How can one perform ghusl and pray upon seeing dryness, even for an hour, knowing that the sign of purity is the white discharge, and being 95% certain that purity has not yet been attained, and that brownish and yellowish discharges usually appear shortly after the cessation of secretions during the usual period?

The issue is a matter of dispute among scholars: When a woman sees purity (cessation of bleeding) during her menstrual period, should she perform ghusl (definition) (ritual bath) immediately or wait? The relied-upon view in the Hanbali madhhab (definition) is that ghusl is obligatory as soon as she sees purity, based on the saying of Ibn Abbas: "It is not permissible for her, when she sees purity for even an hour, except that she performs ghusl." Ibn Qudamah, however, believes that she may wait for a day or half a day, because blood may stop and then flow again, and there is hardship in obligating ghusl immediately, and this is the correct view. The adherents of the madhhab (Hanbali) hold that whenever a woman sees purity, she is considered pure, and ghusl, prayer, and fasting become obligatory upon her.

We issue fatwa (definition) according to the relied-upon narration in the Hanbali madhhab, because it is supported by the saying of Ibn Abbas and because it is more cautious for religious observance and more absolving of responsibility. Nevertheless, there is no blame on whoever adopts the second opinion.