What are the rulings regarding the first days of menstruation, preceding the natural flow of blood, which appear as a brownish discharge or other colors? And what is permissible or forbidden for a woman to do or abstain from during this period, concerning prayer, fasting, reciting the Qur’an, and conjugal relations, according to the Shafi’i school of thought? Furthermore, is it obligatory to make up the days a woman fasted in Ramadan or otherwise if these days coincided with that period? And is expiation required for intercourse during those days if it was impermissible?

According to the Shafi'i school, yellow, turbid, pink, and reddish-brown discharges are considered menstruation. As long as the total duration of the bleeding does not exceed fifteen days, all of it is considered menses, necessitating abstention from what a menstruating woman is required to abstain from. Fasting must be made up, but not prayer. Sexual intercourse during the period of these discharges, if done out of ignorance, incurs no sin or expiation. However, after gaining knowledge, it becomes unlawful. It is preferable to hasten in making up the obligatory fasts, and there is no impediment to performing voluntary fasts before making up the obligatory ones if the breaking of the fast was due to a valid excuse. However, if it was without an excuse, the makeup must be performed immediately.