What Prayers Must Be Made Up When Menstruation Ends?

What Prayers Must Be Made Up When Menstruation Ends?

Question
When you finish your period, how are you supposed to pray? Like if I shower at the end of the day do I only pray ishaa or Maghreb too or the whole day worth of Salah’s? I’m confused and I’ve never been taught this and many people around me are also unsure.

Answer
Alhamdulillah, wassalatu wassalamu ala rasulillah, wa ala alihi wa sahbihi ajmain.

1. The Shari Context

A woman is not required to pray during menstruation, and she does not make up the prayers missed during her period.

Our mother Aisha رضي الله عنها said:

“We used to menstruate during the time of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and we were commanded to make up the fasts, but we were not commanded to make up the prayers.”
Sahih Muslim

However, once menstruation ends and a woman becomes pure, prayer becomes obligatory again.

2. Scholarly Discussion

The scholars explain that when a woman becomes pure before the end of a prayer time, she must pray:

• The current prayer
• And according to the majority of scholars, also the prayer that can be combined with it

This is based on the practice of some Companions such as:

• Abd al Rahman ibn Awf
• Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنهم

So:

• If purity occurs during the time of Asr, she prays:
  • Dhuhr and Asr
• If purity occurs during the time of Isha, she prays:
  • Maghrib and Isha

This is the position of the majority of scholars from the Maliki, Shafii, and Hanbali schools.

The Hanafi school generally holds that she only prays the current prayer.

3. Application to the Question

You do not make up the entire day’s prayers.

Rather:

• You only pray based on the time when you became pure

Examples:

• If your period ended before Maghrib entered, then you pray Asr if there was enough time remaining for one rak‘ah
• If it ended during Isha time, then according to the majority:
  • You pray Maghrib and Isha
• If it ended during Fajr time:
  • You only pray Fajr

The important point is:

• The obligation starts from the moment purity returns
• Not from earlier in the day while menstruation was still ongoing

4. Practical Note

What matters is when you actually became pure, not necessarily when you performed ghusl.

So if:

• Purity ended before the prayer time expired
• But you delayed ghusl slightly afterward

you still pray the required prayers connected to the time purity began.

5. Relevant Usul Principle

المشقة تجلب التيسير
Hardship brings about ease

This principle appears clearly in the rulings of menstruation. Islam lifts the obligation of prayer during menstruation and does not require women to make up all missed prayers, which would cause great hardship.

Final Ruling

You do not make up all the prayers missed during your period. If your period ends during a prayer time, then you pray the current prayer, and according to the majority of scholars, also the prayer that can be combined with it. So if you become pure during Isha time, you pray Maghrib and Isha. If during Asr time, you pray Dhuhr and Asr.

And Allah knows best.