Question:
When a woman stops her monthly menstruation, must she bathe before it is permissible to have intercourse with her? Please provide the details and examples to facilitate understanding.
Answer:
There are multiple scenarios regarding this and the ruling differs for each scenario.
- A woman’s menstruation lasts 10 full days.
If a woman’s menstruation (hayḍ) lasts 10 full days, intercourse with her is permissible as soon as the 10th full day passes, even if she has not yet bathed (ghusl). However, it is preferred and desirable for her to bathe before intercourse [al-Durr al-Mukhtār with Radd al-Muḥtār 2/277-278].
This is the case even if the bleeding itself does not stop after the 10th day, as the maximum duration of menstruation is 10 days. Any bleeding after the 10th day is considered irregular bleeding (istihaḍah) and therefore the rulings of menstruation do not apply [al-Durr al-Mukhtār with Radd al-Muḥtār 2/277-278 & 290-292].
Example: A woman bled for 6 days last month. However, this month, she continued bleeding more than 6 days until the completion of 10 full days since she started bleeding. Intercourse with her is permissible even before she bathes. If the bleeding continues beyond 10 days, intercourse with her is still permissible as bleeding after 10 days is considered irregular bleeding and not menstruation.
2. A woman’s menstruation stops before the completion of 10 full days.
If a woman’s menstruation stops before the completion of 10 full days, then the ruling depends on whether her bleeding has also stopped before the completion of her monthly habit days or after the completion of her monthly habit days. Note that ‘monthly habit days’ used below refers to the number of days the woman bled in the previous month.
A. If a woman’s menstruation stops before the completion of 10 full days but after her monthly habit days are complete, then intercourse with her is only permissible after one of the following:
i. She bathes (ghusl) – that is, she completes the major ritual bath; or
ii. The ṣalāh time in which her bleeding stopped ends – that is, if there was such time left for the ṣalāh after her bleeding stopped that she could bathe, dress for ṣalāh and say the takbīr (Allāhu Akbar), then when this ṣalāh time passes, even if she does not bathe, intercourse with her is permissible. If there was not enough time to do the aforesaid things during the ṣalāh time in which she stopped bleeding, then the time of the next ṣalāh must also pass. When this time also passes, intercourse with her is permissible even before she bathes. However, she will be sinful for missing ṣalāh for no valid reason. If bleeding stops during a time in which there is no ṣalāh time (after sunrise to before ẓuhr), for instance at 10am, then if she does not bathe at that time, the time of ẓuhr must end before intercourse with her is permissible. [al-Durr al-Mukhtār with Radd al-Muḥtār 2/278-284]
Example (i): A woman bled for 6 days last month. This month she also bled for 6 days. Therefore, her monthly habit is complete. Intercourse with her is permissible after she bathes.
Example (ii): A woman stopped bleeding after 6 days during the time of ẓuhr. If she does not bathe during the time of ẓuhr but she had enough time remaining to be able to bathe, dress for ṣalāh and say the takbīr, intercourse is not permissible with her until the time of ẓuhr ends and the time of ʿaṣr begins. When the time of ẓuhr ends and ʿaṣr begins, intercourse with her is permissible even if she does not bathe. If when the bleeding stopped during the time of ẓuhr, there was not enough time remaining of ẓuhr that she could bathe, dress for ṣalāh and say the takbīr for ẓuhr, then intercourse with her is only permissible after the time of ʿaṣr ends and the time of maghrib begins if she does not bathe [al-Durr al-Mukhtār with Radd al-Muḥtār 2/282-284].
B. If a woman’s menstruation stops before the completion of 10 full days and before the completion of her monthly habit days, then she will bathe and begin praying ṣalāh, but intercourse with her is not permissible until after her habit days are over. Once her habit days pass, intercourse with her is permissible. [al-Durr al-Mukhtār with Radd al-Muḥtār 2/279]
Example: A woman bled for 6 days last month. This month she only bled for 5 days. She must bathe and begin praying ṣalāh, but intercourse is only permissible with her after the 6th day is complete. Therefore, in this example, it is necessary for the woman to wait 1 day before she can have intercourse.
And Allah Almighty knows best.
Muhammad Kalim
19 Muharram 1444 H.
References: al-Durr al-Mukhtār with Radd al-Muḥtār 2/277-284
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