His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "And they ask you about menstruation. Say, 'It is a discomfort, so keep away from women during menstruation, and do not approach them until they are pure. And when they have purified themselves, then go to them from where Allah has commanded you. Indeed, Allah loves those who repent and loves those who purify themselves.'" "Your wives are a tilth for you, so go to your tilth however you wish, and send [good deeds] before yourselves. And fear Allah and know that you will meet Him. And give good tidings to the believers." "And do not make Allah an obstacle to your oaths, by which you are righteous and fear Allah and make peace among the people. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing."

Al-Tabari mentioned from Al-Suddi that the questioner was Thabit ibn al-Dahdah. And Qatadah and others said: They asked because the Arabs in Medina and its surroundings had adopted the practice of the Children of Israel, in avoiding eating and living with menstruating women. So this verse was revealed. And Mujahid said: They used to avoid women during menstruation and approach them from behind. So this verse was revealed regarding that.

And "menstruation" is a noun like "menses," and similar to it is "resting place," from the verb "qala" (to rest). The shepherd said:

I built their facilities on a slope where the tick cannot find a resting place.

And Al-Tabari said: "Menstruation" is the name of menses, and from it is the saying of Ru'bah regarding living:

To You I complain of the severity of living, and years have passed while we pluck my feathers.

And "discomfort" is a comprehensive term for things that cause harm: because it is blood, filth, and foulness, and in the manner of urine. This is the expression of the interpreters for the term.

And His saying, exalted is He: "So keep away" means: sexual intercourse with them, as explained by the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, that a man should not tighten the garment of a menstruating woman and then have relations with her from above. This is the most correct view regarding the matter, and it is the view of Ibn Abbas, Shuraih, Sa'id ibn Jubayr, Malik, and a great number of scholars.

It was narrated from Mujahid that he said: What must be avoided from the menstruating woman is only the private part.

This was also narrated from Aisha, Al-Shabi, and Ikrimah. It was also narrated from Ibn Abbas and Ubaydah al-Salmani that a man must avoid the bed of his wife when she menstruates, and this is a rare opinion. And Maimunah, may Allah be pleased with both of them, approached Ibn Abbas and said to him: Is there a desire to abandon the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him?

And His saying, exalted is He: "And do not approach them until they are pure" Nafi', Ibn Kathir, Abu Amr, Ibn Amir, and Asim in the narration of Hafs read: "they are pure" with the letter 'ta' being silent and the 'ha' being pronounced. And Hamzah, Al-Kisai, and Asim in the narration of Abu Bakr and Al-Mufaddal read: "they purify themselves" with the 'ta' and 'ha' being pronounced and the 'ta' being doubled.

And in the Mushaf of Ubayy and Abdullah: "until they purify themselves." And in the Mushaf of Anas ibn Malik: "And do not approach women during their menstruation and keep away from them until they purify themselves."

Al-Tabari preferred the reading with the emphasis on the letter ṭā and said: it means 'they should wash themselves', due to the consensus of all that it is forbidden for a man to approach his wife after the cessation of the blood until she purifies herself. He said: the disagreement is only about what purification is. Some said: it is washing with water, and some said: it is ablution like the ablution for prayer, and some said: it is washing the private parts, and this makes her lawful for her husband even if she has not washed from menstruation.

Al-Farisi preferred the reading with the light ṭā since it is a three-letter word opposed to ṭamathat, and it is a three-letter word.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: each of the two readings can imply washing with water, and it can imply the cessation of blood and the removal of its harm.

What Al-Tabari went to, that the reading with the emphasis on ṭā implies washing, and the reading with the light ṭā implies the cessation of blood, is not necessary, nor is his claim of consensus. However, there is no disagreement about the dislike of intercourse before washing with water.

And Al-Awza'i said: whoever does it should give half a dinar in charity, and whoever has intercourse during menstruation should give a dinar in charity. Abu Dawood narrated from Ibn Abbas that the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, said regarding the one who approaches his wife while she is menstruating: "He should give a dinar or half a dinar in charity." Ibn Abbas said: the dinar is for intercourse during menstruation, and the half is when it has ceased. There are reports regarding the severity of this act. The majority of scholars agree that it is a great sin from which one should repent, and there is no expiation for it with wealth.

Malik, may Allah have mercy on him, and the majority of scholars, held that the purification that makes it lawful to have intercourse with the menstruating woman who has ceased bleeding is her purification with water like the purification of the junub, and neither tayammum nor anything else suffices for that.

Yahya ibn Bikir and Ibn al-Qurazhi said: if the menstruating woman purifies herself and performs tayammum where there is no water, it is lawful for her husband even if she has not washed. Mujahid, Ikrimah, and Tawus said: the cessation of blood makes her lawful for her husband, but she should perform ablution.

And 'until' is a limit and nothing else, and 'and do not approach them' means with intercourse, and this is from the prevention of means.

And His saying, the Exalted: "So when they have purified themselves". The reading is "taṭahharna" with an open tā and a doubled hā, and the disagreement in its meaning is as previously mentioned regarding purification with water or the cessation of blood.

Mujahid and a group of scholars say here: it is intended that washing with water is required, and it must be, due to the indication of the command to come. And although approaching them before washing is permissible, the command from Allah, the Exalted, does not occur except in the most complete manner.

"So approach them" is permission, and the meaning is: "from where Allah has commanded you" by avoiding them, which is the private parts, or from the navel to the knees, or the entire body as previously mentioned. All of this is one statement. Ibn Abbas and Abu Razin said: the meaning is from before purification, not from before menstruation, and this was said by Al-Dahhak. Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah said: the meaning is from before what is lawful, not from before unlawful relations, and it is said: the meaning is from before the state of permissibility, not while fasting, in ihram, or otherwise.

And the repentant: those who return, and he means by it: from evil to good.

And the purifiers: 'Ataa and others said: the meaning is with water. And Mujahid and others said: the meaning is: from sins. Mujahid also said: the meaning is: from coming to women in their rear.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: It is as if he looked at Allah's saying as a narration from the people of Lot: "Drive them out of your town; indeed, they are a people who purify themselves" [Al-A'raf: 82]. And Talhah ibn Musarif read: "the purifiers" with a strong 'ta' and 'ha'.

And His saying: "Your women are a tilth for you" - the verse. Jabir ibn Abdullah and Al-Rabi' said: Its reason is that the Jews said: If a man comes to a woman from her rear in her front, the child will be cross-eyed, and they criticized the Arabs for that. So the verse was revealed to refute their saying. And Umm Salamah and others said: Its reason is that the Quraysh used to come to women in the vagina in various ways. When they arrived in Medina and married Ansari women, they wanted that, but the women of Medina did not want it, as the custom of their men was only to come in one way, which is lying down. This reached the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, and the people's words spread about that, so the verse was revealed permitting all positions, as long as the intercourse is in the place of cultivation.

And "tilth" is a metaphor because they are the source of offspring. So the term "tilth" indicates that the permission is granted only in the vagina specifically, as it is the place of cultivation.

And His saying: "Wherever you wish" means: according to the majority of scholars - from the Companions and the Followers and the Imams - any position you wish, facing or turning away or on your side. And "wherever" only comes as a question or information about a matter that has directions, so it is broader in language than "how" and "where" and "when"; this is the usage in Arabic.

And people have interpreted "wherever" in this verse with these words, and Sibawayh interpreted it as (how and from where) by their combination. A group who interpreted it as "where" went to say that intercourse in the rear is permissible, and this was narrated from Abdullah ibn Umar, and it was also narrated from him the opposite and condemnation for his action, and this is what is appropriate for him. The permissibility was also narrated from Ibn Abi Mulaykah and Muhammad ibn Al-Munkadir, and Malik narrated it from Yazid ibn Ruman, from Salim, from Ibn Umar, and something similar was narrated from Malik, which is what occurred in Al-Utbi's narration, and that was falsely attributed to Malik. Some narrated that a man did that during the time of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, and the people spoke about it, so this verse was revealed.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

It has been reported from the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, in the Musnad of al-Nasa'i and elsewhere that he said: "Coming to women in their rear is forbidden." It has been reported from him that he said: "Cursed is he who comes to a woman in her rear." It has been reported from him that he said: "Whoever comes to a woman in her rear has disbelieved in what was revealed to the heart of Muhammad, blessings and peace be upon him." This is the truth that is followed, and it is not appropriate for a believer in Allah and the Last Day to deviate in this matter due to the slip of a scholar after it has been confirmed from him. Allah is the guide, and there is no Lord other than Him.

Al-Suddi said: The meaning of His saying, "And provide for yourselves" is the reward in avoiding what you have been forbidden and obeying what you have been commanded. Ibn Abbas said: It is a reference to the mention of Allah at the time of intimacy, as the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "If one of you comes to his wife, let him say: 'In the name of Allah, O Allah, keep us away from the devil, and keep the devil away from what You have provided for us.' Then if a child is decreed between them, he will not be harmed."

It has been said: The meaning of "provide for yourselves" is the seeking of children. "And fear Allah" is a warning. "And know that you will meet Him" is news that necessitates emphasis in warning, meaning He will reward you for righteousness and sin. "And give glad tidings to the believers" is a consolation for those who do good and follow the paths of guidance.

His saying, "And do not make Allah a target" means that "target" is a noun derived from the passive form, meaning often exposed to what has been mentioned. You say: A camel is a target for riding, and a horse is a target for running. From this is the saying of Ka'b ibn Zuhayr:

'From every dripping of the dew when it sweats, its target is the obliteration of the signs, unknown.'

The purpose of the verse is: Do not expose the name of Allah, glorified and exalted is He, to oaths by Him, and do not increase in oaths, for breaking an oath with excess indicates a lack of regard for the rights of Allah, glorified and exalted is He.

Then the interpreters disagreed. Ibn Abbas, Ibrahim al-Nakha'i, Mujahid, al-Rabi', and others said: The meaning is: in what you want to be strict about, whoever abandons maintaining family ties, goodness, and reconciliation. Al-Tabari said: The implication is: that you do not do good, nor have piety, nor reconcile. Al-Mahdawi interpreted it as: dislike for you to do good. Some of the interpreters said: The meaning is: and do not swear by Allah falsely when you intend goodness, piety, and reconciliation, so there is no need for the implication of 'no' after 'that.' It is possible that this interpretation is for one who intends to reconcile between people, so he swears falsely to fulfill his purpose. It is also possible that it is based on what was narrated from Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, that she said: It was revealed regarding the frequent swearing by Allah, prohibiting a man from swearing by Him for goodness, so how about for wickedness? The meaning is: if you intend goodness for yourselves. Al-Zajjaj and others said: The meaning of the verse is: that a man, when asked to do a good deed or something similar, excuses himself by saying: I have an oath, while he has not sworn. And 'to do good' is the object for that reason, and goodness encompasses all forms of good. The goodness of a man, if it pertains to him, is its ruling and lineage, like the pilgrim, the warrior, the scholar, and others. It is opposed to sin, as it is the ruling that follows from sins. 'All-Hearing' means He hears the words of the servants, 'All-Knowing' means He knows their intentions, and He is just to all.

As for the reason for the verse, Ibn Jurayj said: It was revealed concerning Abu Bakr al-Siddiq when he swore to cut off his spending on Mistah ibn Athatha when Mistah spoke in the slander incident. It was said: It was revealed concerning Abu Bakr al-Siddiq with his son Abdur-Rahman in the incident of hospitality when Abu Bakr swore that he would not eat food. It was said: It was revealed concerning Abdullah ibn Rawaha with Bashir ibn Sa'd when he swore that he would not speak to him.

And the oath is the swearing. Its origin is that the Arabs, when they made an alliance or a covenant, a man would take his companion's right hand with his own right hand. Then this became widespread until the oath and the covenant themselves were called an oath.