Mu'adha al-‘Adawiya said that when she asked ‘A'isha why one who has been menstruating must make up for her fast but not for her prayer, she replied, “That happened to us, and we were ordered to make up for the fast, but were not ordered to make up for the prayer.” Muslim transmitted it.
The Wisdom Behind Different Rulings
This hadith from Mishkat al-Masabih 2032 addresses a fundamental distinction in Islamic jurisprudence regarding acts of worship during menstruation. The divine wisdom manifests in differentiating between fasting and prayer for women in this state.
Legal Analysis of Worship Compensation
Prayer (salah) is time-bound with specific conditions of purity; its obligation lapses during menstruation and cannot be recovered later. Fasting, however, concerns abstention and can be fulfilled subsequently, as its time frame is more flexible (the entire year until next Ramadan).
The command to make up fasting but not prayer reflects Allah's mercy - sparing women from accumulating missed prayers while maintaining the spiritual benefits of fasting through makeup days.
Scholarly Consensus and Evidence
This ruling represents the unanimous position of all four Sunni schools of jurisprudence. The Prophet's instruction "That happened to us" indicates this was a recurrent matter addressed through divine revelation, not personal opinion.
The preservation of this teaching through the chain of female companions (Mu'adha to 'A'isha) demonstrates Islam's recognition of women's role in religious knowledge transmission.