If the color of menstrual blood is brown, is it considered menstrual blood?
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The questioner : There is a question regarding the monthly custom. They asked us about it and reported that on the first day, the blood appears to be not pure blood, but rather brownish. Therefore, she must stop praying and stop fasting. Some of them experience this same blood for four or five days, and then after four days, there is red blood, and then it stops. That is, the process lasts eleven or twelve days. What should be done?
The Shaykh : This custom: as soon as she sees the blood, and this blood usually comes regularly, meaning every month, she is considered to be menstruating as soon as she sees this blood. The nature of this blood, as we know from reading and hearing, is that when the blood first comes, it is dark, deep red, not light. It continues for days; as it continues, its color becomes lighter, and the opposite of what you mentioned. But in any case, this has no relation to the legal aspect. It appears to differ according to the nature of the menstruating woman's constitution. The important thing is that when she sees this menstrual blood, she remains menstruating, not praying and not fasting, until she sees what is called in the legal terminology "the white stream." She remains menstruating until she sees the white stream. The white stream is called "purity" in the common language, and it is a natural result of the continuation of the deep red blood; as it cleanses, it becomes like pus and suppuration, and so on, until a white substance appears. That is, she places a cotton pad and that blood does not appear on it, whether it is of the deep red color or the light color. This is the sign of purity. As for the days, there is no fixed limit; it differs from woman to woman. In other words, in jurisprudential terms, there is no minimum or maximum limit for menstruation. Some women may see blood for hours of the day and then nothing after that, and many of them see seven, eight, ten... and so on. This is the system of this custom, which is menstruation. I hope the answer has become clear?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : This custom: as soon as she sees the blood, and this blood usually comes regularly, meaning every month, she is considered to be menstruating as soon as she sees this blood. The nature of this blood, as we know from reading and hearing, is that when the blood first comes, it is dark, deep red, not light. It continues for days; as it continues, its color becomes lighter, and the opposite of what you mentioned. But in any case, this has no relation to the legal aspect. It appears to differ according to the nature of the menstruating woman's constitution. The important thing is that when she sees this menstrual blood, she remains menstruating, not praying and not fasting, until she sees what is called in the legal terminology "the white stream." She remains menstruating until she sees the white stream. The white stream is called "purity" in the common language, and it is a natural result of the continuation of the deep red blood; as it cleanses, it becomes like pus and suppuration, and so on, until a white substance appears. That is, she places a cotton pad and that blood does not appear on it, whether it is of the deep red color or the light color. This is the sign of purity. As for the days, there is no fixed limit; it differs from woman to woman. In other words, in jurisprudential terms, there is no minimum or maximum limit for menstruation. Some women may see blood for hours of the day and then nothing after that, and many of them see seven, eight, ten... and so on. This is the system of this custom, which is menstruation. I hope the answer has become clear?
The questioner: Yes.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.