Rulings of Menstruation — What is Permitted and What is Prohibited

Verse: "And they ask you about menstruation. Say: it is harm, so keep away from women during menstruation and do not approach them until they are pure." (2:222)

"Adha" (harm): A legal description indicating a temporary state requiring abstention from intercourse — does not make the menstruating woman's person impure.

Prohibitions during menstruation:

1. Sexual intercourse: Prohibited — "keep away from women during menstruation" — one who approaches must seek forgiveness and expiate.
2. Prayer: Prohibited — and no make-up required (unlike fasting).
3. Fasting: Prohibited but must be made up — established by consensus.
4. Tawaf: Prohibited — from the hadith "Tawaf around the House is prayer." (Nasa'i 2922)
5. Divorce: Prohibited during menstruation — "divorce them for their waiting period" (65:1) — meaning in a purity period without intercourse.

What is permitted: Non-sexual companionship, lying together without intercourse, and reciting Quran (on the stronger view).