When Is It Considered Irregular Bleeding (Istihada), and What Are the Rulings?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
I have a question regarding my period on the 1st of March. I no longer had the period from the 10th of March. I started to bleed, and since then, I have continued to bleed more and more. Is this irregular bleeding? Do I still have to pray?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
I pray you are in good faith and health.
Your period ended after ten days on the 10th of March. And the continuing bleeding after that is irregular bleeding (istihada).
If the bleeding continues for more than ten days, then the number of days beyond your habit is considered irregular bleeding (istihada). So you will start praying as usual from day 11 onwards, fast if it is during the month of Ramadan, recite Quran and touch it, enter a mosque, perform Tawaf with wudu, and have intimacy with one’s husband. [Birgivi, Dhukhr al-Muta’ahhilin]
Advice
It is a personal obligation (fard) for every adult woman to learn the basic rules of menstruation and to ask, as you’ve done (in the case of a complicated or unique situation). The book Coming of Age by Ustadha Hedaya Hartford is a very accessible book for learning these rulings. It is in English and has many practical examples, life experiences, and even illustrative charts to calculate the menstruation.
Related:
How To Determine Periods With Dysfunctional Bleeding?
How Can I Figure Out My Regular Period as I have Irregular Vaginal Bleeding?
Menstruation: A Comprehensive Reader
A Muslim Woman’s Guide To Menstruation Rulings [Book]
Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on SeekersGuidance?
I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.
