What is the ruling on the fasting and prayer of a woman who experiences intermittent bleeding, or a yellowish discharge, or a discharge with an unpleasant odor? Should she fast and pray, or should she break her fast? And what should she do if her husband has intercourse with her during a period when the bleeding has stopped?

The minimum duration for menstruation, according to the majority of scholars, is one day and one night. If the total duration of blood, yellowish discharge (ṣufrah), and brownish discharge (kudrah) reaches this period, then it is considered menstruation. Ritual purification (ghusl) becomes obligatory after its cessation, and the days during which blood was observed must be made up (qada'). However, according to the Maliki school, which holds that there is no minimum limit for the duration of menstruation, this blood is considered menses and necessitates making up prayers (qada' al-salat) and performing ghusl after its cessation. The period of purity (tuhr) that intersperses the bleeding is considered a valid state of purity. Marital intimacy during this period carries no sin due to ignorance of the ruling.