Bismihi Ta`ala
WOMEN DURING MENSES CANNOT READ QUR-AAN.:
First of all, know that we are muslims and following the orders of Allah Taala and the sunnah ways of our beloved prophet Muhammad SwalallahouAlaihi Wasallam. For us to attain that goal, it is important to be near these two sources from their originalities so that we may apply them as prescribed. Mere text may mislead us if we do not know the exact context that it was said or revealed. That is why the applications of sahabahs to these texts is very important. Me, you or someone in the 6th century Hijri are not well placed to comment or understand ahadiths better than those generations that are close to the beloved prophet SAW. That is why the beloved prophet SAW chose for us 3 generations of reference that they will be the well guided and most trusted of this ummah until qiyamah.
عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ
عَنْ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ خَيْرُ النَّاسِ قَرْنِي ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ ثُمَّ يَجِيءُ أَقْوَامٌ تَسْبِقُ شَهَادَةُ أَحَدِهِمْ يَمِينَهُ وَيَمِينُهُ شَهَادَتَهُ
بخاري
The beloved prophet SAW said:’’The best of people are those of my generation. Then will be those next generation. And then those after that generation. Then will come people that their testimony will be before their oaths and in fact their oaths itself will be their testimony.’’(Bukhari)
According to this hadith, the fourth generation will not be so trustable as the first 3 are. That is why the four imams of the ummah are chosen from the first 3 generations. Imaam Abu Hanifah was from the 2nd generation after sahabahs. And Imaam Malik, Shafi`ee and Ahmad were all from the 3rd generation.
Imaams are those great pious scholars that have worked through their lives for setting up a well chaptered fiqh of reference that the muslim general public may follow. There was more than 4 imaams that time, but the ummah accepted only 4. Sahabahs were all imams and those generations that came after them set their fiqhs in writing and chapters and hence their name is mentioned as imaam, but they are in fact the most adhered to the practice of sahabahs to Rasouloullah SAW.
So by following an imaam in the 3 generations, we are more safer and proper to reach the real sunnah of Rasouloullah SAW. But know that we should follow only one imaam to prevent bringing passions of easiness in our deen.
As for the question pertaining to a woman in menses reading Qur-aan, know that all 4 imaams says that a woman CANNOT read Qur-aan during menses.
They all back their arguments with Qur-aan ayahs and ahadiths.
Ayah of Qur-aan:
لَا يَمَسُّهُ إِلَّا الْمُطَهَّرُونَ
None should touch it except the purified.(56:79)
Touching is less than reading. So touching and reading both forbidden if one is without ghusl. Hence someone junubi(ghusl broken by sexual organ) or in menses should not read Qur-aan.
Furthermore the hadith of Darul Qutni is clear that someone without ghusl or during menses should not read Qur-aan:
Darul Qutni:
حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الصَّمَدِ بْنُ عَلِىٍّ حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مَرْوَانَ حَدَّثَنَا عُمَرُ بْنُ عُثْمَانَ بْنِ عَاصِمٍ حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْفَضْلِ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ طَاوُسٍ عَنْ جَابِرٍ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- « لاَ تَقْرَأُ الْحَائِضُ وَلاَ النُّفَسَاءُ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ شَيْئًا ».
الدار القطنى
Rasouloullah SAW said: ‘’A woman in menses should not read Qur-aan nor a woman in her post natal bleeding.’’(Darul Qutni)
Also reported in Darul Qutni that a sahabah was questioned by his wife as to whether he had ghusl or no. He said yes. The wife made him read Qur-aan to test the truth.
حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ مَخْلَدٍ حَدَّثَنَا الْعَبَّاسُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الدُّورِىُّ وَحَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بْنُ دُبَيْسِ بْنِ أَحْمَدَ الْحَدَّادُ حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ سُلَيْمَانَ الْوَاسِطِىُّ قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو نُعَيْمٍ حَدَّثَنَا زَمْعَةُ بْنُ صَالِحٍ عَنْ سَلَمَةَ بْنِ وَهْرَامَ عَنْ عِكْرِمَةَ قَالَ كَانَ ابْنُ رَوَاحَةَ مُضْطَجِعًا إِلَى جَنْبِ امْرَأَتِهِ فَقَامَ إِلَى جَارِيَةٍ لَهُ فِى نَاحِيَةِ الْحُجْرَةِ فَوَقَعَ عَلَيْهَا وَفَزِعَتِ امْرَأَتُهُ فَلَمْ تَجِدْهُ فِى مَضْجَعِهِ فَقَامَتْ وَخَرَجَتْ فَرَأَتْهُ عَلَى جَارِيَتِهِ فَرَجَعَتْ إِلَى الْبَيْتِ فَأَخَذَتِ الشَّفْرَةَ ثُمَّ خَرَجَتْ وَفَرَغَ فَقَامَ فَلَقِيَهَا تَحْمِلُ الشَّفْرَةَ فَقَالَ مَهْيَمْ فَقَالَتْ مَهْيَمْ لَوْ أَدْرَكْتُكَ حَيْثُ رَأَيْتُكَ لَوَجَأْتُ بَيْنَ كَتِفَيْكَ بِهَذِهِ الشَّفْرَةِ قَالَ وَأَيْنَ رَأَيْتِنِى قَالَتْ رَأَيْتُكَ عَلَى الْجَارِيَةِ فَقَالَ مَا رَأَيْتِنِى وَقَالَ قَدْ نَهَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- أَنْ يَقْرَأَ أَحَدُنَا الْقُرْآنَ وَهُوَ جُنُبٌ قَالَتْ فَاقْرَأْ فَقَالَ أَتَانَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ يَتْلُو كِتَابَهُ كَمَا لاَحَ مَشْهُورٌ مِنَ الْفَجْرِ سَاطِعُ أَتَى بِالْهُدَى بَعْدَ الْعَمَى فَقُلُوبُنَا بِهِ مُوقِنَاتٌ أَنَّ مَا قَالَ وَاقِعُ يَبِيتُ يُجَافِى جَنْبَهُ عَنْ فِرَاشِهِ إِذَا اسْتَثْقَلَتْ بِالْمُشْرِكِينَ الْمَضَاجِعُ فَقَالَتْ آمَنْتُ بِاللَّهِ وَكَذَّبْتُ الْبَصَرَ ثُمَّ غَدَا عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- فَأَخْبَرَهُ فَضَحِكَ حَتَّى رَأَيْتُ نَوَاجِذَهُ -صلى الله عليه وسلم
سنن دار القطني
I have cited the whole hadith in Arabic so that your imaam and ulamas may take the time to explain it to you.
Nonetheless, clear that one without ghusl or during haiz cannot read Qur-aan.
Imaam Tirmizi relate as if almost Ijma` of sahabahs and imams of this issue:
لَا تَقْرَأْ الْجُنُبُ وَلَا الْحَائِضُ وَهُوَ قَوْلُ أَكْثَرِ أَهْلِ الْعِلْمِ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَالتَّابِعِينَ وَمَنْ بَعْدَهُمْ مِثْلِ سُفْيَانَ الثَّوْرِيِّ وَابْنِ الْمُبَارَكِ وَالشَّافِعِيِّ وَأَحْمَدَ وَإِسْحَقَ
سنن الترمذي
‘’..this is the opinion of most ulamas of sahabahs, Tabi`eens(2nd generation) and those after them(3rd onwards)…’’(Sunan Tirmizi)
But one may do zikr, make duas and hence may read those duas of Qur-aan as zikr and not as tilawat. One may take refuge from the ayat of protection of Qur-aan as a protection dua. This is because the beloved prophet SAW used to do zikr even without ghusl(Bukhari). And also one may listen to Qur-aan as related by our mother hazrat Aisha r.a.:
عَنْ مَنْصُورِ بْنِ صَفِيَّةَ أَنَّ أُمَّهُ حَدَّثَتْهُ أَنَّ عَائِشَةَ حَدَّثَتْهَا
أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ كَانَ يَتَّكِئُ فِي حَجْرِي وَأَنَا حَائِضٌ ثُمَّ يَقْرَأُ الْقُرْآنَ
بخاري
Our respected mother, Hazrat Hazrat Aisha r.a. said that the beloved prophet SAW used to lean on my lap and read Qur-aan, and that when I was during my menses.’’(Bukhari)
Hence there is ijma` that during menses, it is forbidden to read Qur-aan. Consider the following hadith that it is forbidden for someone in menses to enter masjid:
عَنْ عَائِشَةَ قَالَتْ
قَالَ لِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ نَاوِلِينِي الْخُمْرَةَ مِنْ الْمَسْجِدِ قَالَتْ فَقُلْتُ إِنِّي حَائِضٌ فَقَالَ إِنَّ حَيْضَتَكِ لَيْسَتْ فِي يَدِكِ
بخاري
Our respected mother, Hazrat Hazrat Aisha r.a. espressed her inability to go to the masjid as she was in her menses. So the prophet requested to only hold with the hand from her house to the masjid. (Bukhari)
Basing on this fact, we conclude that during menses, it is not permissible to touch or hold the Qur-aan book directly. One should use cloth and pen etc to hold and turn page, when teaching.
On a different note, one may touch the coin or segregated page that has Qur-aan written over it, provided do not touch the section that has Qur-aan on it.
Permissible for women during menses to hold and read Tafseers of Qur-aan, provided not touching the Arabic Qur-aan.
But in case of necessity, a female teacher may continue teaching Qur-aan during menses, provided she should not touch the Qur-aan but with a cloth and should read only by pausing word after word.
Permissible though for women during menses to read only Wazifah ayahs, Duas ayahs, Manzil and other barkats ayahs. Permissible for a woman in mense to read Bismillahirrahman niraheem fully as a starting dua. Permissible for the teacher also to read on niyat of starting, barkat, protection or wazifah those ayahs that has these meanings, with niyah of starting, barkat, protection and wazifah, not with niyah of tilawah. (Fatawa Zakarya)
And also permissible to write Qur-aan during menses because the pen separate the hand from the script.(Shami)
May Allah Ta`ala guide us all to the right path. Ameen.
Mufti Mackoojee
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