Asalamu alaykum.
This is an area of confusion and has caused me a lot of sadness and frustration.
I know some scholars say menstruation lasts 15 days, others 10 days and others saying it has no max or min.
So far, I’ve been regarding 15 days as my max period. I tend to bleed for 8 days, then get yellow discharge continuously till then, and it usually continues after the 15 days. I remember twice when the white discharge sign of purity appeared before 15 days.
I only properly discovered the meaning of istiahdah and having to renew wudu during early June. Before that, when I had finished the 15 days of my period I would go on as normally. This means this even occurred in the Ramadan month. I didn’t know the ruling of renewing wudu after discoloured discharge was released. Which means it’s possible I could have errors in my prayers. The problem is, I can get both yellow and clear discharge normally (mostly yellow) so I feel I won’t be able to remember if that was the case. I read elsewhere that if you didn’t know the shari’i ruling then you’re excused.
After I had learnt the ruling, when the yellow discharge continued after the 15 days, it usually ended early. For the past 2/3 months I regarded it as istihadhah and renewed wudu everytime it came out.
However, I’m worried. Because yellow discharge is something that can be normal for me too. And what happens in the case of when the yellow discharge continues up until my next period?
I read somewhere that there is apparently a way to differentiate the difference between yellow menstruation discharge and yellow irregular bleeding discharge, through colour, thickness and stench. Personally, this worries me. Because I’m not sure if I will be able to differentiate. I intend on using a kursuf so my discharge doesn’t oxidize, so what if the pale discharge thats regarded as istiahdah gets bunched up and appears to me as thick, which then would appear as menstruation?
1. Shall I forget trying to differentiate between the two yellow discharges, and continue dealing with my menstruation process as I normally do?
2. I didn’t know of the rules of istihadah until June. Am I excused for prayers I did prior due to unawareness of the fiqhi ruling?
May Allah Azzawajal bless you.
Answer
Wa’alaykum as Salam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu,
- Since you have an established habit of eight days, you will not consider the maximum period of Haidh (menstruation). Rather, your periods will be 8 days, and the blood you see thereafter will be Istihadah. You also do not have to differentiate between between the yellow discharges.
- Ignorance of a Fiqhi ruling does not cause a law to fall away. At most, you will not get sin for delaying your prayers. However, you will have to make up for all the prayers and fasts that you missed.
And Allaah Ta’aala knows best
Wassalaam,
Ismail Moosa (Mufti)
References
الفصل الثالث في الاستحاضة لو رأت الدم بعد أكثر الحيض والنفاس في أقل مدة الطهر فما رأت بعدالأكثر إن كانت مبتدأة وبعد العادة إن كانت معتادة استحاضة (الفتاوى الهندية – 1/ 37)
والحيض يسقط عن الحائض الصلاة ويحرم عليها الصوم وتقضي الصوم ولا تقضي الصلاة ” لقول عائشة رضي الله عنها كانت إحدانا على عهد رسول الله عليه الصلاة والسلام إذا طهرت من حيضها تقضي الصيام ولا تقضي الصلاة ولأن في قضاء الصلاة حرجا لتضاعفها ولا حرج في قضاء الصوم (الهداية في شرح بداية المبتدي – ج 1 / ص 33)
وإذا زاد الدم على العشرة ولها عادة فالزائد على عادتها استحاضة (الاختيار لتعليل المختار – ج 1 / ص 30)