Does Menstruation Have to Flow Constantly or Intermittently?

Answered by Shaykh Abdullah Anik Misra

Question

In menstruation, is it necessary to have continuous flow, or if we have just a one-time flow or spot in a whole day, is considered menstruation? And is it necessary to have a flow of blood precisely at the start of the day? If the blood didn’t come in the morning instead, it comes at another time, is that considered menstruation?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful and Compassionate

In menstruation, blood does not need to flow constantly for that time to be counted as being in one’s period necessarily. It can be intermittent and appear as a spot in one instance, then go clear, then another spot at another time. The time in between would legally be considered menstruation if it is within the timeframe of menstruation. In the Hanafi school, any colored discharge, nor just blood itself, is counted as blood for this purpose.

Once it is within the habitual time of the month that a woman usually sees her period, and the instances of blood stretch out for longer than the minimum 72 hours (3 days) apart yet less than ten days apart, this is legally considered a menstrual cycle. Within the 10-day (240 hours) maximum timeframe from the first instance of blood to the last sighting of blood is legally menstruation. Any bleeding or colored discharge after the 10-day maximum is then irregular bleeding and not legally counted as menstruation (with some additional technical details). [Birgivi, Dhukhr al-Muta’ahhilin]

Please note if the bleeding exceeds 10 days, the time one bled after one’s habit of days (for example, her habit is bleeding 7 days) until the 10 days end (so 3 days of time) would retrospectively not be counted as having been menstruation, and therefore, the prayers one did not pray in that time would have to be made up afterward, whenever one can. [Kasani, Al Bada’i wa al-Sana’i]

Wassalam,

[Shaykh] Abdullah Anik Misra
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat

Shaykh Abdullah Anik Misra was born in Toronto, Canada, in 1983. His family hails from India, and he was raised in the Hindu tradition. He embraced Islam in 2001 while at the University of Toronto, from where he completed a Bachelor of Business Administration. He then traveled overseas in 2005 to study the Arabic language and Islamic sciences in Tarim, Yemen, for some time, as well as Darul Uloom in Trinidad, West Indies. He spent 12 years in Amman, Jordan, where he focused on Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith Sciences, Prophetic Biography, and Islamic Spirituality while also working at the Qasid Arabic Institute as Director of Programs. He holds a BA in Islamic Studies (Alimiyya, Darul Uloom) and authorization in the six authentic books of Hadith and is currently pursuing specialized training in issuing Islamic legal verdicts (ifta’). He holds a certificate in Counselling and often works with new Muslims and those struggling with religious OCD. He is an instructor and researcher in Sacred Law and Theology with the SeekersGuidance The Global Islamic Seminary. Currently, He resides in the Greater Toronto Area with his wife and children. His personal interests include Indian history, comparative religion, English singing, and poetry.