126 – Muʿādh ibn Jabal d. 18 AH asked the Prophet ﷺ: “What is lawful for a man with respect to his wife when she is menstruating?” He answered, “Whatever is above the izār (waist-wrapper).” Abu Dāwūd transmitted the report and judged it weak.⦗1⦘

Degree of authenticity:
The ḥadith is weak. Abu Dāwūd recorded it and declared, “It is not sound.” Its flaw is the unknown status of Saʿīd al-Aghṭash; Ibn Ḥajar remarked, “We do not know anyone who pronounced him reliable.” In addition, the narrator ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿĀʾidh, who relates from Muʿādh, was said by Abū Ḥātim to transmit from ʿAlī with an interrupted chain; if so, his narration from Muʿādh is even more interrupted. The report has corroboration in a ḥadith of Ḥakīm recorded by Abu Dāwūd and al-Tirmidhī.

Lexical notes:
– “while she is menstruating”: a circumstantial clause.
– ḥāʾiḍ (menstruating): the masculine form is used instead of the feminine because no confusion arises between the two genders.
– “what is above the izār”: the izār is a garment that encircles the lower half of the body; whatever lies above its fastening is the upper half of the body.

Legal inferences:
1 – A husband may enjoy physical intimacy with his menstruating wife in the area above the izār.
2 – Intercourse is forbidden, as indicated by the verse: “So keep away from women during menstruation” (al-Baqarah 2:222).