❖ Wearing Black Clothing for Mourning in Islam ❖
This writing is excerpted from the book “500 Questions and Answers for Women” based on the Fatwas of the Scholars of the Haramain, translated by Hafiz Abdullah Saleem.
❖ Question:
Is it permissible to wear black clothing in mourning over a deceased person, especially a deceased husband?
❖ Answer:
Wearing black clothing as a sign of mourning during times of grief and loss is a baseless and invalid practice. It is not supported by any authentic teachings of Islam.
❖ Islamic Guidance During Calamities:
During a calamity, a Muslim should act according to the Sharīʿah, such as:
﴿إِنَّا لِلَّـهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ﴾
Recite: “Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we shall return.”
And also say:
اللهم أجرني في مصيبتي وأخلف لي خيراً منها
“O Allah! Reward me in my calamity and grant me something better in return.”
(Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim – Book of Funerals, Ḥadīth 3)
When a person recites these supplications with faith and hope of reward, Allah will grant them reward and compensate them with something better.
As for wearing a specific color like black as a sign of mourning, it is a false and blameworthy practice with no basis in Islam.
(Shaykh Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-ʿUthaymīn – ḥafiẓahullāh)
