Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Introduction

Menstruation is a naturalprocess which takes place in woman's body every month. Before explaining the laws of theshari'ah about menstruation, it seems ap­propriate to discuss, in short, that why does this takeplace?

Allah has created the woman such that she plays the major role in the perpetuation of the human race. The primary reproductive organs of a woman are her ovaries. When a girl is born, her ovaries already con­tain about 400,000 immature eggs (whichare known as ova). At puberty, the eggs start maturing, usually one ovum each month. The maturing of the ovum takes place roughly halfway between two menstrual cycles. After maturing, it finds its way from the ovary to the fallopian tube and ends up in the womb.

Meanwhile the womb (while preparing for the possi­ble arrival of a fertilized egg) develops a thick, soft, velvetylining which is made up mostly of blood vessels.

This thick, soft lining in the wombis called endometrium .

If an eggis fertilized , it will be embedded inen­dometrium and continues its growth.But if no egg is fer­tilized, theendometrium (i.e. the lining of the womb) is no longer needed and is shed or discarded. This pro­cess of discarding theendometrium is known as menstruation.

From this biologicalexplanation it is clear that menstruation is neither “the curse”on woman nor a result of the so‑called original sin of Eve. Ratherit is a very normal biological process that ensures the perpetuation of the human race.

Of course, some women feel uncomfortable a few days before and during menstruation. This discomfort is caused by some of the biologicalchanges which take place in the woman's body. Allah says,They ask you about menstruation. (O Muhammad), tell them that menstruation is a discomfort for the women,(it is a period when they pass through physical and emotional tension.) (2:222)

In this part of thebook I intend, by putting my trust in Allah, to explain the Islamic laws (shari'ah ) regarding the women who are in their monthly periods.First the definition of menstruation, its signs and its duration will be discussed; then comes the different categories of women who are in menstruation; followed by four chapters on the laws about the women in each category; and finally the acts which are forbidden to a woman dur­ing her periods and the manner ofghusl are explained.

2. DefinitionOf Hayz

There are four possible causes for discharge of blood from women:

1. Menstruation.

2. Loss of virginity.

3. Post‑natal bleeding.

4. Internal injury.

As mentioned above, menstruation is different from the blood of group 2, 3, and 4. In the Islamic legal ter­minology, menstruationis known ashayz .And a woman who is having her period is known as haiz.1

According to Islamic laws, menstruation is the pro­cess of discarding theendometrium which normally takes place once a month in women from the day they attain puberty until they reach the age of menopause. (Menopause = final cessation of menstruation.)

From theshari'ah point of view, a girl attains puberty at the age of nine lunar years,2 and she reaches menopause at the age of fifty. ImamJa'far as‑Sddiq (upon whom be peace) said, “The age when a woman ceases to have menstruation is fifty years.” 3

So , if a girl sees blood before she becomes nine years old by lunar calendar, that blood is not considered menstruation (even if it may be regarded menstruation from the biological point of view). In the same way, if a woman sees blood after the age of fifty that bloodwill not be considered menstruation.

If a girl who does not know whether she has become nine years old sees blood on herself, then that bloodcan­not be considered menstruation even if it has all its three signs. (See below for the three signs of menstruation.) On the other hand, if a woman who doubtswhether or not she has reached the age of menopause sees blood, then she should consider it as menstruation.

If a woman who has reached the age of menopause (i.e., fifty years) sees blood onherself with the three signs of menstruation or at the fixed time of her mon­thly periods, then what should she do? For such a woman, it isprecautionarily wajib to act on precaution up to the age of sixty. Any blood seen after the age of sixtywill be considered istihazah . (See part II foristihazah .)

“Acting onprecaution ” means to refrain from those things which are forbidden to aha'iz and perform those things which are required of a woman inistihazah .

According to theshari'ah , it is possible for a preg­nant woman and a nursing mother to have menstruation.

The Signs: If a woman is not sure about the nature of her discharge, then she should look for the follow­ing three signs of the menstrual blood: (a) warmth; (b) dark red or blackcolour ; (c) pressure and slight burning in the discharge. If these three signsare found together, then it is menstruation.

These signs have been taken from ahadith of Im­amJa'far as‑Sddiq (peace be upon him). A woman came to him and asked, “What should a woman do who sees blood on herself but does not know whether it is menstruation or some other type (of blood)?” The Im­am said, “The blood of menstruation is warm ...black (or dark‑coloured ), and it has pressure and burning sensation...” The woman said, “By Allah! If he had been a woman, he could not have added anything further in this (description)!” 4

3. DurationOf Hayz

The beginning of menstruation is determined when blood leaves the uterus and enters the vagina. It is necessary for the commencement of menstruation that the bloodshould be seen outside the vagina.

In anotherhadith , Imam as‑Sadiq said, “The minimum duration of menstruation is three days, and the maximum is ten days.” 5

By “threedays” we mean three days and the two nights between the first and the third day. For exam­ple, if blood starts on Monday morning and stops on Wednesday evening, then it is menstruation.And by “ten days” we mean ten days and the nine nights bet­ween the first and the tenth day.

So , if a woman sees blood for less than three days, it is not consideredhayz . If the bloodis seen for more than ten days, the ten days will be counted as menstrua­tion and the blood seen after that will be regarded asistihazah .

The same Imam said, “The minimum duration of purity (between two menstrual cycles) must be (at least) ten days.”6 So if a woman sees blood during the ten days after her period had ended, it will not be consideredhayz .

Although it is normal to say that menstruation takes place once “a month”, but it should be clarified that menstrual cycles take place every 28 days ‑ so, in the present context “a month” means a period of 28 days, not 29, 30 or 31 days.

4. Different CategoriesOf Ha'iz

According to theshari'ah ,all the women are not same as far as the rules of menstruation are concerned. By taking into consideration the difference in regulari­ty of time and days of monthly periods and their ir­regularity, womencan be divided into three main groups:

1.Mubtadi'ah : literally, a beginner; in the present context it means a girl who sees menstruation for the first time.

2.Zatu 'l‑'adah : a woman who has menstruation regularly at a fixed time or for a fixed number of days or both. If a woman has two consequent periods with regularity in time of theiroccurance and duration, then she is azatu 'l‑'adah = a woman who has formed a fix­ed pattern for her monthly periods.

On the other hand, if azatu 'l‑'adah woman discovers that her fixed pattern for menstruation has changed and this happens for two consequent months, then she should follow the new pattern.

Thezatu 'l‑'adah women can be of three types:

(a)a woman whose periods occur at a fixed time and for a fixed number of days. For example, on1st of every month and lasts for 7 days con­tinuously or with a pause on the fourth day.

(b)a woman whose periods occur at a fixed time but not for a fixed number of days. For exam­ple, on1st of every month but sometimes for 4 days and at other times for 5 days.

(c)a woman whose periods occur for a fixed number of days but not at a fixed time. For ex­ample, she has her periods for 4 days but not at a fixed time, sometimes on1st and sometimes on 4th of every month.

3.Muztaribah : a woman who does not have her periods with regularity. For example, a woman has her one period on the1st of the month for five days and her second on the 5th of the month for three days and her third period on the 10th of the month for four days.Muztaribah here means a woman who has an irregular pattern for her monthly periods.

5. A Girl Entering Puberty

The girl who reaches the age of puberty and sees her menstruation for the first time is known asmub­tadi'ah = the beginner.

If amubtadi'ah sees blood with thethree signs for more than three and less than ten days, then it is menstruation.

But if amubtadi'ah sees blood for more than ten days, then there are a fewpossibilites :

1. The blood was with the three signs for some days and without them for some other days, then the former is menstruation and the latter isistihazah .

2. The blood had the three signs during the entire flow but with a difference in intensity ofcolour , that is, some days it had blackcolour and some other days it had red or dark redcolour . In thiscase the flow with blackcolour will be considered menstruation and the other will be consideredistihazah .

3. If the entire flow was without the three signs or the flow with the three signs was less than three days, then the entire flowwill be considered istihazah .

4. If the blood had the three signs during the entire flow, then themubtadi'ah has to follow thenumber­pattern of the women in her family, e.g., her mother, sister, etc. That is, if her mother's monthly period comes for six days, then she should consider the six days as menstruation and the remaining days asistihazah .

But if the women in a beginner's family differ in the number‑pattern of their monthly periods, then during the first month she should observe six or seven days as menstruation and act on precaution up to the tenth day. In the subsequentmonths she should observe the first three days as menstruation and act on precaution up to sixth or seventh day. This alternate patternshould be continued until she forms a fixed pattern of her own.

If a girl loses her virginity and blood is discharged so much that she is uncertain whether the blood is from the loss of virginity or menstruation or both, then she should examine herself “by inserting a piece of cotton inside her vagina and leave it there for a while. Then she should take it out gently ‑ if the blood has just stain­ed the outside of the cotton, then it is from the loss of virginity; but if the blood has penetrated into the cot­ton, then it is menstruation.” 7

If she is unable to examine herself, then she should consider herself whatever she was before losing virginity ‑ either she was pure from menstruation or not.

6. General RulesAbout Zatu 'L‑`Adah Women

Thezatu 'I‑'adah women in groups (a) and (b) have to observe the rules of menstruation as soon as they see the blood. It makes no difference whether it starts on the fixed day, or one or two days before it or after it, even if it does not have all the three signs of menstrual flow. Of course, if she discovers that it was not menstruation (for example, the blood stopped on the second day), then she will have to perform hersalat (which she had missed during the two days) asqaza .

Thezatu 'l-adah women in group (c) have to observe the rules of menstruation if the blood has all the three signs of menstrual flow mentioned above. If the discharge does not have all the three signs, then itwill not be regarded as menstruation.

When azatu 'l‑'adah woman sees blood many days before or after the fixed time then if it has the three signs altogether, it is menstruation; otherwise it will be regard­ed asistihazah .

with 3 signs =hayz .

without 3 signs =istihazah .

with 3 signs =hayz .

without 3 signs =istihazah .

But as mentioned above, if azatu 'I‑'adah woman sees blood during the fixed time, it ishayz even if it does not have the three signs.

with or without 3 signs =hayz .

If azatu 'I‑'adah woman sees blood for three days and then it stops for some days and again it comes for three more days ‑ then both flows of blood and the pause between them will be consideredhayz only if (a) the total days of two flows and the pause between them is not more than ten, and (b) all these days are in the fixed time and fixed number of days of the woman's menses.

if total of 2 flows & the pause is ten or less + all these days are in

the fixed time =hayz .

In the following three cases also, the two flows of blood and the pause between themwill be counted ashayz :

i . If one of the flows started a day or two before the fixed time.

both flows and the pause =hayz .

ii. If both flows started outside the fixed time but both had the three signs of menstrual flow.

with 3 signs ‑hayz .

without 3 signs =istihazah .

iii. If one flow (which started outside the fixed time) had the three signs while the other flow started in the fixed time.

with 3 signs =hayz .

without 3 signs =istihazah .

But if one flow or both did not have the three signs of menstruation and none of themoccured in the fixed time, then the flow with the three signs is menstrua­tion and without them isistihazah .

If the total days of both flows is more than ten and the pause between them is less than ten days, then the following procedure is tobe followed :

i . If one of the flows was in the fixed time without the other, the one within the fixed timewill be considered hayz and the other oneistihazah .

ii . In the case where none of the flows occurred in the fixed time, then

(a)if one had the three signs but not the other ‑ the one with the signs will behayz and the otheristihazah .

(b)if both flows had the three signs, then the first will be consideredhayz and the other will be consideredistihazah .

If the pause between the two flows of blood was ten days or more, then in the following two cases theywill be considered two separate menstruations:

i . if both flows had the three signs:

with 3 signs = two separatehayz .

without 3 signs = two separateistihazah .

ii.if one was in the fixed time, while the other had the three signs.

If these blood flowsoccured outside the fixed time and without the three signs, then bothwill be counted asistihazah .

If the blood stops before ten days and the woman is uncertain whether or not it has stopped completely, then she should examine herself by inserting a piece of cotton inside her vagina and leave it there for a while. Then she should take it out gently ‑ if the cotton comes out dry, she should consider herself pure and performghuslu 'I‑hayz (unless the pause during menstrual flow is normal in her case).

While examining oneself, it is better “to stand upright leaning on a wall, etc, and lift up one leg and then insert the cotton into the vagina.” 8

If such awoman (who is uncertain whether or not her period has stopped completely) does not examine herself and performsghuslu 'I‑hayz , then herghusl is valid only if the menstrual flow does not start again.

And if she is unable to examine herself, then she should consider herselfha'iz until she is sure of her purity.

But if the cotton comes out stained with blood, the rules differ slightly for the different categories ofha'iz :

If amubtadi'ah , amuztaribah and azatu 'l-adah who has her periods for 10 days examine themselves and find that the cotton is stained, then they should consider themselves asha’iz up to ten days or until the blood stops.

If a woman who has her periods regularly for less than ten days examines herself during her fixed numbers of days and finds the cotton stained, then she should consider herselfha'iz . If the same woman examines herself outside her fixed numbers of days and finds the cotton stained, she should consider herself asha'iz for up to ten days or until she finds herself pure.

If azatu 'l‑'adah woman of group (c) sees blood for more than ten days, then she should consider her fix­ed number of days as menstruation (even if it is without the three signs); and the remaining days should be con­sidered asistihazah (even if it is with the three signs).

But if both flows can be counted as onehayz , then she should do so.For example, she saw her first flow according to her pattern for three days, then blood stop­ped for four days and started again (with the three signs) for three days (making a total of ten days) and then con­tinued (without the three signs) afterwards ‑ then she would count the first flow + intervening pause + se­cond flow of three days (with the signs) ashayz and the remaining period asistihazah .

first flow + pause + second flow with 3 signs = 1hayz .

later part of 2nd flow without 3 signs =istihazah .

7. The ForgetfulZatu 'L‑'Adah Women

1. If a woman who has her periods on fixed number of days but not on fixed time (group c) forgets the dura­tion of her menses, then she has to act as follows:

She has the menstrual flow for three or more days,then all those days will be considered ashayz if they are not more than ten.

But if they are more than ten, then the number of days which she considers as the probable duration of her menses should be counted ashayz and the remain­ing days will be counted asistihazah .And if the “pro­bable duration of her menses” is more than seven days, then she should act on precaution from the last probable day up to the tenth day.

2. A woman who has a fixed time for theoccurance of her periods (group b) forgets that fixed time:

If she has the menstrual flow for three or more days, then all those dayswill be considered ashayz if they are not more than ten.

In the case the days are more than ten, and if she knows on the whole that the bleeding has coincided with her fixed time ‑ then she should act on precaution for the whole period of the flow even if the blood does not have the three signs of menses.

But if she does not know even generally that the bleeding has coincided with her fixed time, then there are two possibilities:

i . The blood flow had the three signs for some days and did not have the three signs for some other days ‑ then the days with the three signs will be considered ashayz if they are not more than ten, and the other days will be considered asistihazah .

ii. The blood had the three signs during the entire flow or for more than ten days, then six or seven daysshould be considered ashayz and the remaining asistihazah . In thiscase it isprecautionarily better for her to act on precau­tion up to the tenth day.

3. A woman who has a fixed time for theoccurance of her periods and a fixed number of days for its dura­tion (group a) forgets her fixed time or fixed number of days or both, then there are a few possibilities:

(a) She forgot the fixed time but remembers the fix­ed number of days: If she has the menstrual flow for three or more days, then all those days will be con­sideredhayz if they are not more than ten.

In case the bleeding continues for more than ten, and she knows on the whole that the bleeding has coincided with the fixed time ‑ then she should act on precaution for the whole period of the flow even if the blood does not have the three signs of menses.

But if she does not know even generally that the bleeding has coincided with the fixed time, then she should consider the fixed number of days (which she remembers) as menstruation and the remaining days asistihazah .

(b) She forgot her fixed number of days but remembers the fixed time ofoccurance : The blood she sees at the fixed time ‑with or without the threesigns­will be considered menstruation if it is not for more than ten days. If it comes for more than ten days, then she should consider the probable number of days from the fixed time as menstruation and the remaining days asistihazah .And in this case if the probable number of days is more than seven, then she should act on precaution up to the tenth day.

(c) She forgot both the fixed time and the fixed number of days of her monthly periods:

i . if the blood has three signs and it came for not less than three and not more than ten days, then all of it will be regarded ashayz . If it ex­ceeds ten days, then the days she considers as the probable days of her monthly periodwill be considered ashayz and the remaining days asistihazah .Again in this case if the probable period is more than seven, then it is better for her to act on precaution up to the tenth day.

ii.if the blood is with the three signs for some days but without them for some other days ‑the former will be menstruation and the latteristihazah . Of course, if both these flows are not more than ten days, then it is better for her to act on precaution on the days when the blood is without the three signs.

iii. If the blood comes for ten days or more than ten days and the woman knows on the whole that the bleeding has coincided with her fixed time and number of days, then she should act on precaution for the entire period ‑ even if the blood did not have the three signs.

8. TheMuztaribah

If amuztaribah sees blood with thethree signs for more than three and less than ten days, then it is menstruation.

But if amuztaribah sees blood for more than ten days, then there are a fewpossibilites :

1. The blood had the three signs during the entire flow, then she should consider six or seven days as menstruation and the remaining days asistihazah .

2. The blood had the three signs during the entire flow but with a difference in intensity ofcolour , that is, some days it had blackcolour and some other days it had dark redcolour . In this case the flow with blackcol­our will be considered menstruation and the other will be consideredistihazah ‑ if such darkcolour was not less than three and not more than ten days.

3. The blood was with the three signs for some days (but not less than three and not more than ten days) and without the signs for some other days, then the flow with the three signs is menstruation and without them isistihazah .

4. If the entire flow was without the three signs or the flow with the three signs was less than three days, then the entire flowwill be considered istihazah .

9. The Things Forbidden ToThe Ha'iz

I have already mentioned that menstruationis neither a “curse on the women” nor is it related to the so‑called original sin of Eve.

Menstruation is the flow of blood; and blood, ac­cording to theshari'ah , is anajis (unclean) substance and so menstruationis also considerednajis .But the impurity of menstruation in no way prevents a woman from liv­ing a normal life with her family and friends.

A person asked Imamja'far as‑Sadiq (peace be upon him) about a woman who gives water to a man while she is in her monthly period. The Imam said, “One of the wives of the Prophet (upon whom be peace) was pouring water on him and serving him drink while she was in her monthly period.” In another tradition, Im­am Muhammad al‑Baqir (peace be upon him) narrates that the Prophet (upon whom be peace) said to one of his wives, “Serve me a drink.” She said, “I am in my monthly period.” The Prophet said, “Is your menstrua­tion in your hand?!” 9 These two narrations are suffi­cient to show that the impurity of menstruation does not prevent a woman from living a normal life with her family and friends.

***

On the other hand, there are certain acts of worship, etc., in Islam which are so sacred that a Muslim, whetherman or woman, cannot perform them unless he or she has certain qualifications. It is only in relation to these acts that thewomen who are in menstruation, just as thejunub men, are forbidden from performing them. Those acts are as follows:

1. Touching the writings of the Qur'an, the names and attributes of Allah, the names of the Prophet, theImams and Fatimah (the daughter of the Prophet). It is better not to touch names of other prophets too.

2. Reciting those verses of the Qur'an in whichsa­jdah (prostration) iswajib , i.e., verse 15 of chapter 32; verse 37 of chapter 41; verse 62 of chapter 53; and verse 19 of chapter 96. It is better not to recite even a single verse from these chapters.

3. Staying or even entering in a mosque. One can pass through the mosques10 (by entering from one door and leaving from the other) except theMasjidu l‑Haram (the Sacred Mosque at Mecca),Masjidu 'n‑Nabi (the Mosque of the Prophet at Medina), and the shrines of the Imams ‑ aha'iz woman cannot even pass through these places.

As she is not allowed to enter any mosque, naturally she cannot do circumambulation (tawaf ) ofKa'bah , nor can she observe i'tikaf.11

4. Putting something in a mosque ‑ even if she is standing outside.But she may take out something from it ‑ provided she does not enter it.

5. A woman who is in her periodsis excused fromsalat (prayers) because she does not have an important qualification forsalat , i.e.,taharat (cleanliness). She does not even have to perform them later on asqaza . Imam 'AliRaza (peacebe upon him) said, “When a woman has her monthly period, she does not ...pray because she is in the state of impurity (of blood), and Allah likes to be worshipped only by a pure (tahir ) person...”12

6. Likewise aha'iz woman is excused from fasting; but in this case, she has to fast after the month ofRamadhdn asqaza . In his answer to AbuBasir's ques­tion, ImamJa'far as‑Sadiq said, “Fasting is just for a month in a year whilesalat is every day and night. That is why Allah ordered that the fasts (missed by aha'iz in Ramadan)be repaid asqaza , while He did not order to performqaza of thesalats (missed duringhayz ).“13

It ismustahab for aha’iz to change her sanitary napkin at the time of every prayer, to dowudu ', to sit on hermusalla facing theqiblah and to recitedu'as ; it is better to recitetasbihat arba'ah . (Tasbihat arba'ah are as follows:subhan Allahi ;wa 'I‑hamdu li 'I‑lahi ;wa lailaha illa 'lahu ;wa 'la‑lahu akbar .)

It ismakruh for aha’iz to recite, to keep, tocarry or to touch the border of the pages of the Qur'an, or the blank space between the lines.

At the end of thischapter I would like to present the following verses from the Bible so that the reader may appreciate the laws of theshari'ah . The Bible, in the Book of Leviticus, says,

“When a woman has a discharge, her discharge be­ing blood from her body, she shall remain in her im­purity for seven days; whoever touches her shall be unclean until evening. Anything that she lies on dur­ing her impurity shall be unclean; and anything that she sits on shall be unclean. Anyone who touches her bed­ding shall wash his clothes, bathe in water, and remain unclean until evening; and anyone who touches any ob­ject on which she has sat shall wash his clothes, bathe in water, and remain unclean until evening. Be it the bedding or be it the object on which she has sat, on touching it he shall be unclean until evening.And if a man lies with her, her impurity is communicated to him; he shall be unclean seven days, and any bedding on which he lies shall become unclean.

“When she becomes clean of her discharge, she shall count off seven days, and after that she shall be clean. On the eighthday she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons, and bring them to the priest at the en­trance of the Tent of Meeting. The priest shall offer the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering; and the priest shall make expiation on her behalf, for her unclean discharge, before the Lord.” (Lev. 15:19‑30)

Now surely you will appreciate the words of Allah which say, Allah does not desire to make any impediment for you; He only desires to purify you, and that He may com­plete His blessings upon you; haply you will be thankful (to Him). (Qur'an 5:6)

10. SexDuring Menstruation

By considering the discomfort of the women dur­ing the monthly periods, Islam has forbidden both the husband and the wife from sexual intercourse during the menstruation.

The Qur'an says,They ask you about menstruation. (O Muhammad) tell (them that) menstruation is a discomfort (for the women, it is a period when they pass through physical and emotional tension. Therefore,) do not establish sexual rela­tions with them during the menses, and (again you are remind­ed that) do not approach them (sexually) until the blood stops. Then when they have cleansed themselves, you (are permit­ted to) go into them as Allah has commanded you (by placing sexual urge in your nature). (2:222)

Of course, playing with the other parts of her body (other than the vagina and anus)is allowed . Again, it isprecautionarily better not to play with her body bet­ween the navel and knees.

If a man who is engaged in sexual intercourse with his wife discovers that her period hasbegan , then he should immediately withdraw himself from her.

It is clear from the verse mentioned above (until the blood stops) that once the blood has stopped, intercourse becomes lawful even if the woman has not performedghuslu 'l‑hayz .But on the basis of the subsequent sentence (then when they have cleansed themselves...), most of thefuqaha ' (Islamic jurists) have ruled that it isprecau­tionarily better to refrain from intercourse until she per­formsghusl or, at least, washes her private parts.

'Ali binYaqtin asked Imam Musa al‑Kazim (peace be upon him) about a man having intercourse with his wife whose period has stopped but she has still not performed theghusl . The Imam said, “There is no harm in it; but (intercourse) after theghusl is more preferable to me.` 14

11. TheSalat Before & AfterThe Menses

Whenever amubtadi'ah , amuztaribah or a forgetfulzatu 'l‑'adah woman sees blood, she should stop hersalat ‑ of course, if she discovers later on that it was nothayz (e.g., the blood stopped on the second day), then she should performqaza of thesalat which she had missed.

If the time for a particularsalat has already begun and a woman fears that by delaying thesalat her period may start, then it iswajib on her to perform thatsalat immediately.

If the time for a particularsalat has already begun and the woman did not pray until her period started, then she has to perform thatsalat asqaza after the menstruation stops and she becomes clean.

If a woman's period starts while she is engaged insalat , her prayer will be invalid.

If a woman who is engagedin salat doubts whether or not her period has started, her doubt will have no effect on thesalat unless she discovers later on that her period had actually begun.

If a woman becomes pure from menstruation and has enough time to performghuslu 'I‑hayz and pray, at least, onerak'at in time ‑ then it iswajib on her to do so. In case she does not pray, then it will bewdjib on her to perform itsqaza .

For example, the time of 'asr prayer was ending at 5:00 p.m. and a woman became pure from her period at 4:00 p.m. In this case, she has enough time to per­formghuslu 'l‑hayz and praysalat of 'asr . If she does not do so, then it will bewajib for her to performsalat of `asr asqaza .

If a woman becomes pure from menstruation while she does not have enough time to performghusl and pray at least onerak'at in time ‑ then it isprecautionarily obligatory for her to performtayammum instead ofghusl , and pray.But in this case if she does not do so, then it is notwajib for her to perform thatsalat asqaza .

12.Ghusl U'l‑Hayz

When a woman becomes pure from menstruation, it iswdjib for her to performghusl . Apart from sexual intercourse, all the acts forbidden to her will remain so until she performsghusl u'I‑hayz .

The manner of performingghuslu 'l‑hayz is same as the method explained inWudu ' &Ghusl . For conve­nience of the reader, the manner of performingghusl is also given here.

There are two methods of performingghusl :Ghusl tartibi andghusl irtimasi .

1.Ghusl Tartibi : After removing thenajasat from the body and afterniyyat , the body has tobe washed in three stages: First, the head and the neck; then the right side of the body from the shoulders to the foot; and lastly, the left side of the body.

2.Ghusl Irtimasi : In this type ofghusl , afterniyyat , the whole bodyshould be completely immersed in water at once, not gradually. One has to make sure that all the parts of his body, including the skin under the hair,has been washed.

However,ghusl tartibi is preferred toghusl irtimasi .

For other details about the manner of performingghusl , see pp. 16‑20 ofWudu ' &Ghusl .

Notes

1. To make thepronounciation easier for the readers, I have departed from the standard transliteration method of writing as d;instead I have used z. For example, instead ofhaid andhayd ,I have writtenha'iz andhayz respectively.

2. Nine years according to the Islamic (lunar) calendar would be eight years and nine months according to the Gregorian (solar) calendar.

3.al ‑'Amili ,Shaykh Muhammad binHasan al‑Hurr ,Wasa'ilu 'sh‑Shi'ah , (kitabu 't‑Taharah ), (ed. 'Abdu 'r‑Ralum ash‑ShirdA ) vol. 2, Tehran 1401 AH, p. 580.

4. Ibid, p. 537.

5. Ibid, p. 551.

6. Ibid, p. 554.

7. As explained by Imam Musa al‑Kazim (peacebe upon him) toKhalaf binHammad al‑Kufi .See al‑'Amili , op. cit., vol. 2, p. 535.

8. As explained by imam as‑Sadiq .See al‑'Amili , op. cit., vol. 2, p. 562.

9.al ‑'Amili , op. cit., vol. 2, p. 595.

10. It is necessary to clarify that mosque, i.e.,masjid , is different from the religiouscentres built by theShi'ahs in the memory of ImamHusayn (peace be upon him) whichare usually known asHusayniyyah ,Imambargah orImambara .

11.I'tikaf means to fast and stay in a mosque for at least three days with the intention of worshipping Allah.

12. Ibid, p. 586.

13. Ibid, p. 591.

14. Ibid, p. 573.