| 1. For istihada qalila, it says you have to do wudhu before each prayer. Does it mean that if you are doing both dhuhr and asr, you have to do wudhu again before Asr? | Yes. As long as blood is internally present within the vagina, you must do wudhu for each individual prayer even if you haven't broken your wudhu and blood has not exited your body. | istihada, qalila (light), wudhu |
| 2. Can you please explain how to count 3 and 10 days as mentioned in Ruling 441 which states: It is not necessary for a woman to experience bleeding on the eve of the first and fourth day. However, the bleeding must not stop on the eve of the second and third day. Therefore, if from the start of the morning of the first day the bleeding continues until sunset of the third day and does not stop at all, it is ḥayḍ. The same applies if it starts during the first day and stops at the same time on the fourth day. | What is meant by the ruling is that we are counting daytimes, but the nights between the daytimes must also have bleeding that meets the criteria for hayd. So if bleeding begins right at Fajr time on Monday for example, then Monday Fajr until Maghrib will be 1 daytime, Tuesday Fajr until Maghrib will be the 2nd daytime, and Wednesday Fajr until Maghrib will be the 3rd; therefore, the 3 days will end on Wednesday at Maghrib. It is not necessary for bleeding to be present on Sunday night or Wednesday night; however, bleeding must not stop during Monday and Tuesday nights. If hayd begins in the middle of the day on Monday (for example, let's say 11 am), then 3 daytimes will finish at 11 am on Thursday, and bleeding must not stop during the nights contained within that time-period. Please refer to the course notes for more precise details. | hayd, counting days |
| 3. When do you get istihada? For example, can you get istihada between hayd cycles? If yes, how do you differentiate between hayd and istihada? Do you have to do two ghusls? One? | Istihada is any vaginal bleeding that is not from a wound and does not meet the requirements of hayd or nifas. Differentiating between hayd and istihada is done by means of knowing the conditions for hayd and considering it to be istihada if it does not meet even one of those conditions. Istihada has three types, each of which has its own rulings regarding ghusl requirements. Please refer to the course notes for more precise details. | istihada, ghusl |
| 4. In Sayyid Sistani's book, it mentions that istihada can be yellow in color. There is a white, sometimes a light yellow, sticky discharge before my period starts, is this istihada? Is the discharge that comes right before or during the menstrual cycle istihada? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | hayd, istihada, discharge |
| 5. Is the discharge that comes right before or during the menstrual cycle istihada? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | discharge, hayd |
| 6. What if I see a yellowish discharge after my period ends? | As long as the entire duration of the blood remains within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd, it will be considered hayd. If you surpass the ten-day limit, then some of it would be istihada, and you would have to determine the days of hayd and istihada. | discharge, hayd |
| 7. A condition for hayd is that it should be internally there for 3 days with no significant gap. How long constitutes a significant gap? Someone told me that if it's internal, it's not hayd? | By 3-day continuity, what is meant is that the blood should be present internally inside your vagina. If you were to go to the process of istibra (inserting a piece of tissue paper or cotton ball inside the entrance to the vagina), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. A minimal gap (for example, 15-30 minutes) would be okay. [Farsi Istifta'at, sistani.org] | hayd |
| 8. In Ruling 432 [of Tawzih al-Masasil], it says that the blood of hayd is thick and warm, and its colour is black or red, and it comes out with a little pressure and with a burning sensation. The blood after 4-5 days of my cycle is not like this - it might be like brown/yellow stains and lesser quantity (when checked with a tissue). Would it still be hayd? | This ruling describes common characteristics, but they are NOT conditions. The fatwa you quoted mentions that these occur "most of the time". This is because this is not always the case. IMPORTANT: The characteristics are almost always irrelevant in your regular periods if they last less than 10 days.
If you have a period in which the totality of it is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial continuity), then ALL OF IT no matter what colour or characteristics is considered to be hayd. | hayd |
| 9. Regarding reading the Quran during hayd, there are so many different answers floating around. Is it controversial? Where does the discouragement to recite come from and why? | According to Syed Sistani, reciting the Qur'an during hayd is makruh - however, in this context, makruh does NOT have the meaning of "disliked by Allah"; rather, it simply means that the reward one gets for reciting the Holy Qur'an in the state of hayd is lesser than at other times. Reciting the Qur'an is always a recommended action with great rewards and benefits for the reciter, no matter what state she might be in. The only exceptions are the four verses of wajib sajdah, which are haram to recite in the state of hayd. | hayd, Quran, makruh |
| 10. According to the fiqh book, there are different ways for women's cycle descriptions, such women of habit, duration, etc. What is considered a month? Is it the period cycle, whatever days that may be for a woman? Or is it counted in a solar method? | According to Ayatullah Sistani, a month means anything around 30 days. If there's slight variation of 1-2 days between each month, it doesn't matter and you would still have a habit of time. You can also have a period cycle of seeing it every x number of days and this would also be considered to be a habit of time. Note that you don't need to worry about your habit unless your menstruation exceeds 10 days.
| hayd, habit |
| 11. After intimacy, one realizes that they were actually in the state of istihada when they were intimate. Does one owe kaffara? What if one is in the state of hayd? | Vaginal sex (and other forms of sex) is permissible when one is in the state of istihada but it is impermissible and haram during hayd.
In the case that someone is on hayd, if it's accidental, then they haven't committed a sin. If they knowingly had sex when they knew they weren't supposed to, then it is wajib for them to seek forgiveness from Allah. There is no wajib kaffarah in any of these cases according to Ayatullah Sistani. (Ruling 450) Please note that it is permissible to have sex after one is clean from hayd even before ghusl has taken place. | istihada, hayd, sex |
| 12. After nifas, istihada kathirah ghusls are cumbersome and almost impossible. Sometimes, elders are concerned that the mother will get sick because of washing her hair 3x/day. Any guidance? | Sayyid Sistani says that if the numerous ghusls cause harm to a woman (or even if there is a legitimate fear that they might cause harm) or create a lot of difficulty that is not normally tolerable, then she can perform tayammum instead for all or some of the ghusls (Masale 603, Tawzih Jami). Note also that according to Syed Sistani, it isn't necessary to wash the entirety of the hair - just the scalp. So a woman can tie her hair and pour water on her head in such a way that the water reaches all parts of the scalp while the majority of the hair still remains dry. | nifas, istihada, ghusl, kathirah (heavy), tayammum, prolonged bleeding |
| 13. Do all the rulings of what is haram and makruh for a person who is janabah also apply to someone who has hayd? For example, is it makruh to read more than 7 verses of the Quran during hayd? | Most of the rules overlap with some additions for hayd. According to Syed Sistani, reciting the Qur'an during hayd is makruh - however, in this context, makruh does NOT have the meaning of "disliked by Allah"; rather, it simply means that the reward one gets for reciting the Holy Qur'an in the state of hayd is lesser than at other times. Reciting the Qur'an is always a recommended action with great rewards and benefits for the reciter, no matter what state she might be in. The only exceptions are the four verses of wajib sajdah, which are haram to recite in the state of hayd. | hayd, Quran, makruh |
| 14. Are there any issues with reading Quran while on my period (without touching the words)? What should I do if I reach mandatory sujood ayat - do I skip it? | According to Syed Sistani, reciting the Qur'an during hayd is makruh - however, in this context, makruh does NOT have the meaning of "disliked by Allah"; rather, it simply means that the reward one gets for reciting the Holy Qur'an in the state of hayd is lesser than at other times of ritual purity. Reciting the Qur'an is always recommended with great rewards and benefits for the reciter, no matter what state she might be in. In fact, there are particular encouragements for a woman in hayd to recite Qur'an during the times of prayer, especially the adhan. The only exceptions are the four verses of wajib sajdah, which are haram to recite in the state of hayd and other states of ritual impurity (i.e. janabah). Therefore, you should skip those four verses and recite them when you are no longer in the state of hayd. | hayd, Quran, makruh |
| 15. Are you allowed to touch the Quran through your device (i.e. tablet, phone) while on your menstrual cycle? For example, accidentally touching it while swiping up & down. | Yes. What's impermissible is touching the actual script of the Qur'an, not a phone screen as there is a barrier and it is not actual writing. | hayd, Quran |
| 16. How can you tell if something brownish/yellowish is hayd or cervical fluid? It gets confusing, especially after 10 days. Also, do you assume it's cervical fluid only, or cervical fluid stained with blood? In the latter case, would it still be istihada? | If there is blood in it (brown would definitely have blood in it), then it would definitely be istihada if it has gone past the ten day mark. If you're not sure of the presence of blood, then it would depend when you see it. If it's during your 10 possible period days, then it is counted as bleeding. If it's outside of the time, then you can count it as non-blood and regular discharge.
Please remember that if your bleeding goes beyond 10 days, then some is hayd and some is istihada and you will need to refer to the rulings on how to designate the days appropriate. Please see the course for details on how to do this. | istihada, hayd, discharge |
| 17. Blood comes out, and based on checking, the traces of blood remain inside for 3 days. It does not come out on its own and is a very tiny speck of faint/pale pink. Are all 3 days hayd? | This situation meets the 3-day internal continuity condition mentioned in the conditions of hayd; so, assuming all other conditions of hayd are also met, all three days would be considered hayd. | hayd, istibra |
| 18. By mistake, I had counted my period to be 10 days but later found out it was actually 5 days, not 10. Do i have to make up namaz/fasts for days missed? | Yes, you will need to make up the qadas for both. | hayd, fasts, qada, prayers |
| 19. Can we make ghusl while on hayd such as ghusl janabah or ghusl jumah? | Yes. Ghusl Janabah is still valid (i.e. it counts, you don't need to do it again afterwards) if you take the ghusl while on your hayd. Ghusl Jumah is NOT a mustahab ghusl for a woman who is still bleeding according to an OP from Sayyid Sistani but it can still be performed with the intention of hope that Allah accepts it and gives reward for it. According to Sayyid Khamenei, a ghusl for janabah during hayd would be problematic (i.e. one should do a ghusl of janabah and hayd together after the hayd is over). | ghusl, hayd |
| 20. Can we perform wudhu during periods? Will we get rewarded for it? For example, it is recommended to do wudhu before sleeping. | Yes. | hayd, wudhu |
| 21. Can you please describe the terminology used in fiqh books? For example, what is meant by blood, like how red/brown and how diluted can it be? What does it mean for it to flow? | Bleeding refers to anything that has blood present in it. If you see something that has blood in it, the flow/colour/level of dilution is irrelevant. Sometimes blood is brown, black, red, pink etc. It could be mixed with discharge or not. If there is blood present in whatever you see, then it counts as one of these types of blood (as long as it's not from an injury). Flow is not a fiqhi term and as such is irrelevant for determining the ahkam. What is relevant is the concept of internal continuity (the Arabic & Farsi which is istimrar and unfortunately translated as continuous flow which is innaccurate), meaning that blood is present internally in any quantity/colour for at least the first three days. | hayd, misc |
| 22. Can you read the surah that has an ayah with a wajib sajdah? I am asking about the surah as a whole and not just the ayah. | Yes. Only the actual verse of wajib sajdah is haram to recite. | hayd, Quran, haram, makruh |
| 23. Can you touch a turbha/mohr/sajdagah while in menses/hayd? | Yes, as long as you aren't touching any name of Allah (swt) in any language or verses of the Qur'an in Arabic. | hayd, haram, makruh |
| 24. My hayd usually lasts 7-8 days. If goes to 9 days, do I take the 9th day as istihada and not as my regular habit? | Any blood where the entire duration is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd is your hayd. It doesn't matter what your regular habit is. | hayd, irregular, istihada, habit |
| 25. My period is usually 7 days. On day 8, I didn't know that my nifas (or istihada) was going to be more than 10 days. What do I do regarding the prayers I missed from day 8 onwards? | If you thought it was going to end before ten days, and didn't pray that's okay. Regardless, if it does surpass ten days, you still have to pray the qadha for those days missed.
IMPORTANT: Just because you have to do the qadha of your prayers doesn't mean you did something wrong or sinned! God doesn't blame us for not knowing or predicting correctly. It's like when you have qada fasts for Ramadan. You didn't sin, but regardless, you have to do the qada. So don't worry. Having qadhas is not the end of the world. | qada, prayers, istihada, hayd, nifas |
| 26. I have continuous spotting (based on internal checks or externally coming out on its own) for weeks on end. For example, 25 days of continuous spotting. Can some of those days be hayd? | Up to 10 days of this could count as your hayd if this is the only bleeding you are seeing. If you are always all-over in your periods and don't have a regular period with consistencies, then up to 10 of these days could be hayd if it meets all the conditions of hayd. | hayd, istihada |
| 27. Are there any requirements for the cotton ball when checking during hayd? Can it be a tissue or 2 sheets of toilet paper folded? The thickness between these options vary, with the cotton ball being the thickest. | If you are doing istibra and just checking if your hayd is there or not, then it doesn't matter. However, if you are checking the flow of your istihada, then yes, it matters. A regular -sized and -shaped cotton ball is what is meant. You can use anything similar, but shouldn't use something like toilet paper which soaks very easily or something that does not soak at all because this would affect the level of flow that you determine. (Ruling 597, Tawzih Jami) | hayd, istibra, |
| 28. What if you kept your fasts when you are spotting at the beginning of haydh but don't have all the signs of haydh? Do you have to make those fasts up? | It is wajib to keep all of the qadha for fasts that are missed even if one is on hayd. If your period does not have a 3-day initial continuity, then this initial bleeding is istihada, it is not hayd. Fasting during istihada is valid.
By 3-day continuity, this means that the blood should be present internally inside your vaginal canal. If you were to go to the process of istibra (internal checking of the canal), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. A minimal gap (for example, 15-20 minutes where istibra does not show any blood) would be okay. | qada, fasts, hayd |
| 29. Do you have to do a new ghusl for istihada as soon as the level of spotting changes? | If your flow is INCREASING (which means you would become medium or heavy), then yes you would need to do a ghusl for the next prayer as per the rulings of your flow. | ghusl, istihada |
| 30. Due to uterine fibroids, one has very heavy bleeding for about 3 days , and then prolonged medium flow to light flow for longer than 10 days. What are the rulings on that sort of situation? | Since the duration of your bleeding is longer than ten days, you would need to choose a number of days (3-10) as hayd and then do istihada for the rest. For details on how to choose the number of days, please refer to the course. | hayd, irregular, istihada, prolonged bleeding |
| 31. If you became clean and performed ghusl after midnight but before fajr, do you need to pray maghrib/isha if it's not fajr time yet? Or are maghrib and isha qada? | Yes, you do have to pray them. Maghrib and Isha do not technically become qada according to Ayatullah Sistani until the fajr adhan and both must be prayed. | prayers, qada, ghusl |
| 32. Let's say you don't know when you became istihada qalila, and you have prayed maghrib and isha, but later that night you go to the bathroom and see something on your pad. What do you need to do? | If you are not sure when you started istihada, and there is chance that you were clean when you prayed, then your prayers are valid. It is only in the case that you are 100% sure that you had istihada at the time of praying that you would need to redo those prayers. | istihada, qalila (light), prayers |
| 33. What do I do if spotting occurs after 10 days of hayd? Is there a ghusl for qalila, and then new wudhu for each namaz? Or no ghusl and just new wudhu? | The basic rules of what to do for istihada depending on the heaviness of the flow are summarized below. Please note to block your vaginal entrance for all of these to avoid breaking your taharah. An easy and effective way to do this is with a tampon (for married women).
- Qalila (Little) – wash outside of vagina, change pad if dirty, wudhu for each prayer (no ghusl needed)
- Mutawassitah (Medium)- all of the above plus one ghusl per day (before first prayer on first day and before Fajr on all subsequent days)
- Kathirah (Lots) – ghusl before each set of prayers (assuming the blood does not exit the body during these two prayers.. If it does but you have enough time to pray one prayer without it exiting, you should do a ghusl for each prayer. If the blood is so extensive that you can't even pray one prayer, then one ghusl for both is sufficient.)
To “end” Istihada, do whatever you had to do depending on your flow, one more time for the next prayer only. An additional ghusl is not required, unless you had to for your flow.
- Qalila (Little) – wudhu for your next prayer.
- Mutawassitah (Medium)- wudhu for your next prayer. If your next prayer is fajr, you would need to ghusl as well.
- Kathirah (Lots) – ghusl before your next prayer. | hayd, istihada, qalila (light), ghusl, wudhu, mutawassitah (medium), kathirah (heavy), prayers |
| 34. I experience heavy bleeding in the first three days, then just spotting which doesn't reach the cotton for four days. My habit is usually 6-7 days. Should those four days be considered hayd? | Any blood that is within the 3-10 day period with all the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial continuity) is your hayd. You habit does not matter unless your bleeding exceeds 10 days. | hayd, irregular, istibra |
| 35. For a woman who does not have a regular period (a habit) and sees blood for all 10 days (on almost all months), will the end of her period be the 10th day? | Any blood that is within the 3-10 day period with all the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial continuity) is your hayd. If she ends exactly at 10 days she can count all of it as her hayd. In the event that she surpasses 10 days, she would have to see what her regular habit is or use one of the other methods for determining the days of hayd. | irregular, hayd |
| 36. Regarding istihada, is it okay to insert the cotton in just a little bit, or should it go deeper? How long should the cotton be inside (i.e. 30 sec, 5 mins)? | It only needs to be in the the entrance and a little inside in order to grab the flow of the blood. You can leave it in for the amount of time you need to determine if there is blood in your vaginal entrance. The process explained should cause no issues for a virgin woman. Please remember that istibra is wajib and the rulings of hayd are sometimes uncomfortable but they are our responsibility. | istihada, istibra |
| 37. For unmarried girls who are uncomfortable to insert cotton in vagina to check bleeding, is it sufficient to keep it at the entrance of the vagina? For how long? | It only needs to be at the entrance and a little inside in order to grab the flow of the blood. You can leave it in for the amount of time you need to determine if there is blood in your vaginal entrance. The process explained should cause no issues for a virgin woman. Please remember that istibra is wajib and the rulings of hayd are sometimes uncomfortable but they are our responsibility. | hayd, istihada, istibra |
| 38. Ghusl for medium istihada is taken once a day. What constitutes one whole day? Is it 24 hours? What about situations like the month of Ramadhan, where we stay up late or most of the night? | When you first see medium istihada, you should do a ghusl for that day before praying the next prayer. From the following day, you should do it before praying fajr. Sayyid Sistani has an obligatory precaution that the ghusl should be carried out before praying fajr, and not at other times of the day. (Tawzih Jami, Masale 600)
Fasting: Please note that the ghusls for istihada do not need to be completed before the adhan of fajr, whereas ghusls for hayd and janabah must be completed before the adhan time in order for a fast to be valid. | mutawassitah (medium), ghusl, istihada, fasting |
| 39. How do you count the days of your period? Is there a difference between when you see that you have your period verses when it starts? Or does it start when any blood is spotting, or more? | Your period starts as soon as you see blood and it meets all the conditions of hayd such as internal continuity etc. The amount/colour/flow of blood doesn't matter.
If your period starts during the day (from fajr to sunset) you count by 24 hours. If it starts at night, then you count day times only (from Fajr to Maghrib is day one, next day is Maghrib is end of day two, and the next day at Maghrib will mark the end of day three). | hayd, habit |
| 40. How do we tell what kind of istihada one has? I use a panty shield and always doubt myself about whether it's light or medium istihada. | You should insert regularly -sized and -shaped cotton balls into the entrance of the vagina and see how much the blood permeates from one out-flow of blood. If it is just on the surface, it is qalila. If it permeates through but doesn't come out the other end, it is mutawassita. If it goes all the way through the cotton ball, it will be katheera. | istihada |
| 41. How do we treat regular discharge for salat, etc.? Do we need to check on flow, wash it, or anything? is it najis or can we pray with it? i have discharge often but no blood. | Discharge with absolutely zero blood in it is called cervical mucus and it is not najis (it's similar to snot). This includes discharge that exits the body in times of sexual arousal (unless one enters janabah). Therefore, there's no problem in praying with it. Regardless, it is recommended to go to prayers with the best and cleanest clothes, so it is good if one prays with the best and cleanest clothes. | discharge |
| 42. How does one determine if bleeding is istihada or an early period? For example, being in late 40s and entering menopause makes cycles unpredictable. (Ruling 445) | According to Ayatullah Sistani, if you are not sure if the blood you see is hayd or istihada but it meets all the conditions of hayd (i.e. it has been 10-days since your last hayd, there is a 3-day continuity etc), then you should treat it as hayd. (Ruling #445)
If it does not meet the conditions, and you see that there are significant gaps in which it is not internally present etc. then you should treat it as istihada. | istihada, hayd, irregular, menopause |
| 43. How does one determine if their hayd is over? As in, how do we distinguish between vaginal discharge and hayd? | If you have a murky discharge at the end of your period and it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and as your hayd. If you exceed 10 days including this discharge, then you would need to choose days for hayd and istihada based on the tools used in the course. | hayd, discharge, habit |
| 44. I have an IUD. Sometimes, I'll see blood a day or two before I know my actual cycle is about to start. I've been treating that blood as istihada - is this correct? | As long as the total duration of the blood is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd (such as 3-day internal continuity), all of it is your hayd. The IUD and/or forms of birth control are irrelevant and does not change any of this as long as it does not surpass 10 days.
If the bleeding goes over 10 days, then you would need to determine some of the days as istihada. Otherwise, it is all hayd. | istihada, birth control, hayd, habit |
| 45. I have had hysterectomy and uterus removed but cervix and ovaries left.I get light bleeding for 3-4 days around my menstruation time. Is this hayd or istehadha? | In the case that a woman has removed her entire uterus, she cannot experience uterine bleeding and can no longer experience hayd. If she sees bleeding after a hysterectomy that she is sure is a result from the injuries of her surgery, then that is treated as an injury and is not ruled as hayd or istihada. However, in the case that she experiences bleeding such that she is not sure if it is from an injury or an internal sore etc (and for ex. if she still has her ovaries) then it should be treated as istihada. [Sayyid Sistani, Arabic Istiftaa’t] | hysterectomy, hayd, istihada |
| 46. I had irregular spotting with red blood for 1-2 days. The actual flow starts on the third day. Do the first two days count as istihada? | If your period does not have a 3-day initial continuity, then this initial bleeding is istihada, it is not hayd. If it does meet the internal continuity criteria, it will all be considered hayd, regardless of the amount of flow.
By 3-day continuity, this means that the blood should be present internally inside your vagina. If you were to go to the process of istibra (internal checking), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. A minimal gap (for example, 15-20 minutes where istibra does not show any blood) would be okay. | irregular, istihada, hayd |
| 47. I read ahadith that say a woman who is menstruating should not be in the same room as a dying person because that keeps the angels away. If true, isn't this punitive? | Makruh doesn't mean impermissible, so it is something that is allowed but not the best thing. There are several groups of people for whom it is makruh to be around someone who is dying, including anybody in the state of janabat. It is also makruh to talk a lot or cry near a dying person. It is also makruh to leave the dying person alone. These are all guidelines that take into consideration various things but where red lines have not been set-up such that it would be punitive or impermissible. When looking at the laws, it is important to look at them holistically. Menstruation is a blessing and often shows fertility and is something God has ordained for us. However, blood is najis and this has certain realities; it does not mean that God is punitive for something He has created. The two are not mutually exclusive. | hayd |
| 48. I see discolored, yellow vaginal discharge (but it's not sticky) after hayd has finished. Is this considered istihada or just regular discharge? | If you have a murky discharge at the end of your period and it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and as your hayd. If you exceed 10 days including this discharge, then you would need to choose days for hayd and istihada based on the tools used in the course. | discharge, hayd, istihada |
| 49. thought the course included rulings for Sayyid Ali Khamenei. Can we still follow these rules and everything you mentioned if we follow Sayyid Ali Khamenei? | Most of the rules are the same, but there are some differences to note. The vast majority and the basics are the same and the major differences have been noted. Please make sure to always double-check if your marja is not Sayyid Sistani. | misc |
| 50. If I take ghusl of hayd for dhuhr, do I have to make up for fajr on that day? | If you realize later that you were definitely clean and could have prayed at fajr, then you would have to make up the prayers that you missed. If you are not sure if you were clean at that point or not, then you would not have to, and would only need to pray from the point that you became sure of your cleanliness. | ghusl, qada, prayers, hayd |
| 51. If someone's regular period habit is 5 days, and of these 5 days, 3 are of heavy flow and the remaining 2 are receding flow (spotting or really light flow)-- which days are considered hayd? | Any blood that is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial continuity) is your hayd. Amount/flow/colour do not matter. | hayd |
| 52. If heavy bleeding is for 3 days after that is spotting, do I consider the spotting hayd? | See the conditions of hayd. Internal continuity is only necessary for the first three days. Gaps are permitted after the first three. As long as the entire duration of the bleeding remains within the 3-10 day period (with the conditions of hayd like 3-day initial continuity) then it is ALL your hayd. If it goes over the 10-day mark, then yes some of it would not be hayd and would be istihada. For details on how to determine which days are hayd and which istihadha, refer to the course. | hayd |
| 53. If I get my period after dhuhr in the month of Ramadhan, I know my fast is not valid, but can I break my fast? Or do I have to wait until maghrib to eat? | You can eat whenever you want. Your fast is invalid and broken as soon as your period/hayd begins. However, it is makruh to eat until you're full and to stuff yourself for those who are not fasting in Ramadan. | hayd, fasts |
| 54. If I had to do ghusl an hour before fajr, do I have to do make up maghrib and isha prayer? | Yes. According to Syed Sistani, Maghrib and 'Isha do not become qada until Fajr time and it is fine if a woman in hayd delays it until after midnight due to her valid excuse. Please note that it is not permissible to delay these prayers after midnight without a legitimate excuse, but it would not be qada either. | ghusl, prayers, qada |
| 55. If I have a set 7 day cycle but for past 2-3 months there is a drop/spot after this, will that be considered hayd or istihada? | If it doesn't surpass the ten-day mark then all of it is hayd. Your habit is irrelevant unless the entire duration of bleeding exceeds ten days. | hayd, istihada, habit |
| 56. If istihada comes out after wudhu and its light, is wudhu broken? | Yes, istihada blood exiting your body breaks your wudhu. This is why it is important to block your vaginal entrance if your blood is flowing out. | istihada, wudhu |
| 57. If one tries to be in a state of wudhu at all times, can this be done while you are on your period? Does menstruating invalidate wudhu? | Blood exiting your body invalidates your wudhu but it is still recommended to do it when on your period while blocking the blood from coming out ex. with a tampon. | wudhu, hayd |
| 58. If period seems to end after 6 days, but you are not sure if more blood will come out before the 10th day, what is your duty regarding prayer, etc. from day 7-10? | If you are unsure your period has ended, then you must go through the process of istibra (internal checking). If the tissue paper or cotton comes out with some type of bloody discharge, then you can wait to do ghusl. If it comes out clean, then you should do your ghusl and resume your prayers right away. | hayd, prayers, istibra |
| 59. If spotting/bleeding occurs because of a uterine surgery (Myomectomy=removal of a growth from the uterus) is that considered injury or istihada? | If you know that the blood is a direct result of the surgery and the cuts from the surgery, then it would be counted as an injury and not as istihada. | hysterectomy, istihada |
| 60. If the normal bleeding lasts 7 days, and after that up to 10 days is dark red or or brown spotty mucus, is the last three days considered as hayd or istihadha? | Any blood that is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial continuity) is your hayd. Colour/flow/amount does not matter. | hayd, istihada, habit |
| 61. If the bleeding lasts 5 days and after that brownish discharge 2 days, is this considered periods because its under 10 days? What are the Ahkam in last 2 days? | Yes it's all hayd. Any blood that is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial internal continuity) is your hayd. Colour/flow/amount does not matter. | hayd |
| 62. If we have discharge that is yellowish or pale, do we pray as usual no matter how much discharge? eg. I have med | The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Sometimes istihada, which is a form of bleeding can have a yellowish tinge to it. But this is different from regular discharge that doesn't have any blood in it. If there is any blood in the discharge, it would count as bleeding. You will have to do your best to differentiate between cervical discharge and bleeding based on what you see throughout the month. | discharge |
| 63. If you are unsure your period has ended, is it better to do ghusl and pray and redo ghusl if necessary, or is it better to wait and potentially have a qadha prayer? | If you are unsure your period has ended, then you must go through the process of istibra (internal checking). If the tissue paper or cotton comes out with some type of bloody discharge, then you can wait to do ghusl before the 10-day mark. If it comes out clean, then you should do your ghusl and resume your prayers right away. | hayd, prayers, ghusl, qada |
| 64. If wudhu in medium istihada has to be done before each salat (after ghusl) and I didnt in the past. Do i need to pray the qada of those salat? | Yes, if you make a mistake it's okay in the sense that you did not commit a sin, but doing the qada for those prayers is still wajib. | wudhu, ghusl, istihada, mutawassitah (medium), prayers, qada |
| 65. If you discover blood right at maghrib time (though it’s clear it started earlier), do you need to make up the maghrib/Isha prayers from that day? | If you know the bleeding started before maghrib time (or even right at maghrib time such that you wouldn't have had time to finish praying Maghrib even if you started right at the time of adhan), then those prayers do not have to be made up. | hayd, prayers, qada |
| 66. If you think your period has ended and you do your ghusl and then engage in intercourse, but then later discover (period) spotting, have you sinned? | If you do something without knowing, then you're not responsible for it because it was a mistake. A "sin" means intentional disobedience of God. If you were not careful, then that is something to be regretful for. Try to go through the process of istibra (internal checking using some toilet paper or a cotton ball) in the case that you are not sure as that is a "proof" for you to act on. | hayd, ghusl |
| 67. If you’re done with your period and you plan to do ghusl before fajr, is it ok to be intimate with your husband even before doing the ghusl ? | It is permissible to have vaginal intercourse with your husband before you do the ghusl of hayd as long as you are completely clean of it. However, there is an obligatory precaution for Sayyid Sistani that you should wash your vaginal area before any penetration. (Masale # 487, Tawzih Jami) Please note that you must pray maghrib and Isha if you become clean at any point before fajr prayers. You cannot delay your ghusl when prayers are wajib on you. | hayd, ghusl, sex |
| 68. If your regular period is more than 10 days, then how many days is hayd? | If you last longer than ten days every month, then you can follow the steps mentioned in the course to choose a number of days as hayd using the steps mentioned. You can also book a session with one of our female scholars. | hayd, habit |
| 69. In Ayatollah Sistani's risalah, the terms 'a piece of cotton' and a 'sanitary napkin' are mentioned, how do we interpret that? | A cotton ball refers to a reguraly -sized and -shaped cotton ball. Sanitary napkin means a pad. | istibra |
| 70. In Ramadan if your 10th day lasts until after fajr time but before sunrise, do you need to try to do ghusl before fajr and fast on that day? | In order for your fast to be valid, you need to do your ghusl for hayd before the adhan of fajr. If you have the bleeding of hayd even 1 minute after the adhan of fajr, your fast for that day is void.
In the case that your bleeding surpasses ten days, then some of your previous days might be istihada too. For details on how to determine which days are hayd and which istihadha, please refer to the course. | fasts, hayd, prayers |
| 71. If your hayd starts at night, we start counting the days from fajr for the 3-day continuity. Does that mean we have to pray maghrib & isha? | As soon as bleeding meeting all the conditions of hayd begins, you are in the state of hayd and do not need to pray. The official counting starts from fajr the next day if you see the blood after sunset. This is for the purpose of counting the number of days (ex. to see if you meet the 3-day continuity for the first three days or to see if you go over ten days). | hayd, prayers |
| 72. A woman who sees blood irregularly sees blood coming out & doesn't know if the blood will last 3 days. What is her duty for prayer, etc? What if she isn't sure and won't be sure until the end of the 3rd day? | If it has the general characteristics of hayd (dark colour, coming out with force and heat), then you can treat it as hayd if it meets the conditions (ex. 10-day gap from end of previous hayd). However, if it does NOT have the characteristics or look of hayd AND you're not sure if it's going to last 3 days or not, then you would do precaution.
Precaution means you would follow the rules for istihada and just avoid the haram stuff for someone on hayd (not having sex, not touching the Quran etc.) until you're sure which of the two it is.
(Masa'il Muntakhaba, Masala 64 & 55) | irregular, hayd, istihada |
| 73. Is istibra done once per day? How often do you need to do it? For how long? 15-20 mins? | You should perform it when you're not sure if you're still bleeding and need to decide if you should do ghusl/pray. You can leave it in for the amount of time you need to determine if there is blood in your vaginal entrance. | istibra |
| 74. Is it makruh to recite more than 7 verses of the Quran while on your period? Why is that the case if you don't touch the verses? | According to Syed Sistani, reciting the Qur'an during hayd is makruh - however, in this context, makruh does NOT have the meaning of "disliked by Allah"; rather, it simply means that the reward one gets for reciting the Holy Qur'an in the state of hayd is lesser than at other times. Reciting the Qur'an is always a recommended action with great rewards and benefits for the reciter, no matter what state she might be in. In fact, it is recommended to read the Qur'an especially during the time of adhan. The only exceptions are the four verses of wajib sajdah, which are haram to recite in the state of hayd. | Quran, hayd, makruh |
| 75. Is regular discharge clean? No matter how much? Can we pray? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | discharge, prayers |
| 76. Is the use of menstrual cups or tampons permitted? | A woman can use whatever she wants for her menstruation including pads, tampons, cups etc. However, some may believe it is makruh to break the hymen and the use of a tampon may aggravate the hymen. Some mothers are uncomfortable with their daughters using tampons, and the respect of parents in Islam should always be taken into consideration. | misc |
| 77. Is there any age and time for istihada just like hayd? At what age does it start and end? Does it come monthly? Does it have a time limit (like hayd which is a minimum of 3 days and a maximum of 10 days)? | It can happen anytime after a girl is 9 lunar years. There are no limits or conditions to it. When something doesn't meet the conditions of hayd or nifas, it is istihada. | istihada |
| 78. Is there any value in doing wudhu while in menses? | Yes. Blood exiting your body invalidates your wudhu but it is still recommended to do it when on your period while blocking the blood from coming out. | wudhu, hayd |
| 79. It’s maghrib time and you go to do wudhu but discover blood. Does the fast count? (You discover it once maghrib has set in, but clearly it started before). | If you know the bleeding started before maghrib time then it is invalid. However, there is a difference of opinion on when maghrib time is. Please see the course for details on this. | wudhu, fasts, hayd |
| 80. Ladies reaching menopause have spotting and different cycles. How can I tell if I can pray/fast or not. How do I know if it's my period or not? | You need to follow the regular rules of hayd until you are 60 years old on the lunar calendar (58 years old solar). Like a woman in hayd, if it surpasses 10 days of bleeding or doesn't meet the conditions of hayd, then you would do istihada for some of it. The rules would be the same as any other woman who has an irregular cycle. | menopause, hayd, prayers, fasts |
| 81. It's the last day of my period (under 10 days) is very sporadic/light/spotty. Is this hayd or istihada? What if I do ghusl then see a small spot of red/brown blood? | Any bleeding that doesn't exceed 10 days with the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial continuity) is your hayd. Amount/flow/colour does not matter. | hayd, istihada |
| 82. A woman on her period can’t touch the writing of Quran or the zarihs of the Prophet/Imams or enter masajid. What is the hikmah in these barriers? | A woman getting her period is not a negative thing, and in fact, is a sign of one of the most beautiful things -- her fertility and ability to bear children. The Qur'an describes how menstruation can be bothersome for women. It is important to remember that despite the blessings of certain bodily functions, they can be considered to be ritually impure (as are other states when engaging in physical relationships which hold the same rules). God wants us to take a break, and remember physical purity as well. At the end of the day, blood being najis has certain wisdoms to it, even if we do not understand all of them. Please note that none of these rulings contradict or somehow suggest that menstruation is a negative thing, nor does it mean that a woman is disconnected from God. All of our hadith encourage a woman who is in the state of hayd to maintain her relationship with God and to ensure that she spends time connecting to Him in the time of menstruation. Please see the course for more elaboration. | Quran, hayd, makruh, haram |
| 83. My daughter gets normal periods every 1, 1.5, or 2 months. But in the middle, she just gets some red discharge. Is this considered as periods? Does she need to pray namaz and fast? | You will need to see if it meets the conditions of hayd. Does it last at least 3-days with internal continuity? Is there a 10-day gap between this bleeding and her regular periods? If the conditions are NOT met, then this other middle bleeding would be istihada and she would need to follow the rules for achieving taharat while in the state of istihadha and she would need to pray and fast. | hayd, discharge, istihada, prayers, fasts |
| 84. Nearing the stage of menopause, what is the ruling regarding prayers/fasting when the cycles have become very irregular and unpredictable? | You need to follow the regular rules of hayd until you are 60 years old on the lunar calendar (58 years old solar). Like a woman in hayd, if it surpasses 10 days of bleeding or doesn't meet the conditions of hayd, then you would do istihada for some of it. The rules would be the same as any other woman who has hayd and an irregular cycle. | menopause, irregular, prayers, fasts |
| 85. On the first day, I saw some blood, then there was nothing for 2 days. Then, after the 4th day, I get heavy bleeding. What should I do in the first 3 days? | Please see the conditions of hayd. If your period does not have a 3-day initial continuity, then this initial bleeding is istihada, not hayd.
By 3-day continuity, this means that the blood should be present internally inside your vagina. If you were to go to the process of istibra (checking internally by inserting a cotton ball or tissue paper inside the entrance of the vagina), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. A minimal gap (for example, 15-20 minutes where istibra does not show any blood) would be okay and would not break the internal continuity condition. | hayd, istihada, istibra |
| 86. I never tried to stop bleeding when I had istihada. I just changed my pad and redid the wudhu in between prayers Do those prayers have to be repeated? If so, how do I estimate the minimum number of prayers I missed? | If the blood exited the body, then your wudhu will have become void rendering your prayers void which means you would have to do their qada. If you know that the blood definitely did exit your body during some of your prayers (and this could have been avoided by blocking), then you would need to repeat those prayers. There's no set way that we can tell you to estimate the minimum; you will have to judge that based on your experience. You can look at the approximate number of days you had istihada and guess accordingly. If you had heavy istihada, the chances it came out are a lot higher. If you had lower/qalila, then the chances of the blood exiting your body during prayers would be lesser. Check question 33 for details on the rules of istihada. | wudhu, prayers, istihada, qada |
| 87. If your period ends at 5 days, and then after 2 days, on the 7th day you notice a small light tissue/thread like discharge, does that count as hayd or istihada or neither? | Any blood that is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd is your hayd. For the days inbetween that you were entirely clean, Sayyid Sistani has an OP that you would do your 'ibadah and stay away from haram for a woman on her periods, but Sayyid Khamenei says it counts as your hayd (i.e. you could just treat it all as your period, even the two days that were clean, as long as the total duration is less than 10). | hayd, istihada |
| 88. I have a device that’s inserted into my body (It covers a small area on the body) + prevents water from reaching my skin. If I am doing tayammum in place of my ghusl, do I need to do wudhu AND tayammum in place of wajib ghusls? | You do not need to do an additional wudhu for your prayers if you have taken a tayammum for wajib ghusls (like hayd and istihada kathirah) due to a valid reason where you cannot do ghusl at all, but it is recommended as a precaution to do so for ghusls other than janabat (Ruling #712). | wudhu, ghusl, tayammum |
| 89. If I am doing tayammum for ghusls, which one do I do first: wudhu or tayamum? Is this the case for medium istihada ghusls that are once a day? Is it the same for janabat and hayd ghusls? | Tayammum would suffice in the case that it is a wajib ghusl and you wouldn't need an additional wudhu. If you wanted to do wudhu anyways, the order for janabat doesn't matter because you are not trying to maintain a state of purity while bleeding and your ghusl counts as a wudhu anyways, so it doesn't make a difference. Please note that if you do tayammum instead of ghusl for a reason like being short on time, and water is not harmful for you, you would need to do a ghusl with water for your next prayers.
The order matters in cases where you are trying to maintain a state of purity with minimal interruptions like in istihada. For medium istihada, before praying fajr, you have to do a ghusl for the day and a wudhu for fajr. In this case, as an obligatory precaution, you should do ghusl first, and then your wudhu.
If you are in excessive istihada, then you don't need wudhu because your ghusl takes the place of wudhu, and the wudhu is mustahab. So you would have to do the mustahab wudhu before your ghusl so as to not prolong the amount of time between your ghusl and prayer which should be prayed immediately after ghusl. | wudhu, ghusl, istihada, tayammum |
| 90. When doing tayamum for medium istihada, hayd, and janabat ghusl, do I have to strike sand again to wipe hands a second time if I am muqallid of Ayt. Sistani? | Tayammum is the same process for all types of ghusls and wudhu. There is no difference in the process of tayammum depending on which type of ghusl (ex. janaabat, istihada etc) or wudhu it is.
It is not necessary to wipe the hands a second time, but it is recommended as a precaution to do so. Here is the full procedure according to Ayatullah Sistani (Ruling #689 &690):
Necessary: the palms are struck on the ground once and are wiped over the forehead and the back of the hands
Mustahab Precaution: they are then struck again on the ground and are wiped over the back of the hands. | ghusl, istihada, mutawassitah (medium) |
| 91. Past 60 lunar years and observing istihadha rules. When we fast and pray in Ramadhan, do we have to repay those again after Ramadhan, if hayd type cycle continues? | Any bleeding that a woman sees past 60 lunar years is istihada. Fasts are all valid in the state of istihada (as long as nothing else breaks them). Prayers are valid so long as the correct istihada protocol is followed. When something is valid, that means there is no qada necessary on it. | menopause, istihada, qada |
| 92. Please clarify our relationship with the Quran during menstruation. Can we memorize? Can we read? If it’s makruh, does it mean better to avoid? | Yes you can read and memorize. According to Syed Sistani, reciting the Qur'an during hayd is makruh - however, in this context, makruh does NOT have the meaning of "disliked by Allah"; rather, it simply means that the reward one gets for reciting the Holy Qur'an in the state of hayd is lesser than at other times. Reciting the Qur'an is always a recommended action with great rewards and benefits for the reciter, no matter what state she might be in. The only exceptions are the four verses of wajib sajdah, which are haram to recite in the state of hayd. | hayd, Quran, makruh |
| 93. Please clarify on how to tell between the levels of istihada. Cotton balls are not easy way to keep inserting. I use panty shields but those are also difficult to tell. | If you are in doubt about what level of flow your istihada is, then you must according to obligatory precaution check it by inserting a cotton ball into the entrance of the vagina to catch the flow of blood. If you are unable to check using this method, then should act according to the lower possible flow. However, you must check if possible using this method when you're not sure. Keep in mind that this is only in the case that you are unsure which level of bleeding you are at, and you only really need to check at prayer times. If you know the flow without physically checking, that's fine. See question 33 for details on responsibilties for the flow. | istihada, istibra |
| 94. Istihada MUST have even a tinge of blood? If not, then its discharge? No matter what time of month? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | istihada, discharge |
| 95. How do you calculate the ten days of hayd? Is it ten full 24 hour cycles from when you first get your period? | If your period starts during the day (between fajr and sunset) then you count one day as 24 hours. If it starts at night, then one day is from the following day's Fajr until Maghrib. In this case, the tenth day of hayd will end at Maghrib time on the tenth day (when ten full daytimes have passed since the beginning of your bleeding). | hayd |
| 96. Is the white discharge that comes out from vagina daily, impure(najis)? Is every yellow discharge considered istehaza or it may be due to any disease? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | discharge, istihada |
| 97. What is the ruling about the discharge after urination in females? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | discharge |
| 98. Why is that when we have our hayd during Ramadan we have to make it up? It's something that we can't do anything about? | You can consider these qada fasts as something wajib that Allah wants you to do after Ramadan is over. It's the same as a traveler. Anybody who misses fasts for a valid reason must make them up! | hayd, fasts, qada |
| 98. Someone did not know they had to make up fasts missed during menses - they found out years later - what should they do to make it up? She doesn’t know exact #. | She should try to estimate the number and must complete the minimum amount that she is certain she missed. It is mustahab to complete the higher number missed.
According to Sayyid Sistani, one must also give a fidyah of 750 g of food to a poor person for each qada fast that is not made up within a year. | fasts, hayd, qada |
| 99. Towards the end of the menstrual cycle, there is no visible spotting but little blood is there internally. Is this considered end of the cycle and do ghusl? | Blood in your vagina counts as a part of your hayd, no matter what amount/colour it might be, and regardless or whether or not it comes out or is only internally present. If you complete your bleeding within 10 days, then it is all hayd. | hayd, ghusl |
| 100. For istihada, I went from excessive, to medium, to just spotting twice. So I did ghusl 3x daily ghusl for medium. But is there a ghusl qalila for spotting? How do we end this? | When you go from excessive to medium, you must do one ghusl for the next prayer. When going from medium to little flow, you must do one more ghusl before the next prayer, and then follow the rulings of little flow. To “end” Istihada, do whatever you had to do depending on your flow, one more time for the next prayer only. An additional ghusl is not required, unless you had to for your flow. See question 33 for more details on this or refer to the course. | ghusl, istihada, qalila (light), mutawassitah (medium), kathirah (heavy) |
| 101. What can you do if you are having heavy istihada and at work just after fajr prayers until magrib prayers? | According to Syed Sistani, if the numerous ghusls cause harm to a woman or create a lot of difficulty that is not normally tolerable, then she can perform tayammum instead for some or all of the ghusls (Masale 603, Tawzih Jami). You would have to determine based on your situation whether it meets the criterion of difficulty that is not normally tolerated, and if so, you can simply do tayammum while at work (suggestion: carry around a ziploc bag of sand for this purpose). | istihada, kathirah (heavy), prayers, tayammum |
| 102. What if checking with cotton to examine blood & regularly see faint blood to the point that it's possible that checking creates blood (ie:repeated irritation)? | You do not need to check so often that it should cause such irritation. As a tip, you can wait until you have about an hour before your prayers become qadha to see if you need to do ghusl or not. This way, you'll have enough time to pray should you need to, but not check yourself so much to the point of irritation. | hayd, istihada, istibra |
| 103. What if I counted the hayd days wrong and don't know how many days were missed for makeup fast/salat? | You should make up the minimum number of missed fasts and prayers that you are sure about. That is what is wajib on you. It is mustahab to do the higher number. | hayd, fasts, prayers, qada |
| 104. What if I thought my habit was done, did ghusl before fajr and fasted the whole day, but after maghrib I saw some brown discharge? Do I have to make the fast up? | Yes as long as the total duration of bleeding was under ten days, you must make up your fasts as you were in the state of hayd even though you didn't realize it, making your fast void. This doesn't mean that you didn't get any rewards for your effort or that your fast was meaningless, but it means you get another opportunity to fast InshAllah! | hayd, fasts, qada |
| 105. What is considered actual bleeding? If there is pink or red streaks or strands contained in clear or yellow mucus is that considered a type of bleeding? | There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd or istihada (because of the blood). If there is even a tinge of blood, it is considered bleeding. | hayd, istihada |
| 106. What is criteria for woman who doesn’t know her habit? What does it mean by 2 months not having a pattern in cycle in the fiqh rules? | There are rules for a woman who has forgotten her habit/ doesn't know it. By not having a pattern that means that there are no set consistencies in time or duration (ex. she sees it sporadically and not at the same time per month and not for the same number of days or for more than 10 days each month). An easy way is to track this using a period app. | irregular, hayd |
| 107. What if there is only yellow discharge, but there is no blood? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | discharge |
| 108. What is our obligation if we misunderstood the rulings for nifas and made some mistakes due to that which caused missed prayers? Will it be counted as a sin? | In the case of prayers, even if we make mistakes out of ignorance, we are still obligated to make up the prayers. So yes, you need to pray your qadas.
However, Allah swt in His all encompassing justice and mercy only holds us accountable for what was in our control. We must make the qadas up, but that doesnt mean we have committed an act of aggression and that Allah will punish us. If we intentionally did not give importance to the rules or bother to learn them, then we will need to repent. However, if we made a genuine honest mistake and were trying to please Him, then not only is it not counted as a sin, but we could be rewarded for our efforts. | nifas, prayers, qada |
| 109. What is ruling for white water discharge? Which is before and after hayd? | Hayd & istihada are forms of bleeding, it is NOT vaginal discharge.
• There are times in which blood is mixed with vaginal discharge, in which it would have the rulings of either hayd/istihada (because of the blood). If you are not sure if the discharge has blood in it, then if it is outside the time of your period, it is not and you can consider it regular normal discharge that is not najis. However, if it is within the 10 days of your possible period, then it is counted as bloody discharge and would be either hayd or istihada.
• The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Brighter yellows often mean the presence of blood.
• Vaginal discharge (except in janabah) is not najis. Blood is najis. | discharge |
| 110. What to do with an irregular cycle due to menopause or approaching menopause? | You need to follow the regular rules of hayd until you are 60 years old on the lunar calendar (58 years old solar). Like a woman in hayd, if it surpasses 10 days of bleeding or doesn't meet the conditions of hayd, then you would do istihada. The rules would be the same as any other woman who had hayd. After the age of 60, any blood you see should be treated as istihada as per obligatory precaution.
Sayyid Sistani has a recommended precaution that non-Qurayshi (i.e. non-Sayyid) women can combine the duties of istihada and hayd between the ages of 50 & 60, but this is not wajib. | hayd, istihada, irregular, menopause |
| 111. What type of cotton do we use to determine level of flow? Is it a layer of fabric? Is it a cotton ball? | A regularly -shaped and -sized cotton ball is what is meant. You can use anything similar, but shouldn't use something like toilet paper which soaks very easily or something that does not soak at all. (Ruling 597, Tawzih Jami) | istihada, hayd, istibra |
| 112. What's considered a reasonable length of "gap" to confirm that blood coming out isn't continuous i.e. what's a pause long enough to break continuity? A few mins, less than 1 hour, a few hours or something else? | By 3-day continuity, this means that the blood should be present internally inside your vagina. If you were to go to the process of istibra (checking internally by inserting a tissue paper or cotton ball inside the entrace of the vagina), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. A minimal gap (for example, 15-30 minutes) with no blood internally would be okay and would not break the continuity condition. | hayd, istibra |
| 113. When does Islam say your period officially finishes? Does a little bit of colored discharge one day after you thought you finished count as your period? | If you are not sure if your period has finished, you should go through the process of istibra. Any blood that is within the 3-10 day period with the conditions of hayd (ex. 3-day initial continuity) is your hayd. If that drop is within that time frame, then yes you would have to redo your ghusl as that would count as your hayd. | hayd, discharge, habit |
| 114. When I get my period the first two days are often very very light and doesn’t always last for 3 days, it will skip a day then start heavy on the 3rd or 4th day. So do I need to do ghusl and pray (and fast) for those 2 days or do I consider it my period? | If your period does not have a 3-day initial internal continuity, then this initial bleeding is istihada, it is not hayd.
By 3-day continuity, this means that the blood should be present internally inside your vagina. If you were to go to the process of istibra (checking internally by inserting a piece of toilet paper or cotton ball into the entrance of the vagina), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. A minimal gap (for example, 15-20 minutes where istibra does not show any blood) would be okay and would not break the continuity condition. | hayd, istihada, ghusl, istibra |
| 115. When my period starts it’s very light and spotty for the first 2 - 3 days. The 4th day is a regular flow. Should I stay fasting on the first 2/3 days? | If your period does not have a 3-day initial internal continuity, then this initial bleeding is istihada, it is not hayd.
By 3-day continuity, this means that the blood should be present internally inside your vagina. If you were to go to the process of istibra (checking internally by inserting a piece of toilet paper or cotton ball into the entrance of the vagina), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. Flow/colour/amount of bleeding does not matter. A minimal gap (for example, 15-20 minutes where istibra does not show any blood) would be okay and would not break the continuity condition. | hayd, istihada, fasts, istibra |
| 116. When using the hormonal IUD, my cycle is regular but the blood is very little and is light brown color. And lasts max 3 days no blood on day 2. Is this hayd? | f your period does not have a 3-day initial internal continuity, then this initial bleeding is istihada, it is not hayd.
By 3-day continuity, this means that the blood should be present internally inside your vagina. If you were to go to the process of istibra (checking internally by inserting a piece of toilet paper or cotton ball into the entrance of the vagina), the tissue paper or cotton would come out with some type of bloody discharge. If it comes out clean, this means you do not have continuous bleeding. Amount/flow/colour of the blood does not matter. A minimal gap (for example, 15-20 minutes where istibra does not show any blood) would be okay and would not break the continuity condition. | hayd, istihada, birth control |
| 117. When you are making ghusl for istihada and have doubt about what level spotting you are experiencing, can you make a generic niyat for istihada? | If you are in doubt about what level of flow your istihada is, then you must according to obligatory precaution check it by inserting a cotton ball into the entrance of the vagina, waiting for it to catch some blood, and seeing whether the blood stays on the surface of the cotton ball (light flow), permeates into the ball but doesn't come out the other end (medium flow), or soaks all the way through (excessive flow). If you are unable to check using this method, then you should act according to the lower possible flow. However, you must check if possible using this method. | ghusl, istihada |
| 118. When you have period can you apply henna on your hands? | Yes. Related to hayd there is no ruling about this. However, please consider the rules of hijab. | hayd |
| 119. When you’re on your period is it okay to still be in wudhu? To gain spiritual benefits? | Yes. Blood exiting your body invalidates your wudhu but it is still recommended to do wudhu when on your period while blocking the blood from coming out. | hayd, wudhu |
| 120. A video on women's ahkam said that istihada is anything with blood, but it can be yellow. How can yellow be blood & whats the other yellow discharge then? | The colour of vaginal /cervical discharge differs for different women. It is often clear and/or a pale yellow. Sometimes istihada, which is a form of bleeding can have a yellowish tinge to it (like dark or bright yellow). This is different from regular discharge that doesn't have any blood in it and is a clear or cloudy white or pale yellow. If there is any blood in the discharge, it would count as bleeding. You will have to do your best to differentiate between cervical discharge and bleeding based on what you see throughout the month. If you're not sure if it is of this category or not, then when you're not on your 10-days of possible hayd, you can count it as regular discharge. If it's on those possible period days after your hayd has started, you would count it as bloody discharge. | istihada, discharge |
| 121. When is ghusl janabah wajib on a woman? What if she orgasms but there is no penetration? | Ghusl Janabah is always wajib on a woman when any form of penetration with the penis occurs (vaginal or anal). However, if a woman experiences a significant amount of discharge during other forms of sexual activity and foreplay (which includes squirting or female ejaculation), then a ghusl janabah is also wajib on her. According to Sayyid Sistani, if there is enough discharge that it makes the clothes dirty, then it is a form of ejaculation and causes janabah. Even if there is no orgasm, a ghusl is wajib according to an OP and this ejaculate is najis. If you are not sure if you have the level of liquid or ejaculate that meets this criteria, you can assume that you have not reached this level. Dry orgasms according to Sayyid Sistani do not require a ghusl. Please note that vaginal wetness due to sexual arousal is not considered najis until one reaches the point mentioned here. | sex, discharge |
[122] 1. I am a nursing mother and sometimes have extra milk that my child does not need, which I pump. Is it permissible for me to donate this milk to a non-Muslim milk bank?
2. If I adopt a child, how much do I have to breastfeed him or her to become mahram to my current children and husband?
3. During the first six months of nursing one’s child many women do not experience menstrual periods after nifaz is over. What is the ruling regarding any discharge one might see during this time (is it istihaza)? | 1. Yes, it is permissible.
2. There are a few criteria that have to be met for the child to become mahram to you, your husband, and your other children from this husband:
a. The milk that you are giving should be due to the birth of a child you had from this husband.
b. The milk must be drunk directly from the chest; therefore, if it is pumped and put in a bottle and the child drinks it from that bottle, it will not cause the child to become mahram.
c. The child must be under 2 lunar years of age.
d. The milk must be pure and not have anything (ex. blood) mixed in with it.
e. The child should not throw up the milk after drinking it; any milk that is thrown up will not be counted in the total amount required for causing mahramiat.
f. As for how much milk the child must drink for mahramiat to happen, there are two different ways this can be achieved: (1) Breastfeeding the child for an entire 24-hour period every single time s/he wants to breastfeed until s/he is full, without him/her drinking any other woman's milk or eating any food (although water and a very small amount of food is ok). (2) Breastfeeding the child 15 times without him/her drinking from any other woman's milk, although eating food in the middle is okay. Each of the 15 times must be done in a such a way that the baby is hungry at the beginning and is completely full by the end.
Reference: https://www.sistani.org/english/book/48/2338/
3. Even if a woman is not seeing what would medically be considered a period, if the blood she sees meets all of the conditions of hayd, it will be considered hayd. If it fails to meet even one of those conditions, it will be istihada. For a detailed overview of the conditions, please refer to https://www.mizaninstitute.org/women. | nifas, breastfeeding |
| A woman is not aware that there is internal blood in the vagina as her haidh date is near and in the meantime she has physical intimacy with her husband. She realizes afterwards that there was some blood internally. Also, blood was seen externally right after having janabah ghusl.In this scenario do they have to pay kaffara for having physical intimacy? | Based on the details given, kaffārah is not required. | sex, hayd |
| 123. What is the ruling regarding making up fasts due to Haydh which are not made up in time, ie. the following Ramadan? I have fasts to make up but now am pregnant and am not fasting. I know the fasts have to be made up eventually but is there a kaffarah to be paid also? | If you had the ability to make up all your fasts after the end of last Ramadan until the beginning of the next one (meaning before you became pregnant), then you will have to pay the kaffarah of delaying for each fast missed. The amount for this kaffarah is 1 mudd or around 750 g of food (flour, rice, etc.) to a poor person for each fast. The qadha for the fast will also have to be done whenever you get the chance.
Here's a similar question/answer on Syed Sistani's website that may also be helpful: https://www.sistani.org/english/qa/search/4279233/ | fasting, hayd, pregnancy |
| 124. Is it permissible for a woman to get a brazillian wax (either exposing the vagina or only covering that area but leaving the skin around it with hair exposed) by a female technician? | It is impermissible to expose the inner and outer labia, and the anus. Other than these areas, it is okay so long as there is no fear of committing other impermissible acts. | hijab, hair removal |
| 125. In regards to makeup. I know eating insects is haram (carmine etc), but if it's in our makeup does that make it haram to use as well (eyeshadow)? | Insects, while generally haraam to eat, are generally not najis; therefore, using products with insects in them on the outside of your body is permissible. The only problem with makeup would be if insect parts were contained within lipstick, as at least some of that would get consumed which would be impermissible. This includes carmine which has been incorrectly put as halal in some sources. | other women's issues |
126. I gave birth to my son last month and am breast feeding. I have heard that fasting isn’t required for nursing mothers unless it is dangerous for the baby. I’m not sure if my milk will stop coming in if I don’t eat, and am worried to try.
If my baby takes formula is fasting required for me? | If you fear that you will not have enough milk to feed the child, and you also don't want to use formula because you believe it to be harmful for your child, then you are allowed to not fast. If you are unsure whether or not fasting will affect your milk supply, you can try fasting one day and see how it is, and break your fast if you find your milk supply is becoming insufficient for your child's needs. Note that for every fast missed for the reason of breastfeeding, you must give both give fidyah and do the qadha. | breastfeeding, fasting |
| 127. I was wondering if "breathable/halal" nailpolish can be worn while doing wudhu or ghusl. There are companies such as Mersi Cosmetics which state they are ISWA halal certified and tested in labs for permeability. If it is known as a fact that water can pass through, are women allowed to do wudhu or ghusl with this nailpolish? | For wudu and ghusl, it is necessary to reach certainty that the water reaches all parts of the nail, it's also necessary that you reach certainty that it has reached all parts of the nail while you are actually washing your hands for wudhu (and before the next part of wudu). We have taken a closer look at some of the tests used to determine the water-permeability of these nail polishes, and it seems highly unlikely for one to reasonably be able to reach certainty that water is reaching ALL parts of the nail and doing so while you are actually washing your hands as opposed to permeating after being in contact with the water for a longer period of time. We also contacted the offices of the maraja and they also mentioned that this would not suffice for wudu and/or ghusl | other women's issues |
| 128. When does a young girl have to start removing hair in private parts? Does she have to start at nine years? Also is it true you have to remove it at least every 20 days? Is there any method you would recommend for a young girl? | According to Ayatullah Sistani's website, it is mentioned in the ahadith to remove your hair every 40 days for men and every 20 days for women. She can start when the hair starts showing where there is enough for her to remove it. Some hadith and sunnati practices mention using something called "nooreh" which is a powder mixed with water. Any mechanism is permissible as long as someone is doing it to themselves (i.e. a person should remove their own hair in that area). | hair removal, other women's issues |
| 129. Can I go swimming on my period? | There are no fatwas that say this is impermissible, therefore it would be allowed. It is not on the list of things that would be haram. | hayd |
| 130. Are women on their periods allowed to enter or visit a normal graveyard? | Yes! It is a common misconception and women are allowed to enter and visit any graveyard (except the final shrine rooms of the 14 ma'sumeen). In fact, it is still mustahab to do so. | graveyard, hayd |
