Date : 21-04-2010

Question :

Is it permissible for the husband to enjoy his wife`s vagina directly during her menstrual period without having intercourse with her in the vagina?


The Answer :


All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.


 


According to the view of the majority of scholars and the texts of Sharia, it is prohibited for the husband to enjoy the area between the knee and navel of his menstruating wife because doctors say that it could cause several serious illnesses. However, it is permissible for him to enjoy other parts by mutual agreement.


Al-Shirbini (May Allah be pleased with him) said: "It is forbidden for the husband to enjoy what is between the knee and navel of his wife during menstruation, even without desire. The evidence on this is the following:


First: Allah the Almighty Says {What means}:


"They question thee (O Muhammad) concerning menstruation. Say: It is an illness, so let women alone at such times and go not in unto them till they are cleansed. And when they have purified themselves, then go in unto them as Allah hath enjoined upon you. Truly Allah loveth those who turn unto Him, and loveth those who have a care for cleanness." {Al-Baqara, 222}.


Second: Narrated Abdullah ibn Sa'd al-Ansari:


Abdullah asked the Messenger of Allah (PBUH): What is lawful for me to do with my wife when she is menstruating? He replied: What is above the waist-wrapper is lawful for you.


The narrator also mentioned (the lawfulness of) eating with a woman in menstruation, and he transmitted the tradition in full. {Sunnan Abi Dawud}. This Hadith specifies the general meaning of the Hadith reported by Muslim in which the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: "Do everything except intercourse. "


Third: Since enjoying what is below the waist-wrapper leads to having intercourse in the vagina, it is prohibited to have intercourse with wife during menstruation. This is based on the following Hadith: (………….And he who indulges in these doubtful things is like a shepherd who pastures (his animals) near the Hima (private pasture) of someone else and at any moment he is liable to get in it). {Moghni Al-Mohtaj, vol.1/pp.280}. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.