How do you know your period has ended?
This page decides the most practical question there is: do you pray today. Call it early and the prayers are invalid; call it late and you owe every prayer you skipped.
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This page is study material. It does not replace a ruling from a qualified scholar who knows your situation. The schools differ, and so do circumstances — take specific questions to a scholar in your own community.
The two signs of purity
Bleeding has ended when either sign appears:
- The white discharge (al-qassah al-bayda) — the whitish discharge that follows the period.
- Complete dryness — cotton inserted and withdrawn comes out clean.
This is how Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) taught the women of the Ansar. They would send her cotton showing discharge, and she would tell them:
لاَ تَعْجَلْنَ حَتَّى تَرَيْنَ الْقَصَّةَ الْبَيْضَاءَ
Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), to the women said: Do not hurry until you see the white discharge.
— Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her); Muwatta Malik, Book 2, Hadith 99. Sahih al-Bukhari cites it in his chapter on menstruation
Yellow and brown discharge
The most-asked question in this area, and the answer turns entirely on when it appears:
- Within the days of the period — treated as menstruation. She does not pray.
- After a sign of purity has been seen — not menstruation. She prays as normal.
The evidence is Umm Atiyyah’s report:
كُنَّا لاَ نَعُدُّ الْكُدْرَةَ وَالصُّفْرَةَ بَعْدَ الطُّهْرِ شَيْئًا
Umm Atiyyah said: We did not count the yellowish and brownish discharge after purity as anything.
— Umm Atiyyah, Sunan Abi Dawud 307. Sahih al-Bukhari 326 carries the same report without the words “after purity”
The Hanafi school adds a layer: within her habitual days, any discharge that is not clear white is treated as menstrual blood, up to that school’s maximum.
Minimum and maximum durations
This is where the schools diverge most, and it is what determines when bleeding stops being hayd and becomes istihadah.
| School | Minimum | Maximum | Minimum purity between periods |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hanafi | 3 days | 10 days | 15 days |
| Maliki | No minimum — any blood counts | 15 days | 15 days |
| Shafi‘i | 1 day and night (24 hours) | 15 days | 15 days |
| Hanbali | 1 day and night (24 hours) | 15 days | 13 days |
Two consequences to hold on to:
- Bleeding shorter than your school’s minimum is not menstruation. Those prayers were obligatory and are owed.
- Bleeding longer than your school’s maximum is istihadah beyond that point — prayer resumes from the moment the limit is passed, not when bleeding stops. See Istihadah.
Because the thresholds differ, the same woman can have a start date days apart depending on the school. Pick one school and follow it consistently — that is far safer than taking whichever position is easiest each month.
Ghusl afterwards
Once pure, ghusl is required before praying. Its essentials:
- Intention (niyyah) — to lift the state of major impurity.
- Water reaching the whole body, including the roots of the hair and every fold of skin.
On hair: braids do not need to be undone, but water must reach the scalp. Umm Salamah asked about exactly this, and was told it is enough to pour three handfuls of water over the head (Sahih Muslim 330).
لاَ إِنَّمَا يَكْفِيكِ أَنْ تَحْثِي عَلَى رَأْسِكِ ثَلاَثَ حَثَيَاتٍ ثُمَّ تُفِيضِينَ عَلَيْكِ الْمَاءَ فَتَطْهُرِينَ
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: No. It is enough for you to throw three handfuls of water on your head, then pour water over yourself, and you will be purified.
— Narrated by Umm Salama, from the Prophet (peace be upon him) answering her; Sahih Muslim 330
The often-quoted advice to use a piece of cotton scented with musk comes from the Prophet’s answer to Asma bint Shakal (Sahih Muslim 332c). It is recommended, not required.
ثُمَّ تَأْخُذُ فِرْصَةً مُمَسَّكَةً فَتَطَهَّرُ بِهَا
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Then let her take a piece of cotton scented with musk and purify herself with it.
— Narrated by Aisha, from the Prophet (peace be upon him) answering Asma bint Shakal; Sahih Muslim 332c
Which prayer you start with
See the section "When purity comes, which prayer do you start with" in Can you pray on your period? — there is a real disagreement about the paired prayers, and it is worth reading once properly.
If your cycle is irregular
If the length shifts constantly, or bleeding drags on in fits and starts, the ruling is worked out through habit (‘adah) and discernment (tamyiz), which is the istihadah framework. And the cycle itself is a matter for a doctor: fiqh settles the worship, it does not diagnose the cause.
Compiled from Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, and the standard manuals of the four schools. If you find an error in how something is stated here, please write in — these pages are revised as corrections come.