Is it permissible for a woman to adorn herself with kohl and makeup? And is it permissible for her to remove the hair from her hands and legs?
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The questioner: Shaykh, there is a question here. We can leave it for the 'Isha' adhan, or you could give us a quick answer.
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
The questioner: I mean, what does the phrase "a woman adorning herself for her husband in her home" mean? Does it mean she only applies kohl, regardless of wearing nice clothes and personal cleanliness? Does it mean only kohl, or can she use... dyes, what we call rouge?
Another questioner: Makeup.
The questioner: And makeup.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner: And is it permissible for her to remove the hair from her hands and legs?
The Shaykh: You do not know this mu'adhdhin.
The questioner: It is very, very difficult, I mean, she needs... but... may Allah guide him and rectify his condition.
The Shaykh: Because the jurists say that the one who says "Allahu Akbar" is as if he is asking, "Is Allah the Greatest?"
Your question actually has several aspects. Of course, the intention behind adorning oneself is not just kohl. It is permissible for her to perfume herself for her husband, while it is not permissible for her to perfume herself when she leaves her home. As for this adornment that many women have been afflicted with today, it is one of the foreign customs that women who do not know the rulings of the Shari'ah, or do not care about the rulings of the Shari'ah, have picked up. For example, instead of kohl, there is this green substance they use to color their eyelids; this is undoubtedly the adornment of disbelieving women. It is not permissible for a Muslim man or woman to imitate a disbeliever, male or female. Likewise, lipstick and the like. The important thing is that a woman adorns herself with adornment that is not the adornment of disbelievers, and it is not permissible for her to follow fashions.
The questioner: Even if it is inside her home?
The Shaykh: Even if it is inside her home; because what is inside will surely end up outside.
I remember a joke I read once where a man saw a friend of his walking quickly on the road. He said to him, "What is the matter? You are hurrying, which is unlike your usual habit?" He said to him, "I bought my wife this 'robe'—meaning a shirt—and I want to deliver it to her before a new fashion comes out and she asks for a new fashion [The Shaykh laughs!]. And this is truly an observed reality!!
We, for example, witnessed in Sham the various shapes and colors of lipstick: something deep red, something light, something that colors the whole lip, something that colors only part of the lip so that her mouth appears like what? Small; because a woman is praised for having a small mouth, unlike the eloquent man who remains what? ... What is the meaning of this pursuit and following with such precision? It is what? As he (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Al-Mustadrak lil-Hakim 48:130 Glory be to Allah! ... .
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
The questioner: I mean, what does the phrase "a woman adorning herself for her husband in her home" mean? Does it mean she only applies kohl, regardless of wearing nice clothes and personal cleanliness? Does it mean only kohl, or can she use... dyes, what we call rouge?
Another questioner: Makeup.
The questioner: And makeup.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner: And is it permissible for her to remove the hair from her hands and legs?
The Shaykh: You do not know this mu'adhdhin.
The questioner: It is very, very difficult, I mean, she needs... but... may Allah guide him and rectify his condition.
The Shaykh: Because the jurists say that the one who says "Allahu Akbar" is as if he is asking, "Is Allah the Greatest?"
Your question actually has several aspects. Of course, the intention behind adorning oneself is not just kohl. It is permissible for her to perfume herself for her husband, while it is not permissible for her to perfume herself when she leaves her home. As for this adornment that many women have been afflicted with today, it is one of the foreign customs that women who do not know the rulings of the Shari'ah, or do not care about the rulings of the Shari'ah, have picked up. For example, instead of kohl, there is this green substance they use to color their eyelids; this is undoubtedly the adornment of disbelieving women. It is not permissible for a Muslim man or woman to imitate a disbeliever, male or female. Likewise, lipstick and the like. The important thing is that a woman adorns herself with adornment that is not the adornment of disbelievers, and it is not permissible for her to follow fashions.
The questioner: Even if it is inside her home?
The Shaykh: Even if it is inside her home; because what is inside will surely end up outside.
I remember a joke I read once where a man saw a friend of his walking quickly on the road. He said to him, "What is the matter? You are hurrying, which is unlike your usual habit?" He said to him, "I bought my wife this 'robe'—meaning a shirt—and I want to deliver it to her before a new fashion comes out and she asks for a new fashion [The Shaykh laughs!]. And this is truly an observed reality!!
We, for example, witnessed in Sham the various shapes and colors of lipstick: something deep red, something light, something that colors the whole lip, something that colors only part of the lip so that her mouth appears like what? Small; because a woman is praised for having a small mouth, unlike the eloquent man who remains what? ... What is the meaning of this pursuit and following with such precision? It is what? As he (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
You will follow the ways of those who came before you, span by span and cubit by cubit; even if they entered the hole of a scorpion, you would enter it.
لتتبعنَّ سنن مَن كان قبلكم شبرًا بشبر وذراعًا بذراع ؛ حتى لو دَخَلوا جحر ضبٍّ لَدخلتموه
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.