتْ مُعْتَادَةً اسْتِحَاضَةٌ وَكَذَا مَا نَقَصَ عَنْ أَقَلِّ الْحَيْضِ وَكَذَا مَا رَأَتْهُ الْكَبِيرَةُ جِدًّا وَالصَّغِيرَةُ جِدًّا
Fatawa Hindiyyah (Vol.1, pg.37-8, Dār Al-Fiqr)
(أَمَّا) الِاسْتِمْرَارُ الْمُتَّصِلُ فَحُكْمُهُ ظَاهِرٌ … وَإِنْ كَانَتْ صَاحِبَةَ عَادَةٍ فَعَادَتُهَا فِي الْحَيْضِ حَيْضُهَا، وَعَادَتُهَا فِي الطُّهْرِ طُهْرُهَا، وَتَكُونُ مُسْتَحَاضَةً فِي أَيَّامِ طُهْرِهَا.
…فَنَقُولُ: لَا خِلَافَ فِي أَنَّ الطُّهْرَ الْمُتَخَلِّلَ بَيْنَ الدَّمَيْنِ إذَا كَانَ خَمْسَةَ عَشْرَ يَوْمًا فَصَاعِدًا يَكُونُ فَاصِلًا بَيْن الدَّمَيْنِ، ثُمَّ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ إنْ أَمْكَنَ أَنْ يُجْعَلَ أَحَدُ الدَّمَيْنِ حَيْضًا يُجْعَلُ ذَلِكَ حَيْضًا، وَإِنْ أَمْكَنَ جَعْلُ كُلِّ وَاحِدٍ مِنْهُمَا حَيْضًا يُجْعَلُ حَيْضًا، وَإِنْ كَانَ لَا يُمْكِنُ أَنْ يُجْعَلَ أَحَدُهُمَا حَيْضًا لَا يُجْعَلُ شَيْءٌ مِنْ ذَلِكَ حَيْضًا…
Badā’i’ Al-Ṣanā’i’ (Vol.1, pg.43, Dār Al-Kutub Al-’Ilmiyyah)
(2)
بِأَنْ لَا يَجِدَ فِي جَمِيعِ وَقْتِهَا زَمَنًا يَتَوَضَّأُ وَيُصَلِّي فِيهِ خَالِيًا عَنْ الْحَدَثِ (وَلَوْ حُكْمًا) لِأَنَّ الِانْقِطَاعَ الْيَسِيرَ مُلْحَقٌ بِالْعَدَمِ (وَهَذَا شَرْطُ) الْعُذْرِ…
Raddul Muhtar (Vol.1, pg.305, Dār Al-Fiqr)
(وَمِمَّا يَتَّصِلُ بِذَلِكَ أَحْكَامُ الْمَعْذُورِ) شَرْطُ ثُبُوتِ الْعُذْرِ ابْتِدَاءً أَنْ يَسْتَوْعِبَ اسْتِمْرَارُهُ وَقْتَ الصَّلَاةِ كَامِلًا … وَشَرْطُ بَقَائِهِ أَنْ لَا يَمْضِيَ عَلَيْهِ وَقْتُ فَرْضٍ إلَّا وَالْحَدَثُ الَّذِي اُبْتُلِيَ بِهِ يُوجَدُ فِيهِ
Fatawa Hindiyyah (Vol.1, pg.40-1, Dār Al-Fiqr)
(3)
قَوْلُهُ: وَبِرَدِّهِ لَا يَبْقَى ذَا عُذْرٍ) قَالَ فِي الْبَحْرِ: وَمَتَى قَدَرَ الْمَعْذُورُ عَلَى رَدِّ السَّيَلَانِ بِرِبَاطٍ أَوْ حَشْوٍ… وَجَبَ رَدُّهُ، وَخَرَجَ بِرَدِّهِ عَنْ أَنْ يَكُونَ صَاحِبَ عُذْرٍ
… فَلَوْ أَحَسَّتْ بِهِ فَوَضَعَتْ الْكُرْسُفَ فِي الْفَرْجِ الدَّاخِلِ وَمَنَعَتْهُ مِنْ الْخُرُوجِ فَهِيَ طَاهِرَةٌ
Raddul Muhtar (Vol.1, pg.308, Dār Al-Fiqr)
