Is it true that it is permissible for a menstruating woman and a person in a state of major ritual impurity to touch the mushaf, and that the intended meaning of His saying (none touch it except the purified) is the angels?

Question:
I read in a booklet that it is permissible for a menstruating woman and a person in a state of major ritual impurity to touch the mushaf. The evidence cited in the booklet is that the intended meaning of the complete book is the Preserved Tablet, and that the purified ones are the angels. If it had meant the children of Adam, it would have said "the ones who have purified themselves." Is this correct?

Answer:
This statement is incorrect. It is not permissible to touch the mushaf except in a state of ritual purity from both major and minor ritual impurity, based on the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in the hadith: "For we are in a state of purity." As for the saying of Allah the Exalted: , the intended meaning, according to the stronger opinion, is the angels. However, Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) says in his book *Aqsam al-Qur'an* (Categories of the Qur'an) that this indicates by implication that humans are likewise not to touch it except those who are purified, meaning purified from minor and major ritual impurity. This is the consensus of the four Imams, as reported by the author of *al-Mughni* and others: the consensus of the four Imams that it is not permissible for one in a state of ritual impurity to touch the mushaf directly without a barrier. And Allah knows best.