What is the ruling on using imported synthetic perfumes? Are they impure such that if they fall on a garment, the spot becomes impure?
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The questioner : His final question says: What is the ruling on using imported synthetic perfumes, and are they impure such that if some of them falls on a person’s garment, the spot becomes impure?
The Shaykh : As for impurity, they are not impure.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : This is because the stronger position in my view is that khamr (intoxicants) is not physically impure, because there is no evidence for its impurity, and the original state of what is not proven impure by evidence is purity. In fact, there is a report in the Sunnah indicating its physical purity, which strengthens the original state. When the prohibition of khamr was revealed, the people stood up to the khamr they had and poured it out in the markets of Madinah, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not order them to wash these vessels.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : If it had been impure, they would not have poured it out in the markets, because pouring out impurities in the markets is forbidden, just as urinating in them is forbidden. And if it had been impure, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would have ordered them to wash their vessels of it, just as he ordered them to wash vessels of donkey meat when it was prohibited. It is also established in Sahih Muslim that a man brought a skin of khamr to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and offered it to him as a gift. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: A man whispered to him, telling him to sell it. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The man said, “I told him to sell it.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Ibn Hibban 26:35 Then the owner of the skin took its mouth and poured it out, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not order him to wash it. If it had been impure, he would have ordered him to wash it.
As for the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-Ma'idah 5:90], this filth is practical filth. This is why it is qualified by His saying: [Al-Ma'idah 5:90]. It is indicated that this is not the filth that is physical impurity, because Allah associated it with things that are not physically impure and made the statement one for all of them: [Al-Ma'idah 5:90]. It is known that the idols, the arrows of divination, and gambling are not physically impure, and the statement is one for all four. This indicates that the intended meaning of “filth” here is conceptual filth, not physical filth, which is practical filth, as in the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Hajj 22:30]. Once it is established that khamr is not physically impure, the answer to this question asked by the questioner becomes clear: if some of these perfumes, which are said to contain an alcoholic substance, falls on a garment, it is not obligatory to wash it because it is pure. But is it permissible to use these perfumes? According to the opinion of those who consider them impure, it is not permissible to use them. According to the opinion of those who consider them pure, it is better not to use them, due to the generality of the saying of Allah the Exalted: . The command to avoid this khamr is general, and nothing has been specified within it to exclude one thing from another. However, I do not assert that it is forbidden, because the phrase “so avoid it” may be intended to mean avoiding drinking it.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Because of His saying:
السائل : نعم، جزاكم الله خيرا.
هذه الرسالة من المستمع شريف محمد عثمان سوداني مقيم باليمن تعز، يقول.
The Shaykh : As for impurity, they are not impure.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : This is because the stronger position in my view is that khamr (intoxicants) is not physically impure, because there is no evidence for its impurity, and the original state of what is not proven impure by evidence is purity. In fact, there is a report in the Sunnah indicating its physical purity, which strengthens the original state. When the prohibition of khamr was revealed, the people stood up to the khamr they had and poured it out in the markets of Madinah, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not order them to wash these vessels.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : If it had been impure, they would not have poured it out in the markets, because pouring out impurities in the markets is forbidden, just as urinating in them is forbidden. And if it had been impure, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would have ordered them to wash their vessels of it, just as he ordered them to wash vessels of donkey meat when it was prohibited. It is also established in Sahih Muslim that a man brought a skin of khamr to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and offered it to him as a gift. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him:
Did you not know that it has been made forbidden?
أما علمت أنها قد حُرّمتWhat did you say?
ماذا قلت؟Indeed, when Allah forbids something, He forbids its price.
إن الله إذا حرم شيئاً حرّم ثمنهAs for the saying of Allah the Exalted:
O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful.
يا أيها الذين ءامنوا إنما الخمر والميسر والأنصاب والأزلام رجس من عمل الشيطان فاجتنبوه لعلكم تفلحونdefilement from the work of Satan
رجس من عمل الشيطانintoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allah], and divining arrows
إنما الخمر والميسر والأنصاب والأزلامSo avoid the uncleanliness of idols and avoid false statement,
فاجتنبوا الرجس من الأوثان واجتنبوا قول الزورSo avoid it
فاجتنبوهThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Because of His saying:
Indeed, Satan only wants to cause between you hostility and hatred through intoxicants and gambling, and to turn you away from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer. So will you not desist? This indicates that the intended meaning of avoidance is what leads to this cause, and mere use does not lead to this cause. So I do not forbid it, but I do not use it personally unless there is a need, such as disinfecting a wound or something similar, in which case there is no harm. The questioner: Yes, may Allah reward you with good. This message is from the listener Sharif Muhammad Uthman, a Sudanese resident in Taiz, Yemen. He says.
إنما يريد الشيطان أن يوقع بينكم العداوة والبغضاء في الخمر والميسر ويصدكم عن ذكر الله وعن الصلاة فهل أنتم منتهون وهذا يدل على أن المراد بالاجتناب ما يؤدي إلى هذه العلة ومجرّد استعماله لا يؤدي إلى هذه العلة فأنا لا أحرّمه ولكني لا أستعمله شخصياً إلا إذا كان هناك حاجة كتعقيم جرح أو شبهه فإنه لا بأس به.السائل : نعم، جزاكم الله خيرا.
هذه الرسالة من المستمع شريف محمد عثمان سوداني مقيم باليمن تعز، يقول.