Source: Fatāwā Amunpuri by Shaykh Ghulām Mustafa Zaheer Amunpuri
If a ten-year-old girl says she has begun menstruation, will she be considered bālighah (mature) in Islamic law?
Yes, if a ten-year-old girl begins menstruating, she will be considered bālighah (mature), because menstruation is one of the recognized signs of puberty for females in Islam.
Allah ﷻ says:
"وَاللَّائِي يَئِسْنَ مِنَ الْمَحِيضِ مِنْ نِسَائِكُمْ إِنِ ارْتَبْتُمْ فَعِدَّتُهُنَّ ثَلَاثَةُ أَشْهُرٍ وَاللَّائِي لَمْ يَحِضْنَ وَأُولَاتُ الْأَحْمَالِ أَجَلُهُنَّ أَنْ يَضَعْنَ حَمْلَهُنَّ"
[Sūrah al-Ṭalāq: 4]
Translation:
“Those among your women who no longer expect menstruation—if you doubt—then their waiting period is three months; as well as those who have not yet menstruated. And the waiting period for pregnant women is until they give birth.”
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله explains:
“In this verse, Allah has explained the ʿiddah (waiting period) for elderly women whose menstruation has ceased due to old age — their ʿiddah is three months. This is in place of three menstrual cycles, as mentioned in Sūrah al-Baqarah. Similarly, young girls who have not yet menstruated also have a ʿiddah of three months.
Thus, the two categories of non-pregnant women in this verse are:
① Those who menstruate
② Those who do not (due to age or youth).
Hence, it is understood that anyone who menstruates is neither a child nor elderly, but a mature (bālighah) woman.”
Tafsīr al-Qur’ān al-ʿAẓīm: 8/149
Sayyidah ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said:
"لا يقبل الله صلاة حائض إلا بخمار"
Translation:
“Allah does not accept the prayer of a menstruating (i.e., adult) woman unless she wears a khimār (head covering).”
Musnad Aḥmad: 6/150, 218
Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 641
Sunan al-Tirmidhī: 377
Sunan Ibn Mājah: 665 — Authentic chain
Scholarly Authentication:
✔ Imām al-Tirmidhī: Ḥasan
✔ Imām Ibn al-Jārūd, Ibn Khuzaymah, Ibn Ḥibbān: Ṣaḥīḥ
✔ Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Mulaqqin: Ṣaḥīḥ (in al-Badr al-Munīr)
✔ Imām al-Ḥākim: Ṣaḥīḥ on the conditions of Muslim
✔ Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī: Agreed with al-Ḥākim’s grading
Imām Ibn al-Mundhir رحمه الله said:
“The signs of puberty for both males and females are:
① Wet dreams
② Growth of pubic hair
③ Reaching 15 years of age
④ For females: commencement of menstruation
Whichever sign appears first, the person is considered bāligh (mature), and all religious obligations (farā’iḍ and legal rulings) become binding upon them.”
Al-Awsaṭ fī al-Sunan wa’l-Ijmāʿ wa’l-Ikhtilāf: 4/388
➤ Menstruation (ḥayḍ) is one of the clearest and earliest signs of puberty in girls, regardless of their age.
➤ If a 10-year-old girl begins menstruating, she will be considered bālighah, and therefore religiously accountable (ṣalāh, ṣawm, etc. become obligatory).
➤ This is based on clear Qur’anic verses, authentic aḥādīth, and the unanimous agreement of the scholars.
❖ Question:
If a ten-year-old girl says she has begun menstruation, will she be considered bālighah (mature) in Islamic law?
✿ Answer:
Yes, if a ten-year-old girl begins menstruating, she will be considered bālighah (mature), because menstruation is one of the recognized signs of puberty for females in Islam.
✦ Qur’anic Evidence:
Allah ﷻ says:
"وَاللَّائِي يَئِسْنَ مِنَ الْمَحِيضِ مِنْ نِسَائِكُمْ إِنِ ارْتَبْتُمْ فَعِدَّتُهُنَّ ثَلَاثَةُ أَشْهُرٍ وَاللَّائِي لَمْ يَحِضْنَ وَأُولَاتُ الْأَحْمَالِ أَجَلُهُنَّ أَنْ يَضَعْنَ حَمْلَهُنَّ"
[Sūrah al-Ṭalāq: 4]Translation:
“Those among your women who no longer expect menstruation—if you doubt—then their waiting period is three months; as well as those who have not yet menstruated. And the waiting period for pregnant women is until they give birth.”
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Kathīr رحمه الله explains:
“In this verse, Allah has explained the ʿiddah (waiting period) for elderly women whose menstruation has ceased due to old age — their ʿiddah is three months. This is in place of three menstrual cycles, as mentioned in Sūrah al-Baqarah. Similarly, young girls who have not yet menstruated also have a ʿiddah of three months.
Thus, the two categories of non-pregnant women in this verse are:
① Those who menstruate
② Those who do not (due to age or youth).
Hence, it is understood that anyone who menstruates is neither a child nor elderly, but a mature (bālighah) woman.”
Tafsīr al-Qur’ān al-ʿAẓīm: 8/149✦ Ḥadīth Evidence:
Sayyidah ʿĀ’ishah رضي الله عنها narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said:
"لا يقبل الله صلاة حائض إلا بخمار"
Translation:
“Allah does not accept the prayer of a menstruating (i.e., adult) woman unless she wears a khimār (head covering).”
Musnad Aḥmad: 6/150, 218 Sunan Abī Dāwūd: 641 Sunan al-Tirmidhī: 377 Sunan Ibn Mājah: 665 — Authentic chainScholarly Authentication:
✔ Imām al-Tirmidhī: Ḥasan
✔ Imām Ibn al-Jārūd, Ibn Khuzaymah, Ibn Ḥibbān: Ṣaḥīḥ
✔ Ḥāfiẓ Ibn al-Mulaqqin: Ṣaḥīḥ (in al-Badr al-Munīr)
✔ Imām al-Ḥākim: Ṣaḥīḥ on the conditions of Muslim
✔ Ḥāfiẓ al-Dhahabī: Agreed with al-Ḥākim’s grading
✦ Scholarly Consensus:
Imām Ibn al-Mundhir رحمه الله said:
“The signs of puberty for both males and females are:
① Wet dreams
② Growth of pubic hair
③ Reaching 15 years of age
④ For females: commencement of menstruation
Whichever sign appears first, the person is considered bāligh (mature), and all religious obligations (farā’iḍ and legal rulings) become binding upon them.”
Al-Awsaṭ fī al-Sunan wa’l-Ijmāʿ wa’l-Ikhtilāf: 4/388
Summary:
➤ Menstruation (ḥayḍ) is one of the clearest and earliest signs of puberty in girls, regardless of their age.
➤ If a 10-year-old girl begins menstruating, she will be considered bālighah, and therefore religiously accountable (ṣalāh, ṣawm, etc. become obligatory).
➤ This is based on clear Qur’anic verses, authentic aḥādīth, and the unanimous agreement of the scholars.
