O Messenger of Allah, I am a woman who experiences a heavy prolonged flow of menstrual blood, so what do you think about it? It has prevented me from praying and fasting. He said: I suggest that you use cotton, for it eliminates (the traces of) blood. She replied: It is too copious for that

Meaning of the Hadīth of Hamnah (may Allah be pleased with her):

"I used to experience a heavy prolonged flow of menstrual blood", i.e. blood used to flow strongly in big amounts and for prolonged periods.

"So, I came to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) seeking a religious verdict and in order to tell him", i.e. she came to the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) to ask him about the religious ruling and what she had to do.

"I said: 'O Messenger of Allah, I am a woman who experiences a heavy prolonged flow of menstrual blood, so what do you think about it? It has prevented me from praying and fasting'", i.e. the heavy flow of blood made her stop praying and fasting thinking it to be menstrual blood. Then, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) explained to her that such blood was not menstruation, rather, it was a strike from the devil.

He said to her: "I suggest that you use cotton, for it eliminates the blood", i.e. use cotton by placing it firmly on her private parts so that it stops the blood from flowing.

She said: "It is too copious for that", i.e. the discharged blood is so much that cotton cannot do this job.

Then he said: "You can use a cloth", i.e. use a piece of cloth along with the cotton so that it becomes thick and can absorb the blood well.

She said: "It is too copious for that, for my blood keeps pouring heavily", i.e. the blood comes out in such a large amount, and cotton or cloth is not enough, because it is discharged heavily and abundantly.

Then the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "I shall give you two commands", i.e. one of two rulings, they are as follows:

1. To take a bath for every prayer

2. To combine Zhuhr and ‘Asr prayers, Maghrib and ‘Ishā' prayers. Thus, she should take a bath three times only, one time for Zhuhr and ‘Asr, then one time for Maghrib and ‘Ishā, then one time for Fajr.

"Whichever of them you follow will be sufficient for you without the other", i.e. you can choose between these two.

"but you know best if you are strong enough to follow both of them", i.e. if you have the ability to do them both, then choose whichever suits you.

Then he said to her: "This is only a strike of the devil", i.e. the devil found a way to confuse her regarding her religion, ritual purity and prayer, until he made her forget the regular duration of her menses, so it is like a strike from the devil. However, this does not negate the possibility of its being caused by a vein called "Al-‘Ādhil" as mentioned in the Hadīth of Fātimah bint Abu Hubaysh (may Allah be pleased with her) as she said: "I am a women who experiences menses and do not become pure thereof, so should I leave off the prayer?" The Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) replied: "No, this is a vein, and not menses." Hence, this could be understood to mean that the devil struck the vein, so it exploded. The most preponderant opinion is that it is a real strike, for there is nothing to prevent understanding it in this way.

"So observe your menses for six or seven days", i.e. leave off praying and fasting and consider yourself menstruating for six or seven days, based upon the majority of women’s menstrual cycle being six or seven days.

"According to Allah’s knowledge", i.e. His Judgment and law.

The article 'or' here is not used to denote doubt, rather it is used to express variation and to indicate that some women experience menses for six days, and some for seven days. So, she should refer to her female relatives and those of the same age and physical make-up.

"Then have a ritual bath. When you see that you are pure and clean, pray during twenty-three or twenty-four days and nights and fast, for that will be enough for you", i.e. after six or seven days, it is obligatory for you to take a ritual bath from your menses. Whatever is beyond the six or seven days, which is either twenty-three or twenty-four days, these are the days you are pure. Do everything that women who are pure normally do, like fasting and praying, and this is sufficient for freeing your liability.

"And do so every month, just as women menstruate and are purified at the time of their menstruation and their purification", i.e. count your menses every month, either six or seven days, then take a bath and pray. Based on this, the period when you are pure of menses is the same as the majority of the women: from 23 to 24 days.

‘"If you are able to delay the Zhuhr prayer and perform the ‘Asr prayer promptly, until you have a ritual bath, and then combine the two prayers and to delay the Maghrib prayer and perform the ‘Ishā' prayer, until you have a ritual bath, and then combine the two prayers, then do so: and take a ritual bath at the Fajr prayer too, and observe fast if you are able to", i.e. if have the ability to delay Zhuhr until the end of its prescribed time, and to pray ‘Asr at the beginning of its time, and similarly delay Maghrib to the end of its prescribed time, and pray ‘Ishā at the beginning of its prescribed time, and this is what the scholars call "Al-Jam‘ As-Sūri", then do that. As for Fajr, take a ritual bath for the prayer, and if you are able to do that then do it. Thus, a woman experiencing vaginal bleeding outside her menses should take a ritual bath three times, once for Zhuhr and ‘Asr , once for Maghrib and ‘Ishā, and once for Fajr, and combine between each two prayers (apart from Fajr) in Jam‘ Sūri.

"Out of the two commands, the latter is more preferable to me", i.e. I prefer this way, comibning between Zhuhr and ‘Asr and Maghrib and ‘Ishā and taking a ritual bath three times, once for Zhuhr and ‘Asr, once for Maghrib and ‘Ishā', and once for Fajr.

As for the first command, it is to take a ritual bath for every prayer. However, there is nothing mentioned in this Hadīth about taking a ritual bath for every prayer, but there is another narration reported by Abu Dawūd that mentions that she should take a ritual bath for every prayer: "If you have the ability, then take a bath for every prayer, otherwise combine two prayers with one ritual bath."

There is no doubt that taking a ritual bath for every prayer involves manifest hardship. For this reason, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said about the second command: "the latter is more preferable to me", i.e. I like it more because it is easier and less difficult.