Taharah-- Issues related to Abnormal Bleeding

Bismillahir  rahman  nir  rahim

Taharah

 Assalamu alaikum wa rahamatullahi wa barakatahu J

Issues regarding Abnormal Bleeding

Bleeding other than normal menses is “abnormal bleeding”

Some  sisters have continuous spotting and some have irregular spotting after their menses are over.

Normally every woman is aware of the system of her menses; the date it starts on, the type of flow, the duration of menses.

So if a woman has continuous bleeding, she should wait for the duration of her menses and then take a bath and can continue her fasts and namaaz.[Bukhari  Book #6, Hadith #303)]

If a woman has irregular menses, and cannot be sure of the dates when it starts and the duration of menses, then a woman should differentiate the “flow of blood” between menses and abnormal bleeding on the basis of color of the blood.

 And such woman should make wu’du every time she has to offer namaz.

The color of the blood for menses is “dark in color”.  [Bukhari, Abu Dawud]

If a woman has irregular periods and also cannot differentiate between the color of menses and abnormal bleeding, then she should herself  “set” the date and the “duration” of her menses as she had when she used to have regular menses /the manner in which she had her regular menses for a period of time. She can also use the habits of menses of the women of her age, stage , status( no. of children) in her family and area that she lives in to determine a “course of menses” and fix the duration as 6-7 days ..

For ex. If a woman has extremely irregular menses and she cannot determine the date of starting, the duration of menses and also the color of menses, then she can refer to the date she used to start her menses in her regular days, like 7^th of a month, the no. of days it continued for; 5 days.

So from then on, she can “appoint” the 7^th of every month as the day she starts her menses, the duration as 5 days and after that she can continue to pray even if she has bleeding.

She can treat that “bleeding” as “abnormal bleeding”.

A woman who has abnormal bleeding is as “paak” as a woman who has clearly finished her menses.

NOW A VERY IMPORTANT RULING FOR WOMEN WHO SUFFER FROM ABNORMAL BLEEDING:

1.      A woman HAS to make a fresh wu’du before EACH namaaz. This also implies that we clean up ourselves, change our napkins, put a fresh one and then make wu’du and hurry up to pray.

2.      A woman takes a bath for fajr, and then again takes a bath for zuhr, hurries up to pray asr. Then she delays her magrib, takes a bath and then prays magrib and then hurries ro pray isha.

The first ruling HAS to be DONE. BUT the Prophet s.a.w liked the second ruling more. So if possible to take a bath 3 times (for fajr,zuhr+asr,magrib+isha) would earn more sawab.[Tirmizi]

A wife of the Prophet s.a.w used to do itikhaf with the Prophet s.a.w in the state of abnormal bleeding.

Sexual relations with a woman while she is having “abnormal bleeding” is ALLOWED after she takes a bath. [Abu Dawud]

Separately wash clothes with blood from “abnormal bleeding.”

If a person missed their witr prayer (forgets to pray or gets too late) then the qaza can be prayed before praying the sunnats of fajr or any time of the day.

If a woman begins to bleed while praying, she needs to pray the qaza of that prayer after she finishes her menses.

 Discharge before menses start : to be considered as Abnormal Bleeding.

But if the discharge is yellowish and starts just before menses, then it is to be considered menses, but if the discharge starts 2-3 days before menses, then its supposed to be considered as “abnormal bleeding”.

We should take care to dispose off our dirty napkins, of cloths or cotton used during menses or abnormal bleeding. As these and nails and hair are used by people who indulge in black magic

The ONLY Manner of washing and “purifying “ our dirty clothes is to wash and then check that even the last drop of water which comes out when we squeeze it , should be clean with no coloration in it.

If we are washing our dirty clothes in the bathroom , then we should take care to wash them in a manner that, drops of water don’t fly everywhere around the bathroom.

And once, we have finished washing our clothes, then we should check that we don’t leave any “najasat” /”filth around to trouble any one else who might use the same place for wu’du or other purposes.

We should pour water, or use detergent and soap or even sand/mud to clean that area if necessary.

The point is to wash the clothes in a manner that we don’t dirty the area around and ourselves unnecessarily and to check and clean the area after wards of any najasat or filth.

Some sisters have a white /yellow discharge for some days after their menses stop.

A fresh wu’du is mandatory for each namaz and care should be taken that this discharge doesn’t come on the clothes. If it does, then those clothes are not “clean” for namaaz till that najasat is removed and the clothes ( area) cleaned.

Some sisters (commonly during menopause) have irregular menses.

For Example : they have bleeding for 2 days and then it stops and then again they have bleeding after 3 days. In such s case the ruling mentioned above, where in the sister has to check the “type” of blood flow and also according to her manner of getting menses and deal with the situation accordingly. If the blood flow is not dark and thick, then its “istihaza/abnormal bleeding” and if the number of days of regular periods are over and still flow of blood and it is not dark , then its “istihaza” and if not then “menses”.

A pregnant woman can stop her prayers after the water bag bursts. Any discharge before the water bag bursts is not considered any najasat. One can wash and continue to pray.

The maximum duration of menses is considered 15 days. Some people due to any reasons can get periods after that 15 day period is over..and before the normal dates.

In such a case, the type of blood flow ( dark menses and red normal blood) has to be checked. It simple spotting and discharge then its “istihaza/abnormal bleeding” and if similar or same as menses blood then menses.

 Istihaza/ abnormal bleeding is a reason of restlessness and unhappiness ,as confusion about whether to do ibaadat and the general feelings of “not being clean” arises.

In such situations, sabr and hope for excellent ajar in such situations of istihaza is a good practice.

Divorce will be accepted during “istihaza/abnormal bleeding” but it is recommended to try to sort out the relation and give it one more chance.

Issues of Menstruation and Post-Natal Bleeding

Bismillahir  rahman  nir  rahim

Taharah

 Assalamu alaikum wa rahamatullahi wa barakatahu J

 Issues of Menstruation and Post-Natal Bleeding

The time of starting, ending, duration of periods and menopause are different for different women. They depend on her physical, emotional make up and the place she lives in , among other things.

A woman has to STOP praying when her menses start and RESUME her prayers once , the menses are over and she takes a bath. [nasai]

A woman is not ‘na paak’—as in anything she touches, wears etc is usable for purposes of namaaz or wu’zu purposes. As long as no visible filth( blood) on them.

Volume 1, Book 6, Number 329:
Narrated Maimuna:
(the wife of the Prophet) During my menses, I never prayed, but used to sit on the mat beside the mosque of Allah's Apostle. He used to offer the prayer on his sheet and in prostration some of his clothes used to touch me."
Ayesha (ra) would drink water and the Prophet s.a.w used to drink from the same vessel and the same place as her.[Muslim]
Ayesha (r.a) would share her piece of meat on the bone with the Prophet s.a.w and he used to eat from the same piece and the same place as her. [Muslim]
Ayesha (ra) used to wash the Prophet s.a.w ‘s head . [Muslim]
The Prophet s.a.w used to lie on a pillow in her lap and used to recite the Quran [Bukhari vol 1 6, 296, Muslim
Ayesha (ra) used to comb the Prophet s.a.w’s hair and he used to lean on her. [Bukhari vol 1 6 294]
A man is allowed to kiss his wife while she is having her menses (periods). [Muslim]
Except tawaf a menstruating woman can do and complete all the rituals of Hajj.[Bukhari 6, 302]
No fasts, no prayers and no tawaf for a menstruating woman.
There is no need for a woman to compensate for her missed prayers in menses [Bukhari 6, 318]
The moment the menses(period) starts , the fast is over for the woman, even if it’s a minute before sun set( iftar )
A menstruating woman can eat and drink normally once her fast is broken.
If she continues to stay with out food and hunger , out of respect for the fast, them she is only harming her self. Allah s.w.t has given this ease to the woman , as she is physically in need to nourishment during her menses.
And there would be NO sawab for continuing the fast by not eating or drinking even after the period starts.

Its necessary to compensate the missed fasts after Ramadan.

The hadith in Bukhari[ 6, 301] where in the Prophet s.a.w is telling the woman that they are deficient in their religious commitment, is not a scolding or a form of putting the woman down.

It’s a warning for the woman to be prepared to do something extra or different  to compensate her missed prayers or fasts during menses.

A woman can do tasbih, repeat duas etc during her periods. This helps in fighting the feelings of depression and also keeps the counter of the Ibaadat .

 A woman can pray extra nafl rakats after her periods are over to try and compensate the missed prayers, but this is NOT A FARD OR WAJIB. This is just a SUGGESTION.

A menstruating woman is not allowed to sit in the mosque( i.e the main prayer area). The hikmat ( wisdom) behind these rulings is that some times the flow of menses is so much that a woman might unintentionally spoil the place of worship, be in the area around the Ka’ba or the place of namaz in a mosque. So to avoid such incidents this ruling has been given.

In a lot of places, like USA and other places, the mosque and the Islamic Center are either one or in the same building. In such cases, the woman can attend her classes o visit the library of the mosque /Islamic Center, but avoid sitting in the Main Area for Prayers.

If a woman ends  periods before the athan , she can take Sehri and take a bath and then pray and continue her fast ( applicable for Ramadan or nafl fasts)

BUT—if there is some spotting and she takes a bath after the sun has risen ( i.e the time for fajr prayer has finished ) then she should not fast as it would not be counted as one.

If there is any menstrual blood on the clothes, a woman can wash that area properly with soap and water so much that the final water coming out should be clean and can sprinkle the rest of the clothes with water( to freshen it ) and pray in the same clothes.[ Bukhari]

A menstruating woman can sit on the janamaaz and pick up the tasbih and do zikr.

The Prophet s.a.w asked Ayesha (ra) to bring the Janamaaz to the mosque [Muslim]

For the Eid prayers ( both)  all women including menstruating women and those to observe strict purdah are encouraged to attend the namaaz. They can sit a little away from the main prayer area, listen to the khutbah and join in the dua and meet and greet everyone on eid after the prayer is over.

I f there is no spotting on clothes, then a woman doesn’t need to to wash them and  wear them again. They can be worn again  and prayed in without washing.

The dupatta of a menstruating woman can be used to pray in.

Maimuna (ra) and the Prophet s.a.w shared that same sheet while she would be menstruating.

If menses are over and a yellow or brown color discharge still continues then a woman doesn’t need to take a bath again . [Abu dawud].

There is no need of excessive haste and excessive delay in taking a bath after the menses are over. One should not take a bath till complete end of menses [ Bukhari ]

If due to any valid reason a woman cannot take a bath after finishing her menses  and misses her prayers, then she needs to make it up ,with the next one that she prayers.

If after the menses are over and a woman continues to have spotting, she can continue her prayers after taking a bath.

If necessary for a woman to first bathe, THEN PRAY and then have relations with her husband as prayers come first [Bukhari]

If the time for a prayer starts and a woman delays praying and she starts her menses, then she HAS TO COMPENSATE FOR THAT PRAYER ONCE HER MENSES ARE OVER.

For e.g; if its time for zuhr prayer and a woman delays praying to feed her family first or any other work, and  she starts her menses, then that prayer needs to be compensated as it became a FARD on her.

If a woman bathes and there is only time left to pray 1 rakat of namaz, she SHOULD PRAY THAT 1 RAKAT .

BUT, if there is no time for asr as magrib is fast approaching , then she should pray the asr qaza after magrib.

The kafara for a man who has sexual relations with his wife:

While still in menses—1 dinar and 4 gm gold

Menses are over but yet to bathe—half a dinar and 2 gm gold.[ Abu dawud Bk 1 #0264 and Ibn Maja]

The wisdom behind this ruling is to protect the rights of a woman, as relations in such conditions can be very painful for the woman, and also cause serious medical problems for a woman and man.

A woman should take a break while reciting the Quran. Its not supported by an Hadith though.

Ibrahim Naqhi, a woman can recite the Quran.

There is a sahi hadith that supports that a woman can recite the Quran while menstruating.

A woman can touch the Arabic text of the Quran but with gloves or any cloth.

A woman should take permission from her husband ( and doctor!! ) before taking any pills for delaying or changing the dates of her menses.

This has been derived from the hadith from Bukhari where in a woman needs to take her husband’s permission to keep nafl fasts.

A man cannot divorce his wife she is menstruating.[Bukhari]

The wisdom behind this is that while menstruating a woman is emotionally and physically unstable and weak and is more prone to fighting and bad temper. Hence a man has to use his self control ad his temper!! J

Taharah-- Issues rof Janabat ( Impurity due to Sexual Intercourse)

Bismillahir  rahman  nir  rahim

Taharah

 Assalamu alaikum wa rahamatullahi wa barakatahu J

 Issues of Janabat ( Impurity due to Sexual Intercourse)

This is a very … topic, but we have to read, follow and EDUCATE others please!!

Before I begin, I would like to define some words I would be using in the post, as it would make it easier for me and you to read and understand:-

Janabat- sexual Intercourse

Junbi- a person who has had sexual Intercourse but has still to take the bath and purify oneself.

 So let’s begin—

Men and women both have wet dreams ( a discharge in the night , while sleeping) . In such a case, its mandatory to take a bath to purify oneself.

If a person has a problem of discharge in normal days and timings, then it’s considered a sickness and one can wash the concerned area( penis) and do wu’zu and pray.

Hazrat Ali (r.a) had this problem. [ Bukhari 5#269 4 #178]

 Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: The Prophet said, "If anyone of you, when intending to have a sexual intercourse with his wife, says: 'Bismillah, Allahumma jannibna-sh-shaitan, wa jannibi-sh-shaitan ma razaqtana,' and if the couple are destined to have a child (out of that very sexual relation), then Satan will never be able to harm that child." Bukkari  (Book #75, Hadith #397)

It’s “liked” for a person to do wu’du between 2 sexual intercourses. If one has a sexual intercourse and then feels like having another one soon after wards, one can do WITHOUT taking a bath. It’s better to do wu’zu but neither it’s a fard nor its wajib.

When one starts taking a bath to purify oneself after janabat, then one should first wash hands and then put them inside the vessel containing the water. The water doesn’t become “unclean” if a junbi puts his hand in the vessel. It can be used for wu

‘zu and other purposes.

The belief that a “person” becomes “na paak” and should not touch anything is not correct.

If a person is ‘na paak” but he /she can touch anything they want as long as they don’t have anything “najas” on them.

The Prophet s.a.w did wu’zu with the the same water from the same vessel that  a woman had used to take a bath after sexual intercourse. [Ahmed]

Talking, answering or saying salam is allowed with still in the state if janaba.

In Ramadan , or if we are planning on fasting on general days, if a person has sexual intercourse and sleeps with taking a bath. And gets up late for sehri, then its best if a person does wu’zu first and then takes sehri..but time is really less then washing hands is also alright and then should eat their sehri and if the azaan is called, should take a bath and then pray fajr and continue the fast.

The prophet s.a.w used to make wu’zu and sleep or eat after intercourse with his wives.[ Muslim]. Its not a fard or wajib. Its Mushtaab( liked).

A Junbi( a person who has intercourse and has not yet taken a bath) CAN pass through the mosque , BUT , can NOT stay. [Syed Bin Mansur]

While still in the state of janaba, a person can do zikr e illahi, read the duas for sleeping , wakening, wakening in the middle of the night, ayatul kursi etc.[Muslim]

Reciting the Quran and teaching it is NOT allowed while still in the state of Janaba.

A normal ( non junbi and no menses ) can read Quran without making wu’zu. Just don’t touch the pages.

The Prophet s.a.w taught the Quran in all states EXCEPT in the state of janaba.

The Prophet s.a.w also sometimes, washed his private parts, made wu’zu and went to sleep [Bukhari]

The Prophet also slept without taking a bath and got up and took a bath [Muslim 3 # 603]

Some times he would NOT do wu’zu also [Ibn Maja]

THE MANNER OF GHUSL E JANABAT ( BATH AFTER INTERCOURSE):

Wash hands first

Then wash private parts

Make wu’zu and complete the bath.

A woman can breast feed her child in the state of Janabat.

We can wear the same clothes that we were wearing before intercourse, after we take a bath. As long as there is no filth( sperm or female discharge ) on it.

The point to be noted here is this that ITS BEST TO TAKE A BATH RIGHT AFTER sexual intercourse. BUT,  if due to any reason we cannot do that, then the other means are given.  So, one should utilize these means, only when in need and NOT make it habit.

These simple steps are simple ways of doing what we have been doing, and gain sawab.

And we make the niyat of ALL our intentions to please our Rabb then inshallah the sawab is going to increase, as Allah is “All Forgiving  and All Merciful”

taharah-- Issues of Removing Impurities!!

Bismillahir  rahman  nir  rahim

Taharah

 Assalamu alaikum wa rahamatullahi wa barakatahu J

Issues of Removing Impurities

·         The prophet s.a.w used to use his right hand for eating and his left hand for cleaning impurities (toilet, nose , any impurity on the body) Abu Dawud #1,0032 #1,0033.

·         If a baby (while still on milk , not yet introduced to any wheat, solid food) urinates then cleaning that area with water is enough ; BUT ONLY IF THE CHILD IS MALE.

·         This ruling doesn’t apply to the a female child. The ‘hikmat’ behind this is : that the way and the form of the male child’s urine is different from the female child. A female child’s urine is concentrated( thicker) and collects on a single place. Where as the male child ‘s urine is in the form of a shower and more easy to clean. [Muslim 002,#0563].

·         If a person has a discharge or semen on his clothes, then that person can wash that “part” of the clothes and continue to pray ; BUT IT SHOULD NOT LEAVE A MARK ON THE CLOTHES.

·         The prophet s.a.w used to go to pray after aisha (r.a.) used to wash the clothes (with semen) with the drops of water still visible on it. [Bukhari 4,229,231,232,233]

·         We can use the utensils and eat the food cooked by the “People of the Book” ( Christians and Jews), as long as we are sure that the food cooked doesn’t contain any forbidden ingredient and the utensils are clean. If in doubt, the we can wash them.[ Tirmizi].

·         When a man enters the mosque, he should check his shoes. If there is any filth on it , then he should rub the shoes on the ground, clean them in this manner and pray while still wearing his shoes. [ this is incase a person needs to pray in his shoes, due to the ground being wet, or it being too cold or too hot and their being no janamaaz] [Abu Dawud 2,0650]

·         If a dog puts his mouth in a utensil, then its necessary to wash the utensil 7 times. The first time with sand. [Muslim 2,0549,0546,0548,0550]. The hikmat behind using sand is, that the saliva of the dog has certain bacteria that only sand can kill.

·         One has to cleanse oneself, after both sexual intercourse and menses. One should wash with water and if no water available then sand should be used for tayamum.

·         If there is any spot of menstrual blood is on the clothes, then wash with water and clean the area. The rest of the clothes are clean and one can pray in them once the menses period is over.

·         If our clothes get spoiled (and we clean the spot) or don’t get spoiled, WE CAN PRAY IN THEM AFTER OUR MENSES ARE OVER. WE DON’T HAVE TO WASH THEM BEFORE WEARING

·         A dead animal’s skin can be purified by the process of tanning.

·         The ground purifies itself, as it absorbs and the sun dries but the rest of the filth.

·         If the ground is cemented, then as long as we cant smell or see any filth we can pray on it. if we see any filth, then we can remove it and pray.

·         If any ignorant person urinates in a mosque or any other person, then we should not scold or beat the person. We should clean the area, and explain to the person the etiquettes. [Bukhari 73#54,149]

·         If a mosquito falls in any liquid( cool or cold not hot) then we can dip the mosquito once again in the liquid, take it out and drink the liquid. Allah has made an antidote for the virus which the mosquito carries in one wing. [ Bukhari 54 #537, 71 #673]. Its not a fard to drink the liquid, but if in need one can.

·         We can food cooked by a “HINDU” as long as we are sure that they are clean and not using any forbidden ingredient. We should treat them as the prophet s.a.w treated the residents of Makkah.

·         While cleaning bathrooms and washing clothes of children (spoiled by urine  etc), if no big sprays of the filth on us , then we can pray in the same clothes. If we feel that any TINY sprays of water have come on our clothes, then we can clean that part and pray.

·         If drops of urine fall on any part of the body, then washing ONLY that part is enough.

Narrated Abu Huraira: A bedouin urinated in the mosque, and the people rushed to beat him. Allah's Apostle ordered them to leave him and pour a bucket or a tumbler (full) of water over the place where he has passed urine. The Prophet then said, " You have been sent to make things easy (for the people) and you have not been sent to make things difficult for them."   Bukhari(Book #73, Hadith #149)