Does a menstruating woman, specifically, passing in front of a worshipper outside his place of prostration invalidate his prayer, bearing in mind that the hadiths which liken women to dogs and donkeys are not authentic, and that Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, used to sit between the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, and the qiblah, and he did not object to that?

The hadiths stating that prayer is قطع (interrupted or invalidated) by the passing of a woman, a donkey, or a dog have authentic chains of transmission. However, scholars have differed on their interpretation due to the existence of other hadiths that contradict them. Those who said that prayer is invalidated by the passing of a woman included both menstruating and non-menstruating women, though one narration specified the menstruating woman. The passing of a woman far from the worshipper does not invalidate the prayer; rather, the hadith refers to her passing directly in front of him, close by. The relied-upon opinion is that of the majority, which states that prayer is not invalidated by the passing of a woman (whether menstruating or not), nor by the passing of a dog or a donkey, and that the intended meaning of قطع (interruption) is a decrease in reward due to the distraction of the heart.