Menstruation
It is a misconceived notion that Muslim women are forbidden from observing the Salāt and fasting during the days of menstruation. Let us determine whether this prohibition is authorized by God in the Quran or not.
The Case of the Salāt
First, we must be aware that Salāt (prayer) is an act of worship. In all of the Quran, there are no words that forbid women from observing their Salāt during menstruation. The only case where a person (male or female) is prohibited from observing the Salāt is when he/she is intoxicated, as stated in 4:43:
يَا أَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَقْرَبُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَٰوةَ وَأَنتُمْ سُكَارَىٰ حَتَّىٰ تَعْلَمُوا۟ مَا تَقُولُونَ
Yā ayyuha alladhīna āmanū lā taqrabū as-salāta wa antum sukārā ḥattā ta’lamū mā taqūlūn
O you who believe, do not approach the Salat while you are intoxicated until you know what you are saying…
4:43
The reason why Salāt is prohibited in this case is given in the same verse: a person who is intoxicated / drunk would not know what they are saying, thus their Salāt would be meaningless. However, once the person is sober, they must resume observing the Salāt. Other than the case of intoxication, God allows no other reason for anyone, male or female, to miss the Salāt. Therefore, God commands us to observe the Salāt even under unusual circumstances, such as while traveling / riding, walking (2:239), when unable to find water for ablution (4:43), or during times of war (4:101-102). We should never stop worshipping our Maker.
The Only Quranic Prohibition Related to Menstruation
The only Quranic prohibition related to menstruation concerns sexual intercourse, not the Salāt. God prohibits sexual relations with women during menstruation (2:222):
وَيَسْـَٔلُونَكَ عَنِ ٱلْمَحِيضِ قُلْ هُوَ أَذًۭى فَٱعْتَزِلُوا۟ ٱلنِّسَاءَ فِى ٱلْمَحِيضِ وَلَا تَقْرَبُوهُنَّ حَتَّىٰ يَطْهُرْنَ فَإِذَا تَطَهَّرْنَ فَٱتْبِعُوهُنَّ فِيمَآ أَمَرَكُمُ ٱللَّهُۚ
Wa yas’aluonaka ‘ani al-maḥīḍi qul huwa adhan fa’ṭazilū an-nisā’a fī al-maḥīḍi wa lā taqrabūhunna ḥattā yāṭhurna fa’īzā ṭaḥḥarn fa’tabi’ūhunna fīmā amarakumu Allāh
They ask you about menstruation, say, 'It contains harm, so keep apart from women during menstruation and do not approach them until they are cleansed of it.'
2:222
A Loss of Worship for Women
One significant consequence of the un-Quranic prohibition on Salāt during menstruation is the cumulative amount of time a woman spends without prayer in her lifetime. Considering the average menstrual cycle spans about 7 days and occurs monthly, over the course of her reproductive years (approximately 40 years), a woman would miss around 6.5 years of her life in worship. This amounts to about 8% of her lifespan if the average lifespan is 75 years. This significant loss of time devoted to prayer is based solely on a prohibition not decreed by God in the Quran.
A woman may miss approximately 6.5 years of prayer in her lifetime due to menstruation, which accounts for 8% of an average 75-year lifespan.
God commands us to worship Him continuously throughout our lives. The Quran explicitly warns against the regret of those who neglected their opportunities for worship when it is too late, as stated in Sūrah Al-Mu'minūn:
حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا جَآءَ أَحَدَهُمُ ٱلْمَوۡتُ قَالَ رَبِّ ٱرۡجِعُونِ لَعَلِّيٓ أَعۡمَلُ صَٰلِحٗا فِيمَا تَرَكۡتُۚ كَلَّآۚ إِنَّهَا كَلِمَةٌ هُوَ قَآئِلُهَاۖ وَمِن وَرَآئِهِم بَرۡزَخٌ إِلَىٰ يَوۡمِ يُبۡعَثُونَ
Hattā idhā jāʾa aḥaduhumu al-mawtu qāla rabbi irjiʿūn. Laʿallī aʿmalu sālihan fīmā taraktu. Kallā, innahā kalimatun huwa qāʾiluhā wa min warāʾihim barzakhun ilā yawmi yubʿathūn.
When death comes to one of them, he says, 'My Lord, send me back so that I may do good deeds regarding what I have neglected.' But no! This is just a word he utters.
23:99-100
By adhering to restrictions not authorized by God, significant opportunities for worship and closeness to Him are lost, and this regret will not change the reality when the time for deeds has passed.
Menstruation is Najas (Impure)?
The Quran only mentions the term najas (impure) once, and it doesn’t refer to physical purity, but actually a spiritual state.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا۟ إِنَّمَا ٱلْمُشْرِكُونَ نَجِسٌۭ فَلَا يَقْرَبُوا۟ ٱلْمَسْجِدَ ٱلْحَرَامَ بَعْدَ عَامِهِمْ هَٰذَا
Yā ayyuhā alladhīna āmanū innamā al-mushrikūna najisun falā yaqrabū al-masjid al-ḥarāma baʿda ʿāmi-him hādhā
O you who have believed, indeed, the polytheists are impure, so let them not approach the Masjid al-Haram after this year.
9:28
Najas refers to impurity due to evil deeds, wickedness, and associating partners with God. Menstruation is not impure, nor does it cause impurity.
Misinterpretations and Un-Quranic Restrictions
It is extraordinary that those who enforce un-Quranic restrictions on women, depriving them from Salāt during menstruation, are often the same people who circulate false hadīth suggesting that women are deficient in their religion because they do not observe the Salāt at all times.
Moreover, those who prevent women from worshipping their Creator during menstruation manipulate the words in 2:222 to claim that women are "unclean" and should not worship God in an unclean state.
However, the "uncleanliness" mentioned in 2:222 refers specifically to sexual intercourse. It is not hygienic to have intercourse during menstruation, but there is no mention of the Salāt in this context.
God’s Law: The Only Source
Those who prohibit what is not prohibited by God are, in fact, rejecting the Quranic truth that God is the only source of law (6:114). Genuine believers never prohibit anything that is not prohibited by God in the Quran.
قُلۡ هَلُمَّ شُهَدَآءَكُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ يَشۡهَدُونَ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ حَرَّمَ هَٰذَاۖ فَإِن شَهِدُواْ فَلَا تَشۡهَدۡ مَعَهُمۡۚ وَلَا تَتَّبِعۡ أَهۡوَآءَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُواْ بِـَٔايَٰتِنَا وَٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤۡمِنُونَ بِٱلۡأٓخِرَةِ وَهُم بِرَبِّهِمۡ يَعۡدِلُونَ
Qul halummā shuhadāʾakumu alladhīna yashhadūna anna Allāha ḥarrama hādhā fa-in shahidū fa-lā tashhad maʿahum wa-lā tattabiʿ ahwāʾa alladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-alladhīna lā yuʾminūna bi-al-ākhirati wa-hum bi-rabbihim yaʿdilūn.
Say, "Bring forth your witnesses who would testify that God has prohibited this." If they testify, do not testify with them, and do not follow the personal desires of those who deny Our revelations and those who do not believe in the Hereafter, and they equate others with their Lord.
(6:150)
Additionally, the following verse affirms that we should never follow any laws or rules not decreed by God Himself:
Or do they have partners who legislate for them of the religion what God did not authorise? (42:21)
God Is the Only Lawgiver
The only source for God's law is the Quran and nothing else:
أَفَغَيْرَ ٱللَّهِٓ أَبْتَغِى حَكَمًا وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنزَلَ إِلَيْكُمُ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ مُفَصَّلًاۚ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِۚ وَٱلَّذِينَ يَحْنَفُونَ فِىٰهِۢ لَا تُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِۚ
Afaghayra Allāhi abtaghī ḥakaman wahuwa allathee anzala ilaykum al-kitāb mufassalan wa-lladhīna āmanū yumīnūnī bihī
Shall I seek other than God as a lawmaker when it is He who has brought down to you the Book fully detailed?
(6:114)
The Case of Fasting During Menstruation
By the same token, we do not find in the Quran any words that forbid women from fasting during menstruation. God grants the concession of delaying the fast only in the following cases:
- During travelling
- During illness
The concession is granted due to the hardship caused by travelling and illness. Here we must bear in mind that travelling was much more arduous in the days of the revelation than it is today.
Is menstruation an illness?
Menstruation is a natural bodily cycle, no different from other bodily functions such as perspiration, excretion, or digestion. There is nothing sinister or shameful about these functions, which are designed by God. There is no reason to stop any woman from worshipping her Creator just because her body is performing one of its natural functions. It’s not an illness, but If menstruation causes severe pain, as can happen on the first day of the cycle, it would indeed be permissible for the woman not to fast on such a day only. However, this would not be because she is ill, but because God does not wish to cause us hardship in practicing our religion:
شَهْرُ رَمَضَٰنَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ فِيهِ ٱلْقُرْءٰنُ هُدًۭى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَٰتٍ مِّنَ ٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْفُرْقَانِ ۚ فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنْكُمُ ٱلشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضًۭا أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ فَعِدَّةٌۭ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ ۚ يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ بِكُمُ ٱلْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ ٱلْعُسْرَ
Shahru Ramadāna allathee unzila fīhi al-Qur’ānu hudan lil-nāsi wa bayyināti mina al-hudā wal-furqān, faman shahida minkumu al-shahra falyāsumhu wa man kāna marīḍan aw ‘alā safarin fa’iddatun min ayyāmin ukhar.
The month of Ramadan, in which the Quran was brought down, a guidance for the people...
2:185
Conclusion
Women must maintain their Salāt and fasting during menstruation unless severely ill. Those who impose un-Quranic restrictions will be held accountable on the Day of Judgment.