Part 7

Q: What is the judgment of a weak woman who spends the night in Muzdalifah?

A: According to the Prophetic Sunnah, a male pilgrim should spend the night in Muzdalifah and wait until it is dawn, then perform the Morning Prayer and attend the Mash’ar Al-Haram, in which he should stay until he leaves before sunset. If the pilgrim is of the weak, such as women and children, he/she should hasten to Mina after the set of the moon. Strong pilgrims should not leave Muzdalifah unless after the break of the dawn, performing

the Morning Prayer, standing by Muzdalifah, since all the area of Muzdalifah is a station, however, standing by Mount Qazah is more preferable. There lies the place that most jurists call Al-Mash ‘ar Al-Haram.

Circumambulation made by one who is ritually impure due to menstruation, seminal discharge or due to minor impurity i.e. not making ablution

Q: What is the judgment of one who circumambulates the Sacred House while being ritually impure due to menstruation, seminal discharge or due to minor impurity i.e. not making ablution?

A: It was reported after the Prophet (peace be upon him) that he said: “A menstruating woman performs all rituals except circumambulation of the Sacred House.” He (peace be upon him) said to ‘A’ishah, who was in her menses: “Do what a pilgrim does, except for circumambulation of the Sacred House.” When the Prophet was told that his wife Safiyah menstruated, he exclaimed: “Shall she hinder us (from performing our rituals)? When he was told that she made the Ifadah circumambulation, he said: “This should not have been done.” It was reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) appointed Abu Bakr on the occasion of pilgrimage in the year 9 A.H. to announce people that it is not permissible for a pilgrim to circumambulate the Sacred House while being nude.

It was not reported that he (peace be upon him) ordered those who circumambulate the Sacred House to make ablution or avoid impurities, while he ordered those who were going to Prayer to make ablution. The forbiddance of circumambulation by a menstruating woman was thus because of maintaining the sanctity of the mosque, as a menstruating woman is not permitted to stay in it, while circumambulation requires a stay in the mosque, or because it is totally forbidden to enter the mosque, either as passing by it or staying in it.

The forbiddance of a menstruating woman to circumambulate the Sacred House might also because of the prohibition of circumambulation on the part of a menstruating woman, just as she is prohibited to perform Prayer or observe Fasting, which is proved by Qur’an, Sunnah and the consensus of opinion, to touch the Holy Qur’an, according to most scholars, or to recite the Holy Qur’an, according to one of the two variant opinions of scholars.

1. It is permissible for a woman to recite the Holy Quran after the cessation of menstrual or puerperal blood, and before the ritual bathing. This is the chosen opinion of the judge Abu Ya’la and the surface meaning of the opinion of Imam Ahmad.

2. Recitation of the Holy Qur’an by a woman after the cessation of menstrual or puerperal blood, and before performing a ritual bathing is totally forbidden.

3. It is permissible for a woman to recite the Holy Qur’an following childbirth, while a menstruating woman is prohibited.

As for the prohibition of a menstruating woman to enter the mosque or pass by it, it may be a prohibition of each act respectively, i.e. staying or passing by the mosque, or it is only prohibited to combine both acts at the same time, in the sense that if each is made separately, it will be permissible. If it is the former, it will be permissible to a menstruating woman to stay in the mosque in case of necessity, e.g. if she fears that someone may kill her should she does not enter the mosque, in severe cold weather, or when she finds no shelter other than the mosque. ‘A’ishah said: The Prophet (peace be upon him) said to me: “Fetch me my cover from the mosque!” | said:

But I am menstruating. He replied: “Your menstruation |s not in your hand.”

Maimunah, the Prophet’s wife, said: The Prophet (peacc be upon him) was used to put his head in the lap of any 0! us, while she was menstruating, and would recite the Hol) Qur’an. Any of us might spread the Prophet’s cover fo1 him in the mosque, while she was menstruating.

It was narrated by Abu Dawud on the authority o/ ‘A’ishah that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “I do not permit one who is ritually impure due to seminal discharge or a menstruating woman to enter the mosque.”

To reconcile between this hadith and the earlier ones. many scholars, such as Imam _ Al-Shafi’i, Imam Ahmad and others differentiated between the case of passing by the mosque and that of staying in the mosque. Some scholars forbade both passing by the mosque and staying in it by a menstruating woman, such as Imam Abu Hanifah and Imam Malik. Others did not forbade passing by the mosque, on the basis of the Qur’anic verse: “...nor in a state of ceremonial impurity (except when travelling on the road), until after washing your whole body.” (4:43)

Imam Ahmad and others permitted the stay in the mosque for the sake of performing ablution. This opinion is supported by the narration of ‘Ata’ bin Yasar, who said: |

saw men of the Prophet’s Companions stay in the mosque while they were ritually impure due to seminal discharge, after performing ablution like that made before Prayer.

Perhaps this was because the mosque is most frequented by the angles, who cannot enter a place where a ritually impure person is present. For this reason the Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade a ritually impure man to sleep in the mosque. It was reported after ‘A’ishah that she said: If any of you has intercourse with his wife, he should not sleep unless he performs ablution like that made before Prayer. Who knows! He may die in his sleep. In another hadith it was reported: ...because if he sleeps (while being ritually impure) the angels will not attend his funeral.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered one who was ritually impure due to seminal discharge to perform ablution before eating, drinking and in case he would repeat intercourse with his wife. This is a proof that if one who is ritually impure due to seminal discharge makes ablution, the parts of ablution will become ritually pure, which means that his state of ritual impurity will not be complete.

However, if one has a minor impurity, or an impurity lesser than major impurity, he will not be treated as one who is ritually impure due to seminal discharge, in the sense that the angels will not abstain from witnessing his funeral, should he dies in his sleep, and that he will be permitted to sleep and stay in the mosque.

This indicates that ritual impurity can be divided into parts, some of which may be removed from the parts of the body which are washed or wiped with the water of ablution. This is the opinion of the majority of scholars.

As regards a menstruating woman, whose impurity is continuous, is legally excused to stay, sleep and eat in the mosque, without making ablution. She is not forbidden to do what a ritually impure one is forbidden to do, in case of necessity.

On this basis, the preferable opinion of scholars is that a menstruating woman may recite the Holy Qur’an if she is in need of it. This is the opinion of Imam Malik, one of the two opinions of Imam AI-Shafi’i and a narration after Imam Ahmad. This is in the case a menstruating woman is in need of reciting the Holy Qur’an, since she cannot make purification, as is the case with one who is ritually impure due to seminal discharge, despite the fact the at her impurity is greater than the former, in the sense that she cannot observe Fasting before the cessation of blood, while a ritually impure person can.

If it is argued that a menstruating woman is forbidden to observe Prayer before the cessation of blood, no matter she makes purification or not, and that her husband is prohibited to have intercourse with her, which entails more strict forbiddance on her part to enter the mosque or stay in it, this can be answered by the argument that a forbidden act may be permitted in case of necessity, such

as the permission to drink blood and eat carrion and swine flesh in case of necessity.

Furthermore, some other acts which, though are less strictly prohibited, but cannot be permitted without necessity, such as wearing silk garments by men, drinking in gold or silver vessels, etc.

It is more strictly forbidden to pray to a direction other than the Qiblah, to pray with the private parts uncovered, or to pray while there is an impurity on one’s body or garment. However, all of these may be permitted, or even become obligatory in case of necessity. Other less strictly prohibited acts cannot be permitted unless in case of necessity, such as recitation of the Holy Qur’an.

A ritually impure person due to a seminal discharge whose impurity is continuing because of his inability to make ritual washing or tayammum [dry ablution] shall be treated as the case of the menstruating woman mentioned previously, despite his occurs rarely.

The Prophet ordered menstruating women to get out on the occasion of “Ids and witness the celebration and good invocations made by people and pronounce takbir [Saying: Allahu Akbar (Allah is the Greatest)].

The Prophet also ordered menstruating and confined women to make Ihram, Talbyah, witness ~Arafah while pronouncing remembrance of Allah and supplicating Him, throwing pebbles while remembering Allah, etc. All these

are not disapproved for a menstruating or a confined woman, rather they are obliged to do that. A person who is ritually impure due to seminal discharge is discouraged to do these acts until he has a ritual washing, as he can this easily, which is not the case of a menstruating woman.

The forbiddance of a menstruating woman to circumambulate the Sacred House is justified with the cause of maintaining the sanctity of the mosque. Thus said some of the Hanafi scholars, as the school of Imam Abu Hanifah maintains that purification is an obligatory practice to be done before entering the mosque, but not an obligation that should be made inside it or a prerequisite to enter it. This justification has more in common with the saying that the circumambulation made without ablution is not prohibited. This is the opinion of Mansur bin AlMu’tamir and Hammad bin Abi Sulaiman, which was narrated after them by Imam Ahmad.