Addendum to the benefits of the hadith (that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said regarding menstrual blood that falls on a garment . . . ).
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The Shaykh : And this generally only happens with a small amount; as for a large amount, it must be rubbed off with the palm, meaning with the entire palm of the hand. But the small amount is what is removed by pinching. So this hadith is evidence that menstrual blood is not excused in its small amount. As for the remaining types of blood, the stronger opinion is that they are not ritually impure. The blood that comes out of a human being is not ritually impure, because up to this moment I have not found any evidence indicating impurity. And it is established that the original state of things is purity unless there is evidence to the contrary. We mentioned, when discussing the hadith Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1480Hasan (Darussalam), that the principle requires that it not be impure, because the corpse of a human being is pure, so what separates from it during his life is pure, just as if we cut off one of his hands or one of his feet, it is pure.
And if we say it is impure, which is the opinion of the majority of scholars and the opinion that most students know only this or only it, they say that its small amount is excused. So what is the small amount? Is the small amount what every person considers easy according to his own standard, or is the small amount what the general public considers easy? There are two opinions among the jurists: The first opinion is that the small amount is what every person considers easy according to his own condition. The second opinion is that the criterion is the general public and the average person; so what they consider small is small, and what they consider large is large. The first opinion has a perspective, but it is subject to criticism. The perspective is that if a person sees that this blood that fell on him is small, he feels at ease and prays with tranquility, and he does not feel anxious or think that he has fallen short in anything, so it is said, "You and your Lord." But there is a criticism: people differ. Some people are obsessive; they see a drop the size of a grain of barley as large. And some people are negligent; they see a drop larger than a sparrow as small. So at that point, people differ in this estimation, and returning to the average of people is the stronger opinion. For this, there are corroborations in the Shari'ah: You know that lost property, if it is small and little, meaning if a person finds it and does not know its owner, he owns it simply by finding it. The small amount according to whom?
The student : The average of people.
The Shaykh : According to the average of people. So returning to the average of people is a matter considered in the Shari'ah. So in the small and the large, one returns to the average of people; we do not take the opinion of the negligent one, nor the opinion of the obsessive one. This is regarding blood other than menstruation. As for menstruation, the hadith indicates that its small and large amounts are impure, and we have no way out from what the Sunnah requires, clearly.
We remain with the blood of irregular bleeding: is it impure or like the other bloods? We say that the closest view is that it is impure because it comes out from the passage. And someone might say: It is not impure because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) described it as blood of the veins. And the blood of the veins is either impure, in which case its small amount is excused, or pure. And this is blood of the veins, so it is not impure.
Second: The stronger opinion is that it is permissible for the husband of the woman with irregular bleeding to have intercourse with her. And the permissibility of intercourse for him necessitates that he touches the impurity, and that is unavoidable. This is what strengthens the view that it is pure.
Those who strengthen the view that it is impure say that it comes out from the passage and is not pure blood of the veins, so that we say it is like the other bloods. As for the fact that it is permissible for the husband to have intercourse with her, the issue is disputed among scholars. Some say: It is not permissible for him to have intercourse with her unless he fears harm, and at that point, his intercourse with her here is due to dire necessity, and he will wash what he touched of her. And some say it is permissible absolutely, and that is the stronger opinion. But this is for a pressing need, just as a person washes impurity for a pressing need and touches it with his hand. So this is likewise; he wants to enjoy his wife in the enjoyment that Allah has made permissible. And the closest view to me is that the blood of irregular bleeding is like menstrual blood, meaning that one must be careful of it, but it is permitted for a pressing need from the side of the husband. As for what falls on the garment from it, it must be washed, whether it is small or large.
Among the benefits of this hadith: It clarifies that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) had simplicity in matters. The woman prays in the garment in which she menstruated, and the man prays in the garment what?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : In which he has intercourse, as passed to us in the action of the Messenger (may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him). And this indicates their simplicity and the ease of their affairs, and that they do not overburden themselves. Now, some of our women have a garment for prayer, a garment for carrying children, a garment for the suit, and a garment for adornment, and the shelves are full of clothes. And most of them, also in the modern era, most of them are left abandoned because a new fashion has come out and there must be a change, even if the garment is one of the best garments, they say, "We do not wear it." This is a mistake. But we say, no excess and no negligence. The Companions might be excused for this because the world was not opened to them except late, so they needed to use this, even in this manner. But when Allah has blessed us, there is no harm in the woman having a garment for prayer, a garment for the house, and for the children, and we do not say this is from the category of extravagance, if Allah wills.
Among the benefits of this hadith: It is obligatory to remove the substance of the impurity before it is washed, due to his saying what? Under it. Because if you poured water on it, you would wash it before scraping it, and it would spread more, and we would have added wetness to the clay, or wetness, get it right for us.
The student : Wetness.
The Shaykh : Wetness. Good. So therefore we say it is necessary to scrape it first. And is something like it in impurity analogized to it? The answer is yes. For example, feces must be scraped first, then the place is washed. And in this is a refutation of what is famous among some people that menstrual blood does not clot and that the blood of irregular bleeding clots. And they explained that by saying that menstrual blood is the bursting of the ovules in the womb, then the blood seeps out, so it has already clotted first, so when it comes out, it does not clot. But the apparent meaning of this hadith, "scrape it," indicates that it clots. So let this topic be reviewed. And I was initially convinced that this was the difference between the blood of irregular bleeding and menstrual blood, along with the differences mentioned by the jurists. But this hadith prevents conviction in this opinion.
Good, he says, and among the benefits of this hadith also: The gradual removal of impurity, due to his saying:Sahih Muslim 291a There remain benefits, if Allah wills, in the next lesson.
Then she pinches it with water
ثمّ تقرصه بالماءWhatever is cut from an animal while it is alive, then it is dead flesh.
ما قطع من البهيمة وهي حيّة فهو ميّتAnd if we say it is impure, which is the opinion of the majority of scholars and the opinion that most students know only this or only it, they say that its small amount is excused. So what is the small amount? Is the small amount what every person considers easy according to his own standard, or is the small amount what the general public considers easy? There are two opinions among the jurists: The first opinion is that the small amount is what every person considers easy according to his own condition. The second opinion is that the criterion is the general public and the average person; so what they consider small is small, and what they consider large is large. The first opinion has a perspective, but it is subject to criticism. The perspective is that if a person sees that this blood that fell on him is small, he feels at ease and prays with tranquility, and he does not feel anxious or think that he has fallen short in anything, so it is said, "You and your Lord." But there is a criticism: people differ. Some people are obsessive; they see a drop the size of a grain of barley as large. And some people are negligent; they see a drop larger than a sparrow as small. So at that point, people differ in this estimation, and returning to the average of people is the stronger opinion. For this, there are corroborations in the Shari'ah: You know that lost property, if it is small and little, meaning if a person finds it and does not know its owner, he owns it simply by finding it. The small amount according to whom?
The student : The average of people.
The Shaykh : According to the average of people. So returning to the average of people is a matter considered in the Shari'ah. So in the small and the large, one returns to the average of people; we do not take the opinion of the negligent one, nor the opinion of the obsessive one. This is regarding blood other than menstruation. As for menstruation, the hadith indicates that its small and large amounts are impure, and we have no way out from what the Sunnah requires, clearly.
We remain with the blood of irregular bleeding: is it impure or like the other bloods? We say that the closest view is that it is impure because it comes out from the passage. And someone might say: It is not impure because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) described it as blood of the veins. And the blood of the veins is either impure, in which case its small amount is excused, or pure. And this is blood of the veins, so it is not impure.
Second: The stronger opinion is that it is permissible for the husband of the woman with irregular bleeding to have intercourse with her. And the permissibility of intercourse for him necessitates that he touches the impurity, and that is unavoidable. This is what strengthens the view that it is pure.
Those who strengthen the view that it is impure say that it comes out from the passage and is not pure blood of the veins, so that we say it is like the other bloods. As for the fact that it is permissible for the husband to have intercourse with her, the issue is disputed among scholars. Some say: It is not permissible for him to have intercourse with her unless he fears harm, and at that point, his intercourse with her here is due to dire necessity, and he will wash what he touched of her. And some say it is permissible absolutely, and that is the stronger opinion. But this is for a pressing need, just as a person washes impurity for a pressing need and touches it with his hand. So this is likewise; he wants to enjoy his wife in the enjoyment that Allah has made permissible. And the closest view to me is that the blood of irregular bleeding is like menstrual blood, meaning that one must be careful of it, but it is permitted for a pressing need from the side of the husband. As for what falls on the garment from it, it must be washed, whether it is small or large.
Among the benefits of this hadith: It clarifies that the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) had simplicity in matters. The woman prays in the garment in which she menstruated, and the man prays in the garment what?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : In which he has intercourse, as passed to us in the action of the Messenger (may the prayers and peace of Allah be upon him). And this indicates their simplicity and the ease of their affairs, and that they do not overburden themselves. Now, some of our women have a garment for prayer, a garment for carrying children, a garment for the suit, and a garment for adornment, and the shelves are full of clothes. And most of them, also in the modern era, most of them are left abandoned because a new fashion has come out and there must be a change, even if the garment is one of the best garments, they say, "We do not wear it." This is a mistake. But we say, no excess and no negligence. The Companions might be excused for this because the world was not opened to them except late, so they needed to use this, even in this manner. But when Allah has blessed us, there is no harm in the woman having a garment for prayer, a garment for the house, and for the children, and we do not say this is from the category of extravagance, if Allah wills.
Among the benefits of this hadith: It is obligatory to remove the substance of the impurity before it is washed, due to his saying what? Under it. Because if you poured water on it, you would wash it before scraping it, and it would spread more, and we would have added wetness to the clay, or wetness, get it right for us.
The student : Wetness.
The Shaykh : Wetness. Good. So therefore we say it is necessary to scrape it first. And is something like it in impurity analogized to it? The answer is yes. For example, feces must be scraped first, then the place is washed. And in this is a refutation of what is famous among some people that menstrual blood does not clot and that the blood of irregular bleeding clots. And they explained that by saying that menstrual blood is the bursting of the ovules in the womb, then the blood seeps out, so it has already clotted first, so when it comes out, it does not clot. But the apparent meaning of this hadith, "scrape it," indicates that it clots. So let this topic be reviewed. And I was initially convinced that this was the difference between the blood of irregular bleeding and menstrual blood, along with the differences mentioned by the jurists. But this hadith prevents conviction in this opinion.
Good, he says, and among the benefits of this hadith also: The gradual removal of impurity, due to his saying: