Ruling on Touching the Mushaf Without Ritual Purity

We move on to a message received by the program from one of our brother listeners. He says: He is of Egyptian nationality and works in the Kingdom (F.M.A.). Our brother has a set of questions, summarized as follows: The Qur'an and wudu'?
Answer: The Noble Qur'an is the speech of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) , and it is the greatest and most noble of books. It is the last of the books revealed from the heavens. Among the ways Allah honors it is that He said about it, Exalted is He: A revelation from the Lord of the worlds [Al-Waqi'ah: 70-80]. It was reported in a hadith about him (peace and blessings be upon him) that he wrote to the people of Yemen: The Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) issued a ruling to that effect. For this reason, the majority of scholars, including the four Imams, held that the Qur'an is not to be touched except by one in a state of purity. One does not read from the Mushaf unless he is in a state of purity from major ritual impurity and minor ritual impurity. This is the correct position, and it is the ruling issued by the best of the Ummah, the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Therefore, one in a state of minor ritual impurity may not read from the Qur'an from the Mushaf, but he may read from memory if he is not in a state of major ritual impurity. As for one in a state of major ritual impurity, he does not read until he performs the full ritual bath. This is because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was not prevented from the Qur'an by anything except major ritual impurity, as established in the hadith of Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) , in which he said (may Allah be pleased with him) : . So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when in a state of major ritual impurity, did not read until he performed the full ritual bath. Thus, others in the Ummah do not read until they perform the full ritual bath.
As for minor ritual impurity, it does not prevent reading, but it prevents touching the Mushaf. One does not touch the Mushaf, but he may read from memory.
Scholars differed regarding the menstruating woman and the woman with post-natal bleeding: whether they are equated with one in a state of major ritual impurity and thus prevented from reading from memory, or whether they are not equated with him.
Some scholars, and some reported this as the view of the majority, equated the menstruating woman and the woman with post-natal bleeding with one in a state of major ritual impurity. This is because they are in a state of major ritual impurity that necessitates the full ritual bath, so they likened them to one in a state of major ritual impurity. They said: The menstruating woman and the woman with post-natal bleeding do not read the Qur'an at all, even if not from the Mushaf, even if from memory, likening them to and equating them with one in a state of major ritual impurity. A hadith was reported on this matter, narrated by Abu Dawud from Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in which he said: .
Others said: It is permissible for them to read from memory, like one in a state of minor ritual impurity. They said: Because their duration is long, they are not like one in a state of major ritual impurity. The matter of one in a state of major ritual impurity is facilitated; he performs the full ritual bath immediately and reads. When he finishes his need with his wife, he performs the full ritual bath immediately and reads. If he did not, a long period would be lost to him. This is unlike the menstruating woman and the woman with post-natal bleeding, whose duration may be long, and the matter is not in their hands. The menstruating woman may remain for five days... six days... seven days, and the woman with post-natal bleeding may remain for forty days or a month or around that. So it is difficult for them to leave the Qur'an. Perhaps one of them might forget her memorization. For this reason, a group of scholars held that it is permissible for them to read from memory, and they are not of the same kind as one in a state of major ritual impurity, for the reason we mentioned, which is the length of the duration and the invalidity of the analogy. The matter of the menstruating woman and the woman with post-natal bleeding is not of the same kind as the matter of one in a state of major ritual impurity. It is a great difference, and a condition of analogy is that the branch equals the root, and they do not equal each other here.
As for the hadith: , it is a weak hadith according to the scholars. This is because it is from the narration of Isma'il ibn Iyadh from Musa ibn Uqbah, who is from the Hijaz, and Isma'il's narration from those other than the Shamiyyun is weak and not to be used as evidence, as the scholars said. He narrated this hadith from Musa ibn Uqbah, who is from the Hijazis, not from the Shamiyyun. So this narration is weak and not to be used as evidence. Thus, nothing remains in the hands of the majority who say it is prohibited; nothing remains in their hands of a text or a sound analogy.
Therefore, the second opinion is stronger: there is no harm in the menstruating woman or the woman in post-natal bleeding reciting the Qur'an from memory, but not for the one in a state of major ritual impurity; because the duration of that state is short and he is able to perform the full ritual bath immediately and then... recite; and because the text came from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he used not to recite when he was in a state of major ritual impurity, and it came in some narrations of the hadith of 'Ali that he (peace and blessings be upon him), when he came out from relieving himself, recited something of the Qur'an and then said: This is with a good chain in Musnad Ahmad, and the people of the Sunan and the Imam in his Musnad also narrated it from 'Ali So this is one thing and this is another.
So one in a state of major ritual impurity may not read, neither from memory nor from the Mushaf, except after purity. One in a state of minor ritual impurity may read from memory, but he may not read from the Mushaf. As for the menstruating woman and the woman with post-natal bleeding, they may read from memory, like one in a state of minor ritual impurity, only. They may not touch the Mushaf, a fortiori, like one in a state of minor ritual impurity who does not touch the Mushaf. So they, a fortiori, do not touch the Mushaf, but they read from memory. This is the closest and most apparent and strongest position, based on the evidence and guidance mentioned previously. And Allah knows best. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you. If touching the Mushaf, Your Eminence the Shaykh, is from behind a barrier, like gloves, for example, for the...?
The Shaykh: A group of scholars permitted this, and it is a strong opinion. If one in a state of minor ritual impurity, or the menstruating woman, or the woman with post-natal bleeding touches it without a barrier, this is a strong opinion. Unlike one in a state of major ritual impurity, who does not read at all, even without a barrier. Yes, and he does not touch it. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you.