ﲪ ﲫ ﲬ ﲭ ﲮ ﲯ ﲰ ﲱ ﲲ ﲳ ﲴ ﲵ ﲶ ﲷ ﲸ ﲹ ﲺ ﲻ ﲼ ﲽ ﲾ ﲿ ﳀ ﳁ ﳂ ﳃ ﳄ ﳅ ﳆ ﳇ
And those who no longer expect menstruation among your women - if you doubt, then their period is three months, and [also for] those who have not menstruated. And for those who are pregnant, their term is until they give birth. And whoever fears Allah - He will make for him of his matter ease.
Tafsir
Verse range: 65:4-5
{And those who despair of menstruation} (Al-La'i ya'isna min al-mahid)
Allah the Exalted mentioned in Surah Al-Baqarah the waiting period (iddah) for women who menstruate and for widows. Here, in this Surah, He mentions the waiting period for other categories of women who were not mentioned there.
It is narrated that Mu'adh ibn Jabal said: "O Messenger of Allah, we know the waiting period for a menstruating woman, but what is the waiting period for one who does not menstruate?" Then the verse: {And those who despair of menstruation} was revealed.
{If you are in doubt} (In irtabtum)
This means: If the ruling concerning the waiting period for a woman who does not menstruate is unclear to you, then this is their ruling.
Another interpretation is: If you doubt whether the blood of adult women who have reached the age of despair (which they estimated to be sixty years, or fifty-five years) is menstrual blood or blood of istihada (non-menstrual bleeding), then {their waiting period is three months}.
When the verse {their waiting period is three months} was revealed, a man stood up and said: "O Messenger of Allah, what is the waiting period for a young girl who has not menstruated?" Then the verse {And those who have not menstruated} was revealed. This means her waiting period is like that of an older woman who has despaired—three months.
Another man stood up and asked: "What is the waiting period for pregnant women, O Messenger of Allah?" Then the verse {And those who are pregnant, their term is until they deliver their burden} was revealed.
The meaning is that their term (for the cessation of the bond with the husband) is the delivery of the pregnancy. This ruling is general for every pregnant woman.
`Ali (peace be upon him) used to consider the longer of the two periods, and he would say that the verse {And those who die among you} (Al-Baqarah: 234) cannot be included in the ruling of {And those who are pregnant}, because the ruling for pregnant women applies to the waiting period after divorce, and the waiting period for a widow (if she menstruates) does not terminate based on the divorce ruling.
Ibn Abbas held that the waiting period for a pregnant widow is the longer of the two periods.
Ibn Mas'ud, however, said that the verse {And those who are pregnant} can be a new subject (mubtada') and not a continuation connected to the previous verse {And those who despair}. Since it is a new subject, it encompasses all categories of women. Evidence for this is the narration of Subay'ah bint al-Harith, who delivered her pregnancy fifteen days after her husband's death. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) permitted her to remarry, indicating that marriage is permissible before the completion of four months and ten days. Furthermore, the waiting period for a pregnant woman ends upon delivery in all circumstances.
Al-Hasan said that if she delivers one of the fetuses (in a multiple pregnancy), her waiting period ends. He argued based on the verse {until they deliver their burden} (singular haml), not "their burdens" (plural ahmal). However, this is not sound, and the reading (qira'ah) of the plural {ahmalihinna} also exists.
{And whoever fears Allah, He will make for him ease in his affair}
This means Allah will make his affairs easy for him and grant him success in performing righteous deeds. `Ata’ said: Allah will facilitate for him the affairs of this world and the Hereafter.
{That is the command of Allah which He has sent down to you}
This refers to the rulings mentioned concerning the waiting periods. Whoever fears Allah by obeying Him and acting upon what Muhammad (peace be upon him) brought, Allah will expiate his sins—from one prayer to the next, and from one Friday to the next—and will grant him a great reward in the Hereafter, according to Ibn Abbas.
If it is asked: Why did He say {their term is until they deliver their burden} and not "until they give birth"? We reply: Haml (burden/pregnancy) is a name for everything contained within their wombs. If the ruling were based only on "giving birth," then her waiting period would end upon delivering part of her burden, which is not the case.
[Then Allah the Exalted said]:
{Settle them [the divorced women] where you dwell, according to your means, and do not harass them to confine them. And if they are pregnant, spend on them until they deliver their burden. And if they nurse for you, then give them their compensation, and consult together according to what is just. But if you disagree, then another woman shall nurse for him.}
{Let the man of wealth spend according to his wealth, and let the man of restricted means spend according to what Allah has given him. Allah does not burden any soul beyond what He has given it. Allah will bring about ease after hardship.}
{Let the man of wealth spend according to his wealth...}
This means the man of means should spend according to his means, and the man whose provision is restricted should spend from what Allah has given him. Allah does not burden any soul beyond what He has given it. Allah will bring about ease after hardship.
