Question #1: In our community many women begin to take birth control pills two or three months before a planned hajj or umrah trip so that their haid will either be suppressed or greatly shortened at the time of their trip? This allows ease in planning the trip because once tickets are purchased and plans made these can no longer be changed or returned. Is this methodology permissible? If not are there other ways that a women can avoid such problems? Question #2: As a follow-up to the questions recently asked about musaafir and muqim. If someone lives in a college dormitory (has shifted most of his belongings there) and is sure that he will return to live in his parents home after completing his degree. When he returns to his parents home on the weekends (as a student) can he choose his college dorm to be his place of iqama and then shorten when traveling to his parents? Or will he pray shortened prayers the whole week and only complete his prayers when he visits his parents home? If he doesn’t know where he will live after graduating from college does he have the choice of choosing one (either his parents home or dorm room) as his place of watn asli? How often can one’s want asli be changed given that some people move to a new place every year?
Q: A woman intends performing Hajj, her Haydh is calculated to occur during
and over the 5 days of Hajj. Is it permissible for her to take medication to
delay her Haydh, if this medication only has to be used for a short period
of time, and causes minimum side effects?
A: A female should not interfere with her natural monthly cycle. However,
due to unavoidable circumstances, for example due to experiencing her
monthly cycle she will not be able to perform her fardh tawaaf -(Tawaafe
Ziyarat) before the scheduled date of departure from Makkah Mukarramah, she
may take medication to delay the monthly cycle.
Question 2
His parents home will be his Iqaamat. He will have to perform complete
Salaat there. If he intends to stay at the college for 15 days or more, that
college will also be his Iqaamat where he will have to perform complete
Salaat.
Question 3
If a person goes to a place with the intention of staying there for ever,
that will be his Watan Asliy. If he subsequently moved out and went to
another place with the intention of residing there permanently, then that
now becomes his Watan-e-Asliy.
and Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
FATWA DEPT.