A woman gave birth and the bleeding continued with her beyond forty days in the same manner; what is the ruling regarding prayer and fasting for her?

The questioner : This is a sister asking. She says: A woman became ritually impure, and the bleeding continued with her after the forty days in the same manner, and in a very small amount every day. Knowing that this woman’s menstrual cycle was not regular before the pregnancy and childbirth, and now this blood is still continuing, it has been ten days beyond the forty. What is the ruling regarding prayer and fasting with it? And is it blood of impurity or irregular bleeding? I hope you answer my question.

The Shaykh : As long as the blood continues as it is, she should sit (abstain from worship) until the sixtieth day. This is the position of al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him), and it is one of the two opinions in this issue. If the sixty days are completed and there is more beyond that, if it coincides with her original cycle before the pregnancy, she sits. If it does not coincide, she performs the full ritual bath, prays, and fasts. If she cleanses herself with water, and then the time of her usual cycle arrives, she sits for the duration of the usual cycle only.