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The signs that menstruation has stopped

Question

Assalam aleikom wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh 1)For years i haven't been able to find out what is the color of tahara after menses? I read that it is white although i also read that silkworm/egg yolk color is still menstruation. Do we have to wait for a pure white/ transparent color or is very light yellow tahara also? When do we start ghusl and prayer? Sometimes the light yellow (lighter than the egg yolk) stays for 3 or more days. 2) what if one sees at the end of menses a transparent liquid when inserting cotton but in the same time when inserting it more deep it comes out very light brown? Can she ghusl like that? Is that tahara? 3) can a woman wash herself inside-out from such liquid to be able to ghusl in such cases because she is fed up of waiting for tahara? Wouldnt it be like forcing her tahara? For all the conditions mentioned above the woman menstruates irregularly and has an approximatively 6 days of normal menstrual flow followed by 1-2 of decoloration and then some days with the colors from the questions above. Barak Allahu feek, i pray that Allah rewards you, thank you for always recieving a helpful answer to my questions

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad  sallallaahu  `alayhi  wa  sallam ( may  Allaah exalt his mention ) is His Slave and Messenger.

A woman knows that she is ritually pure after menses from one of the two following signs: (a) dryness of the vagina: if she inserts a piece of cotton into her vagina and the pad comes out without any trace of blood, or yellowish or brownish discharges; or (b) emission of the white discharge that women know as marking the end of their menstrual cycle. For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 100850 and 174955.

Therefore, if a woman sees either of these two signs, then she should perform Ghusl right away. If she sees a yellowish or brownish discharge afterward, then if it occurs within the usual duration of her menses, then her menses is considered ongoing, and if it occurs after the usual duration of her menses passes, then she should not be concerned about these discharges or treat them as menses. The yellow and the light brownish colors that you are asking about are some of the brownish and yellowish discharges whose ruling we have already clarified.

Accordingly, if the menses was interrupted as you mentioned, and then you saw a transparent liquid, then you would have had ritual purity. If you again see yellowish or brownish discharges, you should not consider them as menses unless you see them within the usual duration of your menses as we have already mentioned.

A woman knows whether she is pure by inserting a piece of cotton on the outer part of her vagina that is visible when she sits down to relieve herself. If these discharges are found there, then the ruling is as we mentioned. The discharges that exist in the inner part of the vagina are not considered as long as they do not pass over to the outside of the vagina. If a woman washes these discharges and then performs Ghusl, and then the yellowish or brownish discharges return, then the ruling is as we have already mentioned: It is menses if it occurs within the usual duration of her monthly menstruation and not menses after that duration.

Finally, a woman should not overburden herself by performing Ghusl when she knows that those discharges have not stopped; rather, she should wait until the blood and associated yellowish or brownish discharges discontinue and then perform Ghusl.

Allaah Knows best.

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