Fatwa ID: 08960
Answered by Maulana Abdurrahman Persaud
Question:
How can I determine whether the impure discharge during menstruation stopped flowing for a short amount of time, or it was because my menses are over? I also experience white or clear discharge.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
Understanding how menstruation works in Deen is crucial, since there are certain prohibitions attached to an individual during this time. Miscalculating or not fully understanding your cycle can lead to negligence and carelessness in respect to ibaadaat.
May Allah ﷻ make it easy for you to understand and practice actions that He is pleased with and give you the understanding of the deen.
To fully grasp the fundamentals of your question, a few key points need to be addressed.
Types of bleeding in a woman:
- Haidh (Menstruation)
- Istihaadha (Bleeding due to illness, infection, etc.)
Menstruation: Every month, a lining builds up on the wall of the womb. The body then sheds this lining; this shedding is called Haidh (Menstruation). This shedding will occur in the form of a discharge consisting mostly of blood and mucus. This will continue for a minimum period of 3 days and 3 nights, and a maximum of 10 days and 10 nights. The color of the discharge may change during the period. It may be a brownish red at the beginning, then changing to a dark maroon during the middle, and back to a brownish red at the end.
The duration between 3 days to 10 days may differ at times occurring to each individual. It is very important that a woman keeps tracks of her Haidh monthly to determine if changes occur out of her habitual cycle.
Determining a habitual cycle can be considered form the time a girl experiences bleeding for the most part of her life, and it remained for the same number of days e.g.; since puberty, Fatima only bleeds for 7 days; this is her aadah (habitual cycle).
Istihaadha (bleeding due to illness , infection, etc.): This bleeding occurs for less than 3 days and 3 nights and more than 10 days and 10 nights. If, e.g., Fatima experiences bleeding for less than three days, then this will be considered as Istihaadha and not haidh. Likewise, if she bled for more than ten days and 10 nights, it would be Istihaadha.
It is to be noted that the rules of haidh are different from Istihaadah in regard to salah, saum, etc.
In Istihaadah, a woman is considered to be a mazoor (excused person) and would still have to fulfill obligations of salah, etc.
As for the question, there are a few scenarios to consider:
- The blood stopped flowing for a short time within the habitual cycle and continued to fulfill the normal habitual cycle.
- The blood stopped flowing after the habitual cycle, but stopped before 10 days had passed.
- The blood stopped flowing after the habitual cycle, but continued afterwards, and exceeded 10 days and 10 nights.
In the first case, the stopping of blood would not indicate the end of haidh but would be counted as continuous flowing since it falls within the habitual cycle.
The second case would indicate a new habitual cycle, since it falls within the 10 days and 10 nights, and the extra days would be considered as haidh.
In the final scenario, you would have to refer to the habitual cycle and count what comes after that as istihaadah.
Discharges:
This can vary according to different individuals and factors like stress, diet, and infections. What is common is that during the Haidh discharge is normally red, brown, and yellow, followed by white/clear discharge indicating an end to the cycle. Emphasis is placed more on the duration of the Haidh rather than the color of the discharge.
Only Allah ﷻ knows best.
Written by Maulana Abdurrahman Persaud
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
References:
بابالحيض
ص19 – كتابمختصرالقدوري- بابالحيض- المكتبةالشاملة
الرابط:https://shamela.ws/book/124336/9#p1