Tafsir of At-Talaq 65:4

(And those who have despaired of menstruation) — meaning the menstrual cycle; and it is read ya’yasan as an imperfect verb — (from among your women) due to their old age. Some have estimated the age of despair to be sixty years, others fifty-five. It is said: It is the common age of despair for the women of the woman’s own clan. It is also said: It is the common age of despair for women in the place where she resides; for if the location has pleasant air and water, such as in some deserts, the age of despair is delayed. It is also said: It is the furthest age a woman in the world reaches. This statement is of the highest degree of finality regarding the capacity for pregnancy.

(If you are in doubt) — meaning, if you are uncertain or hesitant regarding their waiting period, or if you are ignorant of their waiting period — (then their waiting period is three months). Al-Hakim (who authenticated it), al-Bayhaqi in his Sunan, and a group narrated from Ubayy ibn Ka‘b: That when this verse in Surat al-Baqarah regarding women’s waiting periods was revealed, certain people from Medina said: "There remains a number of women whose waiting period has not been mentioned in the Quran: the young, the old whose menstruation has ceased, and those who are pregnant." Then Allah the Exalted revealed in Surat al-Nisa' al-Qusra (The Lesser Surat al-Nisa', i.e., Surat al-Talaq): (And those who have despaired...) to the end of the verse. In another narration, when a group among them, including Ubayy ibn Ka‘b and Khallad ibn al-Nu‘man, heard the words of the Exalted: (And divorced women shall wait by themselves for three menstrual periods), they said: "O Messenger of Allah, what is the waiting period of the one who has no period, either due to youth or old age?" Then (And those who have despaired...) was revealed. Then someone said: "What is the waiting period of the pregnant woman?" Then (And those who are pregnant...) was revealed.

From what has been mentioned, it is known that the condition (shart) here has no concept (mafhum) for those who uphold the principle of "concept," because it is an explanation of the event in which it was revealed without the intention of restriction (taqyid). The estimation of what the doubt (irtiyab) relates to—which you have heard—is what al-Tabari and others pointed to. It is said: (If you are in doubt) regarding the blood of those who have reached the age of despair—is it menstrual blood or istihada (dysfunctional uterine bleeding)?—then their waiting period is [three months], etc. And if this is the waiting period for the one about whom there is doubt, then the one about whom there is no doubt is more entitled to that. Al-Zajjaj said: The meaning is (If you are in doubt) regarding their menstruation, while the blood has ceased for them, even though they were among those who menstruate like them. Mujahid said: The verse was sent down regarding a woman suffering from istihada who is flooded with blood and does not know if it is menstrual blood or blood from an ailment. It is also said: (If you are in doubt), meaning if you are certain of their despair; for "doubt" (irtiyab) is one of the addad (words with opposing meanings). Everything is as you see.

The relative pronoun (al-la'i) is, according to many, a subject whose predicate is the sentence (then their waiting period is three months), etc. (And if you are in doubt) is a conditional sentence, the response to which is elided, estimated as "then know that it is three months." The conditional clause and its response form an intercalated sentence. It is permitted that (then their waiting period), etc., be the response to the condition, considering it as an announcement and informing, as in the words of the Exalted: (And whatever you have of blessing, it is from Allah), and the conditional sentence is the predicate without any elision or estimation.

The words of the Exalted: (And those who have not yet menstruated) — it is a subject whose predicate is elided, meaning: "And those who have not yet menstruated are likewise," or "their waiting period is three months," and the sentence is conjoined to what preceded it. It is permitted to conjoin this relative pronoun to the previous one and to make the predicate applicable to both without estimation. "Those who have not yet menstruated" refers to young girls who have not reached the age of menstruation.

Abu Hayyan suggested that it encompasses those who do not menstruate due to youth, and those who have no menstruation at all, such as some women who live until they die without menstruating, and the one who has passed the time of menstruation without reaching the age of it and without menstruating. Then he said: "It is said: This [woman] observes a waiting period of one year."

(And those who are pregnant, their term) — meaning the end of their waiting period — (is until they give birth to their burden), even if it is merely a mudghah (fetal lump) or ‘alaqah (clot). There is no difference in this regard between whether they are divorced or their husbands have died, as is narrated from ‘Umar and his son. Malik, al-Shafi‘i, ‘Abd al-Razzaq, Ibn Abi Shaybah, and Ibn al-Mundhir narrated from Ibn ‘Umar that he was asked about a woman whose husband dies while she is pregnant, and he said: "If she gives birth, she has become lawful." A man from the Ansar informed him that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab said: "If she were to give birth while her husband was still on his bed not yet buried, she would have become lawful." From Ibn Mas‘ud: Abu Dawud, al-Nasa'i, and Ibn Majah narrated from him that he said: "Whoever wishes, I will engage in li‘an (solemn oath) with him that the verse in Surat al-Nisa' al-Qusra (And those who are pregnant...) was revealed after Surat al-Baqarah by such-and-such months; every divorced woman or one whose husband has died, her term is [the time] she gives birth to her burden." In a narration by Ibn Marduyah from Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri: "by seven years" (perhaps it is not authentic). [This is also narrated] from Abu Hurayrah, Abu Mas‘ud al-Badri, and ‘Aishah; the jurists of the major cities have held this view. It has also been narrated from the Messenger of Allah (may Allah grant him peace and blessings). ‘Abd ibn Humayd in the Zawa'id al-Musnad, Abu Ya‘la, al-Diya’ in al-Mukhtarah, and Ibn Marduyah narrated from Ubayy ibn Ka‘b: "I said to the Prophet (may Allah grant him peace and blessings): (And those who are pregnant, their term is until they give birth to their burden)—is this [for] the woman divorced thrice and [for] the one whose husband has died? He said: 'It is [for] the woman divorced thrice and [for] the one whose husband has died.'" A group narrated something similar from him from another chain. It is authenticated that Subay‘ah bint al-Harith al-Aslamiyyah was the wife of Sa‘d ibn Khawlah, and he died during the Farewell Pilgrimage while she was pregnant. She gave birth twenty-three days after his death (in another narration: twenty-five nights, in another: forty nights). She then dyed her hands with henna, applied kohl, and beautified herself, intending to remarry. Someone disapproved of this, so the Prophet (may Allah grant him peace and blessings) was asked, and he said: "If she has done so, her term has ended."

‘Ali (may Allah honor his face) and Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) went to the view that the verse concerns divorced women, whereas for the one whose husband has died, her waiting period is the later of the two terms. This is the doctrine of the Imamiyyah, as [mentioned] in Majma‘ al-Bayan.

Based on what has preceded, the verse is abrogating the words of the Exalted: (And those who die among you and leave wives behind, they shall wait...), according to the view of the followers of Abu Hanifah and those among the Shafi‘is who agree with them, because for them, the ‘amm mutlaq (unrestricted general) that comes later is an abrogator; thus, it is more appropriate that the ‘amm (general) from one perspective be the same. As for those who do not hold this view—those who do not allow the delay of the clarification of the ‘amm—they also said [it is a case of] abrogation, because the first ‘amm was, at that time, intended to cover its individuals. In such cases, there is no disagreement that the later specific text (al-khas al-mutarahi) is an abrogator to the extent of its scope, not a restrictor (mukhassiss). Those who permitted it [the latter] went toward restriction, based on the fact that [the verse] in al-Qusra is more specific absolutely. The reasoning is that in al-Baqarah, the ruling for divorced women and the ruling for those whose husbands have died were mentioned separately. Then this [verse] was revealed, restricting both categories because the word "term" (ajal) encompasses both waiting periods, and "those who are pregnant" is specifically restricted absolutely with respect to the husbands. This is as if one says: "For the mawali of the Indians, they have such-and-such, and for the Turks, they have such-and-such," for another category, then says: "And the adults among them have less or more than that," intending another class, the latter being a restrictor for the two rulings. There is no regard for the difference in the endowments due to the encompassing nature of the word which indicates specification. Similarly, regarding what we are dealing with: there is no regard for the difference between the two waiting periods due to the encompassing nature of the word "term," and the specificity of "those who are pregnant" with respect to husbands absolutely. If you wish, say: with respect to divorced women and those whose husbands have died [concerning] their men absolutely, so there is no difference. This is what was said in al-Kashf. He then said: Whoever went to the [view of the] longer of the two terms argued that the two texts support each other because there is a general and specific [relationship] between them from different perspectives, and there is no room for cancellation, so reconciliation is necessary. In saying this, reconciliation is achieved, because if the pregnancy lasts long, she has waited for four months and ten days plus the duration; and if it is short, she has waited for that duration, and she has given birth, and she has waited; thus, action according to the requirements of the two verses is achieved. The answer is that this is the cancellation of both texts, not reconciliation, for what is considered is reconciliation between the two texts, not between the two periods. This is due to the loss of the limitation and timing which is the requirement of the two verses. Reflect on this.

Al-Dahhak read ahmaluhunna (their burdens) as a plural.

(And whoever fears Allah) in the matter of His decrees and in observing their rights: (He will make for him a way of ease from his matter)—by making his affair easy, O Mighty and Majestic. It is also said: Ease is the reward. (And) is said to be for clarification, placed before the clarified for the sake of the cadence (fasilah). It is also said: It is in the sense of "in," and it is said: It is causal.