Is kohl considered perfume for women, and what is the criterion for the perfume that is prohibited for women?
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The Shaykh : It is permissible, of course.
The questioner : Does it not fall under the issue that it is perfume for women in that its color appears but its scent does not?
The Shaykh : No, it is not perfume; it is kohl. One does not say "the woman perfumed herself with kohl," but rather "she applied kohl."
The questioner : What is the perfume that is prohibited for a woman in such a case? If she applied dye to her cheeks or something that falls under the prohibition?
The Shaykh : Of course, because this dye is what appears in color and is hidden in scent, as an adornment or beauty. As for kohl, it is not specific to women; men share in it. It is more like a medicine than an adornment. Therefore, in the hadith, who is this woman whose husband died?
The questioner : She complained about her eye...
The Shaykh : The one whose husband died, so she applied kohl and adorned herself for the suitor. Then Ibn Ba'akk came to her and said to her: "You are not permitted [to remarry] until you complete the waiting period," the waiting period due to death. So she went to the Messenger (peace be upon him) and mentioned that to him. He said: "You are permitted, as long as you have applied [kohl]." The point is that she applied kohl and adorned herself for the suitor, meaning she wore... something... [laughter]The Shaykh : (may Allah have mercy on him)...
The questioner : No, but it is a form of beauty and adorning oneself.
The Shaykh : No, it is beauty, but it is not the perfume you are going on about. Now, if you apply kohl, does that not mean you have adorned yourself?
The questioner : Sometimes.
The Shaykh : Sometimes. The important thing is, we see no harm in that.
The questioner : And if the kohl now, the synthetic kind, has beauty in it.
The Shaykh : Why?
The questioner : Because they add green to it, meaning.
The Shaykh : The green, meaning this is not permissible for us.
The questioner : Does it not fall under the issue that it is perfume for women in that its color appears but its scent does not?
The Shaykh : No, it is not perfume; it is kohl. One does not say "the woman perfumed herself with kohl," but rather "she applied kohl."
The questioner : What is the perfume that is prohibited for a woman in such a case? If she applied dye to her cheeks or something that falls under the prohibition?
The Shaykh : Of course, because this dye is what appears in color and is hidden in scent, as an adornment or beauty. As for kohl, it is not specific to women; men share in it. It is more like a medicine than an adornment. Therefore, in the hadith, who is this woman whose husband died?
The questioner : She complained about her eye...
The Shaykh : The one whose husband died, so she applied kohl and adorned herself for the suitor. Then Ibn Ba'akk came to her and said to her: "You are not permitted [to remarry] until you complete the waiting period," the waiting period due to death. So she went to the Messenger (peace be upon him) and mentioned that to him. He said: "You are permitted, as long as you have applied [kohl]." The point is that she applied kohl and adorned herself for the suitor, meaning she wore... something... [laughter]The Shaykh : (may Allah have mercy on him)...
The questioner : No, but it is a form of beauty and adorning oneself.
The Shaykh : No, it is beauty, but it is not the perfume you are going on about. Now, if you apply kohl, does that not mean you have adorned yourself?
The questioner : Sometimes.
The Shaykh : Sometimes. The important thing is, we see no harm in that.
The questioner : And if the kohl now, the synthetic kind, has beauty in it.
The Shaykh : Why?
The questioner : Because they add green to it, meaning.
The Shaykh : The green, meaning this is not permissible for us.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.