Womens Issues Made Simple

Rules of Istihadha

Having determined the type of istihadha, there are now different rules for the different types of blood. We have already talked about how to determine the type of istihadha blood above.

Rules for Qaleelah (Little flow)

Wash the surface of the vagina
Change the cotton
For each prayer perform one new wudhu (ablution)
All other kinds of worship where wudhu is necessary require a new wudhu as per Ihtiyat-e-Wajib, (Imam Khomeini). What this means is if a woman has made wudhu for salat and if she decides to touch the script of the Qur’an she needs to do wudhu after salat again.

But, As per Ayatullah Seestani it is wajib (not just ihtiyate wajib) to do wudhu again for the other acts of worship that require wudhu.
Note: To prevent the blood from gushing out, let the cotton stay in vagina. If the blood comes out in the midst of the prayers it will be deemed void.

Further explanation: If a woman sees a little discharge of blood and as per the signs and verification she is sure its istihadha then, for performing each prayer she should wash the surface of her vagina, change the cotton and perform Wudhu.

Helping Note: Let the cotton stay in vagina. Between 2 prayers examine it; if no blood is seen, renewing the Wudhu is not necessary.

Rules for Mutawassitah (Medium flow)

Do the 3 steps of Qaleelah
For the first prayer (recited after the woman sees blood) perform ghusl
From the next day, perform ghusl for the morning prayers everyday. This is as per Imam Khomeini.

Also, according to Ayatullah Seestani, if a woman performs ghusl for the afternoon prayers, she should perform ghusl the next day in the morning. In this scenario a ghusl in the morning is required too. That is, if she performs first ghusl in the afternoon then she needs to perform the next ghusl in the morning, next day**.**

Note: All other kinds of worship where wudhu is necessary should be done with a new wudhu as per Ihtiyat-e-Wajib, (Imam Khomeini). What this means is if a woman has made wudhu for salat and if she decides to touch the script of the Qur’an she needs to do wudhu again after salat.

As per Ayatullah Seestani its wajib to do wudhu again for the other acts of worship that require wudhu.

Another important point: Ayatullah Seestani says that a woman should perform the ghusl first and then do wudhu as per Ihtiyat-e-Wajib.Whereas,Imam Khomeini says it does not matter if one performs ghusl first or wudhu.

Further explanation: If a woman sees medium discharge of blood and as per the signs and verification she is sure it is istihadha then, for performing each prayer she should wash the surface of her vagina, change the cotton and perform Wudhu and in addition perform ghusl if it is the first salat of the day.

From the next day in addition to doing the 3 steps of Qaleelah, she should perform ghusl for the morning prayers only, BUT for the other prayers she should wash the surface of the vagina, change the cotton and do wudhu for each prayer.

Rules for Katheera (Excessive flow)

For each prayer perform one ghusl
Do the 3 steps of Qaleelah
If praying Asr right after Dhuhr or Isha right after Maghrib, only 3 ghusls are enough for the day.

Further explanation: If a woman sees excessive discharge of blood and as per the signs and verification if she is sure it is istihadha then, for performing each prayer she should perform ghusl and then wash the surface of the vagina and then change the cotton and do wudhu.

But if a woman is going to pray Asr prayers right after Dhuhr prayers and Isha prayers right after Maghrib Prayers only one ghusl for each set of prayers will suffice. However, between Dhuhr and Asr, Maghrib and Isha she must wash, change the cotton and do wudhu.

Important Note: As per Ayatullah Seestani wudhu is not needed after the ghusl but if a woman wishes she should do it before ghusl for Katheera. Whereas, Imam Khomeini says it does not matter if wudhu is made before ghusl or after, but wudhu is required.

Change of Intensity of Blood Flow

When one sees the intensity of the blood flow increase, then there are different rules that apply:

Change of Flow from Less to More

Qaleelah to Mutawassitah (Little to Medium flow)
Qaleelah to Katheera (Little to Excessive flow)
Mutawassitah to Katheera (Medium to Excessive flow)

Rules to be followed if the blood flow changes from less to more as stated above:

If before prayer: If the intensity of the blood flow changes from less to more, before a woman prays:

If the flow changes from little to medium then the rules for medium apply.
If the flow changes from little/medium to excessive then the rules for excessive apply.

Note: For explanation of rules for little flow, medium flow and excessive, refer to the rules of Istihadha.

During prayers: If a woman feels while praying that the intensity of the blood flow changed from less to more:

If by discontinuing the prayers there is no fear that they will become Qadha, then a woman should discontinue praying and take care of the duty as per the rules, then perform prayers.

Further explanation: If a woman starts praying and realizes that the blood flow has increased then she should see if there is enough time left so that her prayers do not get Qadha. If there is enough time left then she should discontinue her prayers.

After discontinuing her prayers she should check to see if the flow has increased to medium or excessive istihadha, and then follow the rules accordingly.

If there is not enough time left, then she should not discontinue the prayers. She should complete the prayers, then check to see if the intensity of the flow increased to medium flow or excessive flow. Follow the rules accordingly, and then repeat the prayer again with the intention of Qadha.

Change of Flow from More to Less

Katheera to Qaleelah (Excessive to Little)
Katheera to Mutawassitah (Excessive to Medium)
Mutawassitah to Qaleelah (Medium to Little)

Rules to be followed if the blood flow changes from more to less as stated above:

For the first prayer a woman should follow the rules as per the state she was in. Prayers after that are going to be according to the state she is in.

Further explanation: If a woman is in the state of Katheera (Excessive flow) and before praying Dhuhr she realizes that she is in the state of Qaleelah (Little) now, she should follow the rules for Katheera for praying Dhuhr and then for Asr she should follow the rules for Qaleela.

If a woman after Dhuhr realizes that state she is not in a state of Katheera anymore but she is in a state of Qaleela now, she should still follow the rules for Katheera for praying Asr and then for Maghrib and the prayers after that she should follow the rules of Qaleela.

Fasting during Istihadha

During Qaleela: A woman should follow the rules she follows before prayers. With the only exception that a cotton should be inserted inside the vagina to prevent the blood from gushing out. (As per Imam Khomeini this is Ihtiyat-e-Wajib for all the states of istihadha)

During Mutawassitah: A woman should follow the rules she follows before prayers. With the only exception that a cotton should be inserted inside the vagina to prevent the blood from gushing out.

During Katheera: A woman should perform ghusl, the evening before for prayers of Maghrib.

And…

Perform ghusl for each prayer if there is not going to be a gap between the prayers. For example if she performs ghusl for Maghrib and then prays Isha right after Maghrib, then another ghusl is not needed.

And…

Insert cotton inside the vagina, to prevent the blood from gushing out.

Note: Ayatullah Seestani says that it is not a problem if the blood gushes out during the fast, and the fast is valid, but she has to prevent the blood from gushing out of her vagina during her prayers.

Sex during Istihadha

During the state of Qaleelah: Rules of Qaleelah (Under ‘Rules of Istihadha’) apply.
During the state of Mutawassitah: Must have ghusl before sex.
During the state of Katheera: Must have ghusl before sex. But if sex is performed soon after prayers, ghusl is not necessary.

Note: Ayatullah Seestani says that ghusl is not needed before sex in any of the three conditions of istihadha. (Performing ghusl is Ihtiyat-e-Mustahab)

Miscellaneous Points regarding Istihadha

According to Ayatullah Seestani if a woman is not sure if she is in a state Mutawassitah or Qaleelah she should consider it as Qaleelah. Another scenario would be if a woman is not sure if she is in a state of Katheera or Mutawassitah. In this case she should consider it to be Mutawassitah. In other words when in doubt she must always go with the lesser one.

If a woman delays her prayers thinking that her Istihadha will stop before the salat becomes Qadha, then it is okay to do so as long as she does not delay her prayers so long that they become Qadha.

Salatul Ayat is the prayers that are obligatory at the time of natural calamities for example, an earthquake, a lunar eclipse, or a solar eclipse etc. Salatul Ayat is obligatory on a woman who is experiencing Istihadha. All the rules required for a woman in istihadha during the other obligatory prayers are also required for this salat. (Please note: Same rules apply for all the obligatory prayers.)