and the additional precautionary days. The apparent meaning of his statement is that she may circumambulate the Kaaba after those precautionary days, before the full fifteen days have elapsed, like a woman experiencing irregular bleeding. According to this report, performing the ritual bath upon completion of the fifteen days is recommended, not obligatory.

The second opinion is that she observes her usual menstrual days and the additional precautionary days, then performs the ritual bath as a recommended act and prays as a precaution. She also fasts, but must make up those fasts. Her husband must not have intercourse with her, and, if she is performing Hajj, she must not perform the circumambulation of ifāda until the full fifteen days have elapsed. Once the fifteen days have elapsed, she must perform the ritual bath and is considered to have irregular bleeding. This is what is implied by Ibn Wahb’s report from Mālik in the Book of Ablution in al-Mudawwana.

The third opinion is that she observes the full fifteen days as menstruation, then performs the ritual bath, prays, and is considered to have irregular bleeding.

The fourth opinion is that she observes her usual menstrual days, then performs the ritual bath, prays, and is considered to have irregular bleeding, without observing any additional precautionary days. This is the opinion of Muhammad ibn Maslama.

The fifth opinion is that she observes her usual menstrual days, then performs the ritual bath, prays, and fasts, but her husband must not have intercourse with her. If the bleeding stops between then and the end of fifteen days, it becomes clear that her menstrual period has changed in duration, and her having fasted or prayed does her no harm. What is meant is that she performs the ritual bath when the bleeding stops. If, however, the bleeding continues beyond fifteen days, it becomes clear that she had been experiencing irregular bleeding, that the fasts and prayers already performed were valid, and that her husband’s abstention from intercourse does him no harm. This concerns a woman with an established menstrual pattern.

As for a woman menstruating for the first time, there are likewise five opinions concerning her, corresponding to those concerning a woman with an established menstrual pattern, since the menstrual pattern of women her own age is treated as her own. However, Ibn al-Qāsim’s opinion concerning a woman menstruating for the first time is the same as Muhammad ibn Maslama’s opinion concerning a woman with an established menstrual pattern: he does not hold that she should observe three additional precautionary days. It is reported from Nāfiʿ that she observes three additional precautionary days even if this takes her beyond fifteen days. This is an anomalous opinion, and it is the sixth opinion.