Fatwa, - Menstruation Question: irregular bleeding, ghusl, and then uncertainty�

Question:
A woman gets her period. It last only one day. After that she
getswhite discharge for a day. Many times she bleeds for only one or
two days, so based on this, she takes a ghusl. But since she was
presuming that her period could start again, she waited towards the
end of a prayer time before making her ghusl. Accidentally, she missed
the prayer. Then two days later, she begins bleeding again, and it
lasts for six days. Considering that her period of purity did not last
fifteen days and consequently she is regarded as having bled
continuously all ten days, does she have to make up the prayer she
missed? Secondly, since she is considered to have had her period for
ten days, do any qadas sheprayed during the two days she thought she
was pure count? She understandably began praying and doing qadas
during these days because she had no way of knowing that her period
would begin again so soon.
Answer:
Assalamu alaykum
To answer this and othersimilar questions relatingto menstruation one
needs to keep the basic principles of menstruation in mind. Namely:
The minimum period for menstruation is three days. This means that if
blood is seen for less than three days, it does not count as
menstruation.
The maximum period for menstruation is ten days.This means that if
blood is seen for more than tendays, it does not count asmenstruation.
It is not a condition that blood flow be constant during the menstrual
period. What is important is the first andlast days it flows on and
all that is in between is counted as though bloodflowed though really
it did not. e.g. if she sees blood on the first day and then the
fourth day and then no more blood,this will be treated as four
continuous days of bleeding and will all be treated as menstruation.
The minimum length of apurity period between menstrual periods is fifteen days.
Whatever is seen during the menstrual period is counted as menstrual
blood no matter what colour it is.
[Hashiya al-Tahtawi 'ala Maraqi al-Falah, 1:199, Maktaba al-'Ilm al-Hadith]
Based on these above principles the question can be answered as follows:
When the original bleeding happened she assumed that it was
menstruation and hence did not pray. After one day of bleeding and one
day of white discharge she did not see anything.At this stage she can
assume that the bleedingwas abnormal uterine bleeding (istihada) and
just perform wudu and pray. There was no need for her to perform a
purificatory bath as the bleeding did not last three days and so could
not be treated as menstruation.
Then on the fourth day she saw bleeding again. Since there was not a
sufficient purity period between the two sets of bleeding (as in rule
4 above) all four days weretreated as though there was a constant
blood flow (as in rule 3). This being the case she is certainly
menstruating and any prayers or fasts offered since the first day that
blood was seen are invalid.
The bleeding then lasts for a further six days. If the fourth day is
included this takes us to day nine from first seeing the blood. After
this she would be expected to have a purificatory bath and start
praying.
She is not responsible forany prayers offered during the nine day
period and so would not have to make up the prayer initially missed.
Furthermore, any make up prayers offered during the period were
invalid and must be repeated again.
This is a difficult situation for a lady who has make ups to offer.
Some scholars advise ladies to take it easy with make up prayers in
situations like the one described above where the bleeding stopped
after one or two days and one expects it to start again. If however
the lady in question is such that her heart would not sink if she
found out that her make ups were invalid and it would not affect her
resolve to continue making up her prayers then there is no harm forher
to continue making up prayers according to her usual make up routine
during such periods.
And Allah knows best.

Fatwa, - Ghusl at work after menses

Question:
If a woman were to finish her menses while at work and it is
impossible for her to leave the work place to make ghusl is it
permissible to make wudhu and pray without ghusl? If not then how do
Muslim women living in the west deal with such anissue which most of
usare faced with this at some point?
Answer:
Assalamu alaykum
In the name of Allah the Inspirer of truth.
It would not be sufficientfor a women to perform salat after just
performing wudu when ending her menstruation. If one has performed
salat after making wudhu only, those prayers must be repeated.
As to the question of how do Muslim women deal with such
situations,what we can say is that their are great wisdoms in the
shari'a and immense rewards for those who persevere in holding onto
their faith.
If a women is in situationthat she is forced to work to earn her daily
bread due to the absence of a supporting father or brother [if
unmarried] or husband [if married] then she should discuss the need of
having to leave early [with or without disclosing the details] with
her supervisor. Thereafter she can make up the missed work the day
after instead of having to make up missed prayers. People take of work
for all sorts of reason and this is as good a reason as any. If the
current employment is not flexible at all in this regard then you
should actively look for another job if you are forced to have one.
Remember we are required make our lifestyle subordinate to our
religion and not our religion conform to our lifestyle. Otherwise
situations of this nature are sure to arise and difficult to overcome.
And Allah makes a path for those who fear Him and He knows best.
Wassalam

Muhammad the Orphan -II

Hepassed his childhood days in a manner quite strange for theArabian
society. Instead of playing with children of his age group, he felt
disgusted in their company and preferred to be in solitude. Allaah the
Almighty had kept him aloof from every kind ofdebasement and
immorality. A few boys of Quraysh forced him to enjoy a marriage
celebration where there was dancing and music. However, as hereached
the spot, he was overtaken by sleep and kept sleeping the whole night,
only to get up when the assembly had dispersed at the end of the
celebration. He was, thus, saved from the undesirable and forbidden
activities of the marriage ceremony.
He was perhaps seven years old when the Quraysh started rebuilding the
Ka'bah, which had suffered damage from a flood. During the
construction work, hejoined the party of workers and helped them by
carrying stones and giving them to the masons. He was wearing an
Izaar)waist sheet( which was causing him some trouble doing the work.
The nakedness of a boy of seven was not then considered something
improper. So, his uncle Al-'Abbaas grabbed hold of the waist sheet and
pulled it so violently that hebecame naked. Hegrew shameful to the
extent that he fell down unconscious. At last, the people felt the
gravity of the situation and put his waist sheet back on, after which
herecovered.
First Journey toSyria
The Prophetwas twelve yearsold when Abu Taalib planned to go with a
merchant caravan to Syria leaving him behind in Makkah. But hewas so
used to the company of Abu Taalib that he could not bear
separationfrom his uncle. Abu Taalib felt moved and agreed to take him
toSyria. When they reached Busrah)which was a part ofSyriain the
vicinity of Howran under the Roman domain(, they met a monk called
Baheerah )his real name was Georges(, who showedgreat kindness and
entertained them lavishly. He had never been in the habit of receiving
or entertaining them before. He readily enough recognised the
Prophetand said while takinghis hand: "This is the master of all
humans. Allaah will send him with a Message which will be a mercy to
all beings." Abu Taalib asked: "How do you know that?" He replied:
"When you appeared from the direction of 'Aqabah, all stones and trees
prostrated themselves, which they never do except for a Prophet. I can
recognise him also by the seal of Prophethood, which is below his
shoulder, like an apple. We have learnt this from our books." He also
asked Abu Taalib to send theboy back to Makkah and not to take him
toSyriafor fear of the Jews. Abu Taalib obeyed and senthim back to
Makkah with some ofhis men servants.
Harb Al-Fijaar )The Sacrilegious Wars(, First Participation inBattle
A great fair was regularly held at 'Ukaath. This fair would organise a
number of programs including horse races, wrestling, demonstrations of
the art of combat and poetic competitions. All the tribes ofArabiawere
highly belligerent by nature and drew swords against one another at
the smallest incident.
Once, in the course of the fair at 'Ukaath, the Hawaazin and Quraysh
tribes challenged each other due to a slight provocation.At the
outset, some wise and sober people stood in the way and put the matter
right. Nevertheless, some mischief-mongers worsened the
situation,which led to a large-scale fighting and killing on both
sides.The war was known as Harb Al-Fijaar because it took place in the
month of Dhul-Qa'dah when fighting was altogether forbidden.
Muhammadwas hardly fifteen when the 'sacrilegious' wars started -
which continued with varying fortunes and considerable loss of human
life for a number of years.This war was based on a series offour wars
in which the first three were small and the fourth war happened to be
more fierce than the preceding one as all the tribes of Qays joined
the Hawaazin tribe while all the tribes of Kinaanah came to the help
of the Quraysh. Thus, this war developed to become a war between the
Qays and Kinaanah tribes. The fourth and last war was so terrible that
some of the chieftains had their feet chained so they would be unable
to flee from the battlefield.
The Prophetjoined this fourth war for the first time armed with
weapons. Among Banu Kinaanah, every tribe had a commander. Zubayr Ibn
'Abdul-Muttalib, an uncle of the Prophetled the Quraysh while Harb Ibn
Umayyah was the commander of all the troops of Banu Kinaanah.
Muhammadwas entrusted with the service ofpicking up the arrows for his
uncles. However, hewas saved from combat action. At theoutset Banu
Hawaazin seemed tobe dominating, but in the end, Banu Kinaanah turned
the tables against the Banu Qays and the war ended with a peace
treaty.
Al-Fudool Confederacy:
At the conclusion of these wars when peace was restored, peoplefelt
the need for forming a confederacy at Makkah for suppressing violence
and injustice, and vindicating the rights of the weak and the
destitute. Representatives of Banu Haashim, Banu Al-Muttalib, Asad Ibn
'Abd Al-'Uzzaa, Zahrah Ibn Kilaab and Taym Ibn Murrah were called to
meet in the habitation of an honourable elderly man called 'Abdullaah
Ibn Jada'aan At-Taymi to enter into a confederacy that would provide
for the abovementioned terms.
During his prophethood, the Prophetcommented on it with very positive
words: "I witnessed a confederacy in the house of 'Abdullaah Ibn
Jada'aan.It was more appealing to me than herds of cattle. Even now in
the period of Islam, I would respond positively to attending such a
meeting if I were invited."

Muhammad the orphan -I

Initially, after his birth, Thuwaybah, the freed slave-girl of Abu
Lahab Ibn 'Abdul-Muttalib,suckled him for seven days. She had suckled
Hamzahthe uncle of the Prophetalso. Thus, both Masruh Ibn Thuwaybah
and Hamzah were hisfoster brothers. According to the custom of the
Arab nobles, on the eighth day he was entrusted to lady Haleemah of
the Banu Sa'd clan of the Hawaazin tribe tosuckle him and bring him
up. Thenobles ofArabiawould entrust their babies to bedouin women so
that they would become healthy and strong in the open and free climate
of the desert. Besides this, it would help develop eloquent speech,
because the language of the bedouins was more pure, graceful and
eloquent than thoseliving in urban areas.
Haleemah Sa'diyyah would come to Makkah twice a year to show him to
his mother and grandfather. Haleemah Sa'diyyah suckled him for two
years and he remained with her for four years altogether. His mother
summoned him to Makkah at the end of four years. According to some
narrations, heremained with Banu Sa'd for five years. He was five
years of age, when he was out grazing goats along with his foster
brother andsisters and other boys of the same age when the event of
the opening up of his chest occurred.
According to a narration of SeeratIbn Hisham, Haleemah bint Abu Dhuayb
relates this event in thesewords: "One day both of my children came
fearfully to me andsaid that two cleanly dressed persons seized our
Qurayshi brother and split open his chest. Iwent to the spot along
with my husband )Haarith Ibn 'Abdul-'Uzzaa( and saw that he was
sitting there with a pallid face. Upon inquiry, he stated that two
cleanly dressed persons came to him, laid him down with his face up,
took out his heart, and extracted something from it." Yet, Haleemah
found no trace of any injury or spot of blood. Having thought that a
Jinn had affected the boy, she brought him to Makkah without loss of
time and related the whole eventto his mother. His mother, instead of
being afraid of what had happened, spoke with all theconfidence at her
command that her son would achieve a very distinctive place in the
world, andwould surely remain safe from allcalamities. She related
that whenhewas in her womb, she heard many things from the angels and
noticed many uncommon happenings. Imaam Muslim reports from Anas Ibn
Maalikthat one day when hewas playing with the boys of Makkah, Jibreel
)Gabriel( came to him, split his chest, took out a black spot from it,
and said: "Thiswas the portion of Satan." Following that, he washed
his heart in a tray of gold with Zamzam water and then replacedit.
After this event, Haleemah was worried about the boy and returned him
to his mother with whom he stayed until he was six.
In respect and memory of her late husband, Aaminah – the Prophet's
mother - decided to visit his grave in Yathrib)Madeenah(. She set out
to cover ajourney of 500 kilometers with her orphan boy, woman servant
Umm Ayman and father-in-law 'Abdul-Muttalib. She spent a month there
and then started her way back to Makkah. On the way, she had a severe
illness and died in Abwa on the road between Makkah and Madeenah.
To His Compassionate Grandfather:
'Abdul-Muttalib brought the boy to Makkah. He had warm feelings
towards the boy, his orphan grandson, whose recent disaster)his
mother's death( added more to the pains of the past. 'Abdul-Muttalib
was more passionate with his grandson than with his own children. He
never left the boy a prey to loneliness, and always preferred him to
his own children. Ibn Hishaam reported:"A mattress was put in the
shade of Al-Ka'bah for 'Abdul-Muttalib. His children used to sit
around that mattress in honour of their father, but Muhammadused to
sit on it. His uncles would pull him back, but if 'Abdul-Muttalib was
present, he would say: 'Leavemy grandson. I swear by Allaah that this
boy will hold a significant position.' He used to seat the boy on his
mattress, pat his back and was always pleased with what the boy did."
The Death of 'Abdul-Muttalib
When Muhammadwas eight years, two months and ten days old, his
grandfather 'Abdul-Muttalib passed away in Makkah. When
'Abdul-Muttalib's funeral procession was proceeding, hejoined it with
tearful eyes. However, 'Abdul-Muttalib had entrusted him to his son
Abu Taalib before his death, stressing the utmost care and protection
for the boy. Despite having several other sons, 'Abdul-Muttalib was
wise enough to givehim to the care of Abu Taalib because he and
'Abdullaah, the father of the boy, were born of the same mother. The
assessment of 'Abdul-Muttalib came true and the nephew became Abu
Taalib's favourite.
Support of Abu Taalib
Abu Taalib took special care of hisnephew and held him dearer than his
own sons. He made him sleep on his own bed. He singled the boy out
with great respect and high esteem. Abu Taalib remained for forty
years cherishing his nephew and extending all possible protection and
support to him. His relations with the others were determinedin the
light of the treatment they showed to the Prophet. Ibn 'Asaakir
reported on the authority of Jalhamah Ibn 'Arfootah who said: "I came
to Makkah when it was a rainless year, so Quraysh said: 'O Abu Taalib!
The valley has become leafless and the children hungry, let us go and
pray for rainfall.' Abu Taalib went to the Ka'bah with a young boy who
was as beautiful as the sun and a dark cloud was over his head. Abu
Taalib and the boy stood by the wall of the Ka'bah and prayed for
rain. Immediately, clouds from alldirections gathered and rain fell
heavily and caused the flow of springs and growth of plants in the
town and the country.