458. Istihaadhah

By Asma Bint Shameem

There’s a difference of opinion among the scholars about the bleeding after a miscarriage. 

But the stronger scholarly opinion is that if the fetus had no clear human features, then the bleeding that follows a miscarriage is NOT considered as Nifaas. 

Rather, it’s considered as Istihaadhah and the woman is considered PURE. 

She can pray and fast and do Tawaaf and have intimacy with her husband. 

And everything else a PURE woman does. 

Shaikh Ibn Uthaymeen said:

“Nifaas is not established unless the embryo expelled has human features. If she expels a small embryo that has no human features then her bleeding is not nifaas, rather it is bleeding from a vein, so it comes under the same ruling as istihaadah. The earliest at which human features may appear is eighty days from the beginning of pregnancy, but it usually happens at ninety days. “

(al-Dima’ al-Tabee’iyyah li’l-Nisa’- page 40)

And someone asked Shaikh Assim al-Hakeem about bleeding after miscarriage of a month old fetus. 

He said:

“The blood that comes after miscarriage when the fetus is one month old is not post natal bleeding and it doesn’t prevent you from praying. You shouldn’t have stopped praying for 10 days.

You can pray and do everything providing you perform wudhu for every prayer until you see your normal menstruation which is identified by its normal characteristic such as the cramps, back pain, the color and the smell.“

So this is not her menses. 

Rather it’s Istihaadhah 

So she must pray. 

But make fresh wudhu for every fardh prayer. 

And no ghusl is needed. 

And Allaah knows best