When does divorce take effect if the wife is in a state of purity during which cohabitation occurred, upon stating divorce according to the Sunnah?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Divorce
Primary text
If the wife is in a period of purity during which cohabitation occurred, the divorce does not take effect until she menstruates and subsequently becomes purified again. This is because the period of purity involving cohabitation, followed by the ensuing menstruation, constitutes a period of bid'ah. The divorce takes effect upon her purification following that next menstrual cycle because the required condition (purity without cohabitation) is then fulfilled. This ruling is the established doctrine of al-Shafi'i and Abu Hanifah, and no contravention is known.
Supporting text
If intercourse commences at the end of menstruation and connects with the beginning of purity, or if intercourse begins at the start of purity, the divorce does not take effect in that specific period of purity. Rather, it takes effect at the beginning of the next period of purity in which no cohabitation occurs. This is the doctrine of al-Shafi'i, and no dissenting opinion is known.