Source: Shaykh Mubashir Ahmad Rabbani – Ahkām wa Masā’il: Kitāb-o-Sunnat kī Roshnī meṅ
Which color of dye is permissible to use for the beard or hair in Islam?
It is narrated from Sayyidunā Abū Umāmah رضي الله عنه:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to a group of elderly Anṣār whose beards were white, and he said:
‘O community of the Anṣār! Dye (your beards) red and yellow and oppose the People of the Book.’”
(Musnad Aḥmad: 5/264–265, Hadith: 22639)
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (in Fatḥ al-Bārī, 10/354) and ʿAllāmah Mubārakpūrī (in ʿUmdat al-Qārī, 22/50) both declared the chain of this narration to be ḥasan (sound).
Sayyidunā Abū Dharr رضي الله عنه said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ stated:
"Indeed, the best things with which you change (the whiteness) of your hair are henna and katam."
(Musnad Aḥmad: 5/147, 154, 156, 169 – Hadiths: 21632, 21690, 21741, 21821;
Abū Dāwūd, Kitāb al-Tarajjul, Bāb: Fī al-Khiḍāb – Hadith: 4205)
Narrated from Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما:
"A man passed by the Prophet ﷺ who had dyed his hair with henna. The Prophet ﷺ said: 'How excellent this is!'
Then another man passed by, who had dyed his hair with a mixture of henna and katam, and he ﷺ said: 'This is even better than that.'"
(Abū Dāwūd, Kitāb al-Tarajjul, Bāb: Fī Khiḍāb al-Ṣufrah – Hadith: 4211;
Ibn Mājah, Abwāb al-Libās, Bāb: al-Khiḍāb bil-Ṣufrah – Hadith: 3627)
Some aḥādīth generally permit dyeing without mentioning the specific color, while others mention specific colors such as red and yellow (via henna and katam).
Based on principles of uṣūl al-fiqh, general texts (mutlaq) are to be interpreted in light of specific ones (muqayyad).
Allah says regarding expiation (kaffārah) for ẓihār:
﴿فَتَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ﴾
“…then freeing a slave…”
(Surah al-Mujādilah: 3)
This is a general command (no condition about the slave’s faith).
But in the expiation for unintentional killing, He says:
﴿فَتَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ مُّؤْمِنَةٍ﴾
“…then freeing a believing slave…”
(Surah al-Nisā’: 92)
Hence, this restriction (muqayyad) in one context is applied to the general ones.
Similarly, the aḥādīth that simply mention dyeing are interpreted in light of those that specify approved colors (e.g., henna and katam).
(And Allah knows best.)
❖ Question:
Which color of dye is permissible to use for the beard or hair in Islam?
❖ Answer:
It is narrated from Sayyidunā Abū Umāmah رضي الله عنه:
“The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to a group of elderly Anṣār whose beards were white, and he said:
‘O community of the Anṣār! Dye (your beards) red and yellow and oppose the People of the Book.’”
(Musnad Aḥmad: 5/264–265, Hadith: 22639)
Ḥāfiẓ Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī (in Fatḥ al-Bārī, 10/354) and ʿAllāmah Mubārakpūrī (in ʿUmdat al-Qārī, 22/50) both declared the chain of this narration to be ḥasan (sound).
◈ The Best Types of Dye:
Sayyidunā Abū Dharr رضي الله عنه said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ stated:
"Indeed, the best things with which you change (the whiteness) of your hair are henna and katam."
(Musnad Aḥmad: 5/147, 154, 156, 169 – Hadiths: 21632, 21690, 21741, 21821;
Abū Dāwūd, Kitāb al-Tarajjul, Bāb: Fī al-Khiḍāb – Hadith: 4205)
◈ Preference for Henna and Katam:
Narrated from Ibn ʿAbbās رضي الله عنهما:
"A man passed by the Prophet ﷺ who had dyed his hair with henna. The Prophet ﷺ said: 'How excellent this is!'
Then another man passed by, who had dyed his hair with a mixture of henna and katam, and he ﷺ said: 'This is even better than that.'"
(Abū Dāwūd, Kitāb al-Tarajjul, Bāb: Fī Khiḍāb al-Ṣufrah – Hadith: 4211;
Ibn Mājah, Abwāb al-Libās, Bāb: al-Khiḍāb bil-Ṣufrah – Hadith: 3627)
❖ Sharʿī Principle on Applying Dye:
Some aḥādīth generally permit dyeing without mentioning the specific color, while others mention specific colors such as red and yellow (via henna and katam).
Based on principles of uṣūl al-fiqh, general texts (mutlaq) are to be interpreted in light of specific ones (muqayyad).
◈ Example from the Qur’an:
Allah says regarding expiation (kaffārah) for ẓihār:
﴿فَتَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ﴾
“…then freeing a slave…”
(Surah al-Mujādilah: 3)
This is a general command (no condition about the slave’s faith).
But in the expiation for unintentional killing, He says:
﴿فَتَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ مُّؤْمِنَةٍ﴾
“…then freeing a believing slave…”
(Surah al-Nisā’: 92)
Hence, this restriction (muqayyad) in one context is applied to the general ones.
Similarly, the aḥādīth that simply mention dyeing are interpreted in light of those that specify approved colors (e.g., henna and katam).
Conclusion:
- The permissible colors for dye in the Sunnah are red and yellow tones, typically from henna and katam.
- The command to dye in these colors was given to distinguish Muslims from the People of the Book.
- Aḥādīth with general permission to dye hair must be understood in the context of specific narrations that mention approved colors.
(And Allah knows best.)
