What constitutes divorce according to the Sunnah?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Divorce
Primary text
Divorce according to the Sunnah is that which conforms to the command of Allah and His Messenger, which is divorcing the wife once while she is in a state of purity where no intercourse has taken place, and then leaving her until her waiting period is complete. There is no disagreement that fulfilling this condition means one adheres to the Sunnah and pronounces divorce according to the prescribed period, as stated by Ibn Abd al-Barr and Ibn al-Mundhir. Ibn Mas'ud stated the Sunnah is to divorce her while pure, without intercourse, relating it to the verse {so divorce them for their prescribed period} (Quran 65:1).
Supporting text
A dissenting view, held by Abu Hanifa and al-Thawri (and the scholars of Kufa), is that the Sunnah is to issue three divorces, one in each successive menstrual cycle (*Qur'*, meaning period of purity). They use the narration where the Prophet commanded Ibn Umar to wait for a full cycle before divorcing again as proof that the separation of the cycles is mandated. Further differing views suggest the Sunnah is one divorce, followed by waiting until she menstruates three times. Others hold that the Sunnah is to divorce her once while pure and not after intercourse, and then if she menstruates and purifies, divorce her a second time, and likewise for the third time, after which the *Iddah* of one final menstruation follows.