How does a woman determine accurate purity (tuhr) if she does not see the white discharge (al-qassah al-bayḍā’), but rather experiences dryness followed by a brownish or yellowish discharge, then dryness and a yellowish discharge that continues until the seventeenth or twentieth day, and she does not know when to perform ghusl? And does “dryness” (al-jufūf) mean placing a cotton swab without inserting it?

A woman recognizes ritual purity (tahara) from menstruation by one of two signs: dryness (al-jufūf) or the white discharge (al-qaṣṣah al-bayḍāʾ). Whichever appears first necessitates ghusl (ritual bath). Dryness is recognized by inserting a piece of cotton into the external part of the vagina; if it comes out pure, free of blood, yellowness, or turbidity, then the woman has achieved purity and ghusl becomes obligatory for her. Any yellowness or turbidity that a woman sees after seeing the sign of purity is not considered menstruation if it occurs outside her usual period. In such a case, she only needs to perform istinjāʾ (cleansing) and wudu (ablution) for prayer. If the yellowness or turbidity is continuous and does not stop, then she must perform wudu after the prayer time begins and pray with that wudu after taking precautions by tying a cloth.