Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

i want to know that after the delivery of a child, is it necessary for the mother to follow the forty days period before starting her prayers or she can start it as soon as the manutrution finishes

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Answer:

How long is menstruation after childbirth?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Fiqh-us-Sunnah Fiqh 1.70a

Post-Childbirth bleeding

Such bleeding occurs after the birth of a child, regardless if the child survived the birth or not. This type of bleeding has no minimum duration, for it could stop right after the birth, or there could even be no blood. Therefore, her confinement would end and she would be obliged to fast, pray, and so on. The maximum duration is forty days. Said Umm Salamah, the wife of the Prophet (saws): "During the lifetime of the Prophet (saws), the post-childbirth woman would be in confinement for forty days." (Related by Bukhari and Muslim.)

After recording the hadith, at-Tirmidhi states, "The knowledgeable companions, the following generation and those that came later, agree that a woman experiencing post-childbirth bleeding had to stop praying for forty days unless her blood stopped. If her bleeding stops before that time, she is to make ghusl and start praying. If she sees blood after forty days, most scholars say that she is not to stop praying."

The maximum time allocated by Shariah under normal circumstances for post child birth menstruation is forty days. But if the woman’s menstruations stops earlier than that, say 10 or 20 or 30 days, then she must purify herself with a ghusl or full bath and make herself available for prayer.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan