Menstruation and Prayer: Understanding the Hadith of Aisha and the Purity of the Body

The 5th Lesson from the Book of Menstruation from Sahih Muslim: Aisha’s Hadith on Menstruation and Prayer

5th Lesson From the Book of Menstruation From Sahīh Muslim

بســـم اللــه الرحــمــن الـرحـــيــم

By Shaykh, the ‘Allāmah, the Trustworthy Advisor, Abū ‘Abdirrahmān Yahya bin ‘Alī Al-Hajūri – may Allāh preserve him –

Chapter the menstruating women obtaining something from the Masjid 

11 – (298)  Yahya bin Yahya, Abu Bakr bin Abi Shaibah and Abu Kurayb narrated to us, – Yahya said, informed us, and the others said narrated to us – Abu Mu’āwiyah narrated to us, on the authority of Al-A’mash, on the authority of Thābit bin Ubayd, on the authority of Al-Qāsim bin Muhammad, on the authority of Ā’ishah, she said: “The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ said to me: “Bring me the Khimrah from the Masjid.” She said, I said: “I am on my menses”, he said: “Verily your menses is not in your hand.”

12 – (298) Abu Kurayb narrated to us, he said Ibn Abi Zā’idah narrated to us, on the authority of Hajjāj, and Ibn Abī Ghunayyah, on the authority of Thābit bin Ubayd, on the authority of Al-Qāsim bin Muhammad, on the authority of Ā’ishah, she said: “The Messenger of Allāh ﷺ instructed me to bring him a Khimrah from the Masjid, I said: “I am on my menses”, he said: “Bring it to me for verily your menses is not in your hand.”

13 – (299) Zuhair bin Harb, Abu Kāmil and Muhammad bin Hātim narrated to us, all of them on the authority of Yahyā bin Saīd, Zuhair said, Yahyā narrated to us, on the authority of Yazīd bin Kaisān, on the authority of Abi Hāzim, on the authority of Abi Hurairah, he said: “While the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ was in the Masjid, he said: “O Ā’ishah bring me the thawb.” So I said: “I am on my menses.” So he said: “Verily your menses is not in your hand.”So I gave it to him.”

▪️Benefit:

Al-Khimrah is what a man places part of his head during sujūd and it could be bigger than that; And Al-Khattābī stated that Al-Khimrah is what extends beyond the size of the face.

🔹 Al-Harwī said Al-Khimrah is the pray mat and it is what a man puts part of his head on during sujūd made from straw or cloth, like this Al-Harwī said.

▪️Al-Khattābī said it is the pray mat, the person praying does sujūd on it.

🔹 So based upon this then verily praying upon carpet is not from the newly invented matters due to his statement ﷺ  (bring me the Khimrah) and it is a small pray mat for the head (area); Rather perhaps it is a bigger than the head area as the Hadith of Ibn Abbās clarified with Abi Dawūd that it is wide enough for a person to sit on so it is bigger than the place of the forehead when prostrating, and even if we say it is smaller than that. Then if it is legislated to prostate on something then it is permissible for him to prostate on it and stand on it.

🔹 Benefit:

The Karāhah (disliking) of the people of knowledge to praying upon prayer mats and the Imām taking a prayer mat, then verily this (Hadith) is a refutation upon he people of desires; Like the Ismā’ēliyyah and the Rāfidhah, because their chitt chatter was adopting that in the Masājid and other than it claiming that the earth is impure except that which has been purified by way of them and for this reason you find them carry it and not praying except on it even in the Haram of Allāh (Makkah) and with the fact that the carpet is good and despite that he takes a pray mat and prays upon it, so Shaykh Ul-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah gave a Fatwa commenting on this or adding this reason and likeso Ibn-ul-Qayyim and a number of the people of knowledge due to the disliking of it in opposition to the people of desire not that it’s origin is not Sunnah for it’s origin is established, so the people in the Haram pray on carpet and likewise the Muslims in their Masājid pray on it.

🔹 They gave a Fatwa during the time of Imām Ahmed and Khalāl with the disliking of shaving the head bald and this is because it was their trademark (Khawārij) and their descendents during these times are the opposite to that, so do not copy these or those, they disliked it due to resembling them, and like this also the pray mat if it is similar to that it is to be left off due to opposing, and whoever does it, it is not to be said he has become and innovator.

🔹 It is benefited from the Hadith that her hand may Allāh be pleased with her is pure due to his statement ‘Your menses is not in your hand’; what the Masjid is safeguarded from is the blood of the menstruating woman.

🔹 And this is from the proofs of the purity of the body of the woman [The Muslim doesn’t become impure].

🔹 And from the proofs of correcting understanding, Ā’ishah understood that nothing from her body should enter the Masjid whilst mensturating, not her hand or other than it so he clarified to her that her body is pure.

🔹 And from the proofs of opposing the people of the Book, the Jews.

🔹 And from the proofs of good upbringing upon what is correct ‘Your menses is not in your hand.’

🔹 And in it is the permissibility of a man saying to his wife give me this or that, and if it is within her scope to do that to agree to it, and not to say it is not obligatory upon me.

Transcribed to Arabic and summarised by:

Abu Abdirrahmān Hamūd Ath-Thawābi 

may Allāh reward him with good –

on the 22nd, Jumāda Al-Ākhir, 1441H

Translated by: 

Abu ‘Abdillāh ‘Omar bin Yahya Al-‘Akawi

#Menstruation #Hadith #Explanation