Can You Read Quran on Your Period?

Reading Quran is one of the greatest forms of doing dhikr (remembrance of Allah). Someone who recites Quran frequently, it’s quite hard for the person to not to read the Quran for 2-3 days. But this is something that women during their menses experience a lot. For 6-7 days, they usually stay away from touching the Quran.

There’s no denial of the fact that touching the Quran requires purity. Someone with major impurities such as janabah and menstruation, cannot touch the Quran. But can you read Quran on your period as it doesn’t require touching?

This is the question I’m going to address based on the Quran, hadith, and scholarly opinions in this article.

Can You Read Quran on Your Period?

When it comes to reading the Quran whether it’s in the state of junub or period, if it is not by touching the mus’haf itself, then most scholars say that it is permissible. You can read the Quran from your memory with the intention of doing dhikr or seek protection from Allah against the devil. The same goes with the phrases in the Quran that aren’t intended as tilawah like saying ‘Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim’.

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Ali ibn Abi Talib narrated in a hadith that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ used to teach the Quran, and he never prevented anyone from learning it except those who were in a state in of janabah – major impurity including menstruation. The hadith is reported by Abu Dawud, Al-Tirmidhi, Al Nasai, Ibn Majah, and others.

Al-Hafiz ibn Hajar said that this hadith is hasan, and acts as a proof that women can recite the Quran during their menses without the intention of studying it.

If you are to read the Quran with the intention of study, Hanafi scholars say that it’s not permissible according to the hadith mentioned earlier. However, the Malikis permit women to recite Quran with the intention of studying if they are the teacher or student of Quran.

So, if you feel like you are getting away from Quran, you need to recite a few pages from your memory to be in the remembrance of Allah, you are good to read. Also, if you are patient of sihr or want to perform any sort of ruqyah on yourself, you can also read Quran with such intention, as it comes under the ruling of reading Quran for seeking protection against the devil.

A Da’if Hadith Regarding the Issue

Now, you might be wondering if it’s permissible to recite Quran from memory without the intention of studying, rather general remembering and as a form of protection, then how this concept of not being able to read Quran during menses is widely practiced among women.

The misconception is due to a da’if hadith reported by Al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, and others, Ibn Umar narrated that Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said, “The menstruating woman and the one who is in a state of major ritual impurity (janabah) should not recite anything of the Quran.”

But Shaykh Al Islam Ibn Taymiyah said that the hadith is da’if according to the agreement of many scholars of hadith.

Can You Touch the Quran when on Period?

Can You Read Quran on Your Period?

From the discussion above, it should be clear to you that you can read the Quran even when you are on period, but without the intention of studying it. However, when it comes to touching the Quran, it’s not permissible for anyone to touch the mushaf without going through the purification process. If you need ghusl, you will need to do it, if you need wudu, then you will have to make wudu before you touch it.

So, even if women can read the Quran, they cannot touch the mus’haf during their menses.

Allah ﷻ says, “… which none can touch except the purified.” [Al-Waqi’ah 56:79]

A hadith on Amr ibn Hazm’s authority, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ told the people of Yemen “No one should touch the Quran except one who is tahir (pure).”

Can You Read Quran in English while on Your Period?

As for reading the translation of Quran, there’s no issue of touching a translated Quran book, which isn’t a mushaf, to touch it. That being said, if you are reading a tafsir such as Tafsir Al Jalalayn or Tafsir Ibn Kathir, where there are more translated texts than the actual Arabic texts, you can touch such books even during the menses.

Can You Read Quran from Smartphone During Period?

According to the Hanafis, it’s not allowed to touch the text on the app screen when a woman is on her period. However, touching the empty or white part of the app screen doesn’t come under this prohibition.

So, you can read Quran from your smartphone, if you don’t intend to read to study the Quran, without touching the screen where there are Arabic texts.

FAQs

Can we read Quran Surah during periods?

Reading the Quran without touching the mushaf and without the intention of studying is permissible in the form of doing dhikr and seeking protection from the devil.

What is allowed during menstruation in Islam?

Women can recite regular Du’as from the Quran without touching the mushaf, do all other dhikrs, and read and study hadith, and other Islamic books. Women should do the dhikr of morning and evening more seriously during their period as the protection against the devil gets weaker in that state.

Can I make dua on period?

Even though menstruating women aren’t allowed to read the Quran from the mushaf with the intention of studying it, they are allowed to recite Dua’s from the Quran. Verses of protection such as surah Fatiha, Ayatul Kursi, last verses of Bakarah, 3 quls, and other dua’s are allowed to recite.

Do and Don’ts during menstruation in Islam?

During the menstruation period, women cannot pray salah, do fasting, make Tawaaf around the Ka’bah, make farewell Tawaaf, stay in a mosque, have intercourse, and get divorced from their husbands. Other than these specific ones, women can perform other acts of worship in the period without any issue.

Conclusion

If you have read this far, you should get a clear understanding whether can you read Quran on your period or not, if yes, then under what circumstances and conditions. Apart from reading the Quran, there’s no restriction on you to recite regular du’as and do dhikr. Do it more often while on period to engage yourself in the remembrance of Allah ﷻ.

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