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Primer on the Fiqh of your Special Days

Hayd Basics

Types of Vaginal Bleedings

drop

Hayd (Menstruation)

Bleeding that originates from the uterus and exits the vagina is termed as Hayd. Women typically experience this type of bleeding on a monthly basis and is also known as menstruation.

drop

Nifaas (Postnatal Bleeding)

Bleeding that originates from the uterus and exits the vagina within 40 days after childbirth is termed as Nifaas.

drop

Istihadah (Dysfunctional bleeding)

Any bleeding that exits the vagina and is not Hayd or Nifaas is Istihadah.  For example, a woman experiences vaginal bleeding after she has undergone hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus). All her vaginal bleedings will always be considered as Istihadah.

Any bleeding that is not vaginal will not be termed as Hayd, Nifaas or Istihadah.

Cesarean Birth

Bleeding that occurs after childbirth will only be considered Nifaas if:

  1. It originates from the uterus
  2. It exits the vagina

As such, if a woman gives birth through a C-section, then any bleeding that exits through the C-section will not be considered as Nifaas, because it did not exit the vagina. Yes, if after the surgery bleeding starts to exit the vagina, then that bleeding will be termed as Nifaas.

cesarean birth
urinary Tract Infection

Urinary Tract Infection

Sometimes an infection in the urinary tract can lead to blood in the urine. Since urine and the accompanying blood is discharged through the urethra and not the vagina, it will not be considered as Hayd, Nifaas or Istihadah. 

One can distinguish between bleeding coming from the vagina vs bleeding coming from the urethra in the following ways:

  1. Urine can be discharged or retained at will whereas one cannot exercise such control over Hayd, Nifaas and Istihadah 
  2. Blood that is passed during a UTI (Urinary Tract Infection) is not pure blood.

Rectal Bleeding

Likewise, bleeding that originates from the rectum as opposed to the vagina, on account of hemorrhoids (piles) etc. will not be considered as Hayd, Nifaas or Istihadah.

cesarean birth
green leaf

Colors of Hayd

Any color seen during the time of Hayd is considered as bleeding. Once the bleeding has fully stopped, or a white discharge appears then a woman is considered to be clean from Hayd. The scholars of Islam have mentioned the following 6 colors:

Red
Black
Yellow
green
Khaki
Brownish

Only the color at the time of discharge will be considered. The color changing on account of drying/oxidation is of no consideration.

For example, at the time of discharge, the liquid is white but it turns yellow when it has dried. It will  be considered as white and she will be considered as clean from Hayd.

In converse, if at the time of bleeding, her discharge was brownish but then turned white upon drying, then she will not yet be considered as clean from Hayd/Istihadah.

White with a thread-like red streak

If she experiences a white discharge, but there is a thread-like red/pink streak remaining, then she will not be considered as clean from Hayd. Only when the discharge is completely white will she be considered as clean from Hayd.

Diet as a cause for exotic colors of Hayd

Hayd bleeding is generally red or black. But in some conditions due to a poor diet, other colors may appear. For instance, taking vitamin B12 supplements can cause urine and/or Hayd bleeding to turn yellow.

Volume of bleeding

Any amount of vaginal bleeding will be considered for Hayd and Nifaas, whether this be a heavy flow, a light flow or even sporadic spotting. No vaginal bleeding is disregarded on account of volume. Compare this with urine breaking Wudu. Whether you urinate a lot or a single drop, both will cause your Wudu to break. One is not regarded as more impactful as the other in causing your Wudu to break. Likewise vaginal bleeding. A single drop of vaginal bleeding is to be regarded on an equal footing with heavy flow of vaginal bleeding.

Viscosity of bleeding

Whether vaginal bleeding emanates as dried pieces of blood, as a dense liquid, or as a flowing liquid all are regarded as vaginal bleeding that can become Hayd/Nifaas.

Minimum and maximum duration of Hayd

The minimum duration of Hayd is 72 hours (3 full days and 3 full nights). Any bleeding for less than this minimal amount, when it is followed by 15 days and nights of purity (360 hours) will be considered as Istihadah. 

The maximum duration is 240 hours (10 full days and 10 full nights). Any amount beyond that will be considered as Istihadah.

Minimum and menopause age for Hayd

The minimum age at which one can have Hayd is 9 lunar years. Any vaginal bleeding appearing before this age will be considered as Istihadah. 

The menopause age starts at 55 lunar years, at the point of which only the familiar colors of Hayd she used to experience in her lifetime will be considered as Hayd. These are typically the colors red and black, as such if she were to experience vaginal bleeding of such colors at the age of 66, then such vaginal bleeding will still be considered as Hayd whereas other colors will be considered as Istihadah. Likewise, if her familiar colors were of an exotic nature, such as green or yellow, then her experiencing such colors after her age of menopause will still be considered as Hayd.

How to count days on a calendar

In the day-view above, there are 4 bleedings marked over 4 days. But these are not a total of 4 days of bleeding. The way to count is to start from 0. The 3rd of July is when the bleeding started, so it will be regarded as Day 0 of her Hayd. The 4th of July is the next day, so this is when day 1 of her Hayd starts and so on. As such, the above only constitutes 3 days and 3 nights of bleedings (72 hours).

calender
leaf

Beginning of Hayd

The beginning of Hayd commences once the bleeding originating from the uterus has reached the outer edges of the vaginal opening. 

When talking about female anatomy, it’s important to differentiate between the vagina and the labia minora. The vagina is the internal muscular canal that leads from the cervix to the outside of the body, located near the urethra. It’s not visible from the outside.

In contrast, the labia minora are the smaller, inner folds of skin that are part of the external genitalia. These, along with the larger outer folds called the labia majora, are what you can see externally.

To help understand this Better,

think about the difference between the anus and the buttocks. The anus is the internal opening through which the body expels waste, while the buttocks are the external parts you can see. Similarly, the vagina is internal, and the labia minora are part of the external genitalia.

Just like your Wudu will break the moment your bowel movement (e.g. the waste) reaches the outer edges of the anus, likewise your Hayd will have commenced once the bleeding has reached the outer edges of the vagina opening (even though it may not have reached the labia minora).

bleeding

Blocking vaginal bleeding by means of a cloth

If a woman uses cotton to prevent blood from emerging, her Hayd will only start when the cotton is removed, or if blood seeps through to the outer part.

For example,

A woman in purity inserts cotton before sleeping. After waking for Fajr, she checks and finds blood only on the inner side of the cotton. Since the bleeding did not pass the outer edges of her vaginal opening, her Hayd begins upon removing the cotton after Fajr, regardless of whether the blood is wet or dry.

Kursuf

The literal meaning of Kursuf is cotton. It is defined as something that is kept on the female genitals.

  1. It is Mustahabb for a virgin to use a Kursuf during Hayd whereas for a non-virgin it is Sunnah to use it during Hayd and Mustahabb during the days of purity.
  2. It is Makrooh Tahreemi to insert the Kursuf fully into the vaginal opening as this bears some resemblance to masturbation.
  3. If on account of necessity a woman has to keep a Kursuf inside her vaginal channel, the she should not push it in fully. Rather, she should let protrude a small part thereof.
cotton
pain

Menstrual cramps announcing the imminent onset of Hayd

As long as no bleeding has emerged from the uterus until the outer edges of the vaginal hole, Hayd will not have commenced. As such, even though one may be experiencing menstrual cramps, one is not allowed to discontinue prayer as long as it is not accompanied by the required bleeding. In the case of painful cramps that make it difficult to stand for prayer, one can pray sitting. If one has missed prayers on account of menstrual cramps without being accompanied by vaginal bleeding, then such prayers will need to be made up.

white leaf

Ending of Hayd

As long as one keeps spotting colored discharge, then Hayd is still in progress. Only when the colored discharge has come to a complete stop or when the discharge has become her usual white discharge without a streak of colored bleeding inside, only then will her Hayd have ended. 

Once Hayd has officially ended, one is to do Ghusl to attain purity.

What is white?

By white discharge we mean the usual color she experiences when her Hayd has ceased. As women tend to use toilet-paper to check, the contrast of her white discharge vs the white toilet paper can make it appear that the color of her discharge has a yellow hue to it. Kindly take note that the whiteness of toilet paper is an unnatural point of reference for the color white.

Sometimes scholars will express themselves as: “Your Hayd ends when you see a pure white discharge”.

The meaning of pure white discharge is not that it is pure white like a sheet of paper. Rather the meaning is your usual white discharge, pure from any other colored blood. If this is still a point of confusion, then ensure you reach out to an Apaa who could assist you.

discharge

Hayd ends at the last time of seeing colored discharge

For instance, if a menstruating woman keeps a piece of cotton on her private part, and in the morning she sees no blood then she will be considered as pure from the night before, from the time she placed the piece of cotton. As such, she will have to make up for her Isha prayer.

Bleeding returns after it officially ended

Whenever any colored discharge returns within 15 days, even if it be spotting, then this will count towards Hayd. This means that the previous Ghusl done will be considered as invalidated and likewise any fasting/praying done in the meanwhile will be nullified. She will have to redo her Ghusl when the discharge stops.

Fatwa on Hanbali Madhhab

As it can be difficult to keep doing Ghusl, some scholars have given fatwa on the Hanbali madhhab allowing a woman to delay her Ghusl for 24 hours when the following conditions are met:

  1. She is not a child who started her first menstruation. If this pertains to a child who is experiencing her first menstruation, then she will need to repeat her Ghusl each time her vaginal bleeding ceases.
  2. Her bleeding has lasted 72 hours or more. If it has lasted less, then Ghusl is not required in the first place.
  3. She is convinced that there is going to be more colored discharge.
  4. Her habitual days of her Hayd have not yet been completed (e.g. the number of days she menstruated in the previous month)
  5. She has not seen her usual white discharge. (If she has seen her usual white discharge, then she will need to repeat her Ghusl as it is rather rare for colored discharge to succeed.)
blue leaf

Type of Tuhr (Purity)

The days of purity refer to those days in which no vaginal bleeding took place, not even spotting. If this lasts for 15 days and nights or more (360 hours), then it will be called Complete Tuhr. If it is less than 15 days, then it will be called Incomplete Tuhr.

Complete Tuhr

A Complete Tuhr separates two islands of bleedings from one and another.

For instance,

if she sees a bleeding today and after 17 days she sees another bleeding, then these two bleedings will remain separated from each other.

Incomplete Tuhr

An Incomplete Tuhr interconnects two bleedings. The time in between will take the ruling of bleeding even though no physical bleeding occurred in between.

For instance,

She sees a bleeding now. 3 hours later, she sees another bleeding. From a Shari’ perspective, she will be considered as someone who continued bleeding for 3 hours.

Another example:

She sees a bleeding spot now. 12 days later, she sees another bleeding spot. She will be considered as someone who continued bleeding for the entire duration of 12 days. 

Another example:

She has been bleeding for 5 days, followed by 14 days of Tuhr followed by 6 days of bleeding. Since the time in between is less than 15 days of Tuhr, we need to interconnect her 2 islands of bleeding and thus she will be considered as someone who had been bleeding for a full 25 days continuously.

Important consideration

Any coloured bleeding within 15 days interconnects; even if it is a tiny amount. For example, if she is bleeding for 7 days and after 14 days she sees a tiny spot and then after 10 days she experiences more bleeding then it will be as if she has been bleeding continuously throughout this period for 31 days.