Issue 322: One other type of blood which a girl or a woman discharges is Istihadha.

Issue 323: Istihadha blood is often yellow and cold, and it is discharged with no pressure and irritation. It is not thick either. However, it might sometimes be dark or red, warm and thick and discharged with pressure and irritation.

Issue 324: Regarding the amount of the blood discharged, there are three kinds of Istihadha, viz. little Istihadha, medium Istihadha, and big Istihadha. Little Istihadha (Qualeela) refers to the amount of blood which is so little as to just remain on the surface of the cotton, pad, etc., (placed on a woman's private part), but does not penetrate into the cotton.

Medium istihadha (Mutawassita) refers to the amount of blood which penetrates into the cotton, pad, etc., but does not soak the cloth on the outer side.

Big Istihadha (Katheerah) refers to the amount of blood which soaks the cotton, pad, etc., and the cloth on the outer side of it.

Issue 325: In the case of little Istihadha, a woman must perform separate Wudhu for each prayer, and wash the surface of her private part if blood has reached it. She must also change the cotton (or whatever), or purify it with water.

Issue 326: If a woman discharges medium Istihadha before or while saying prayers, she must perform Ghusl for that prayer, and the Ghusl would suffice for offering prayers, so she would not need to perform Wudhu for that. It is neither necessary to perform Ghusl for other prayers of that day, but she must change the cotton, pad etc., or purify it with water and also purify the surface of her private part for each prayer.

Issue 327: In the case of big Istihadha, besides what was mentioned above for medium Istihadha, a woman must perform a Ghusl for midday and afternoon prayers and a separate Ghusl for sunset and evening prayers, and she must not allow any time gap between midday and afternoon prayers, or between sunset and evening prayers, otherwise she must perform a different Ghusl for the afternoon and evening prayers respectively, and performing these Ghusls, she would not need to perform Wudhu for saying prayers.

Issue 328: After medium and big Istihadha finishes, i.e., the bleeding stops, one must perform Ghusl, but if she is certain that bleeding has stopped since she performed Ghusl for her last prayer, she does not need to perform Ghusl again.

Q329: Is it a necessary condition to perform Ghusl if a woman whose Istihadha has stopped wants to have sexual intercourse with her husband? If so, is it also necessary in the case of little Istihadha, or does it suffice to perform Wudhu?

A: In the case of little Istihadha, Ghusl is not obligatory and Wudhu would suffice for praying. Wudhu has nothing to do with sexual intercourse. As for sexual intercourse, just in case a woman has been discharging medium or big Istihadha, the necessary condition is to perform Ghusl first.

Q330: Nowadays, some physicians prescribe special pills for menopausal women to prevent the menopausal symptoms. These pills regulate their periods in such a way that, like the time before the menopause, they discharge blood at a certain date, for a certain period every month. What is the legal case of such blood? Is it accounted Haydh or Istihadha?

A: Given the above situation, it must be considered and treated as Istihadha.

Q331: Regarding the fact that, in most treatises of Islamic laws Sayyid women become menopausal at the age of sixty whereas the non-Sayyid women become menopausal at the age of fifty, what would the rulings be on the following cases?

1) The time for the beginning of menstrual periods is not the same in all girls, and it varies from one girl to the other within the range of nine to eighteen years of age. Hence, how is it possible to calculate the age of menopause so exactly and with such certainty?

2) What would the ruling be if, even after these certain ages (60