The Ruling on Plucking White Hairs from the Beard
Question:
Is it permissible to pluck white hairs from the beard?
Answer:
الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام علىٰ رسول الله، أما بعد!
The Hadith on Plucking White Hairs:
In an authentic hadith, Amr ibn Shu’ayb narrates from his father, and he from his grandfather, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“Do not pluck out white hairs, for they are the light of the Muslim. Whoever has a single hair turn white in Islam, Allah will record for him one good deed in exchange for it, forgive him one sin, and raise him one degree.”
The chain of this hadith is sahih.
This hadith clearly indicates the prohibition of plucking white hairs. It is not permissible for a Muslim to oppose the command of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and extinguish his outward light (white hair) and his inward light (following the Sunnah).
After this, the statement of Ibn Abidin, in which he permitted plucking white hairs in Radd al-Muhtar, is not reliable.
The Ruling on Dyeing White Hair:
Encouragement to Dye White Hair:
Dyeing white beard with henna, or with a mixture of henna and indigo, is preferable, as has been mentioned in many hadiths.
Prohibition of Black Dye:
The prohibition on dyeing white hair black is also found in an authentic hadith:
It is narrated from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him), who said that the Prophet ﷺ said:
“In the last era there will be people who dye (their hair) black, like the crops of pigeons; they will not even smell the fragrance of Paradise.”
In
, it is narrated from Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that on the day of the Conquest of Makkah, Abu Quhafah, the father of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), was brought, and his head and beard were completely white like the flowers of thaghamah. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Change this, but avoid black.”
Statements of the Scholars:
Imam Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him):
He said:
“Dyeing the beard is recommended, and dyeing it black is haram.”
He further said:
“There is consensus on the condemnation of dyeing the beard and head black, and the correct view is that it is haram.”
Evidence from Hadith:
The above-mentioned hadith of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) is mentioned by Haythami in
:
A marfu’ narration from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him):
“In the last era there will be people who will blacken their hair; Allah will not look upon them with a glance of mercy.”
A marfu’ narration from Abu al-Darda (may Allah be pleased with him):
“Whoever dyes black, Allah will blacken his face on the Day of Resurrection.”
Other Hadiths:
It is narrated from Anas (may Allah be pleased with him):
We were with the Prophet ﷺ when a Jew came. The Prophet ﷺ saw his white beard and said:
“Why do you not change it?”
The people said: “It is disliked.”
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Change it, but avoid black.”
A marfu’ narration from Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him):
“Yellow is the dye of the believer, red is the dye of the Muslim, and black is the dye of the disbeliever.”
Summary and the Preferred View:
After understanding all these hadiths, it becomes clear that black dye is absolutely haram for everyone. This is the view of the majority of scholars, as mentioned in
.
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him):
He said in
:
“There is no disagreement in these hadiths; two things are prohibited:
Plucking white hairs
Dyeing black
And permission is only for henna or yellow dye, as was the practice of the noble Companions.”
A group of scholars have said that black dye is disliked, and without doubt this is the correct view.
Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him):
He was asked: “Do you consider black dye disliked?” He said:
“Yes, by Allah!”
Differing Views:
Some scholars have permitted black dye, including the companions of Abu Hanifah, and in some narrations it is also reported from Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) and Husayn (may Allah be pleased with him).
However, there are objections to these narrations, and even if they are established, no one’s statement is authoritative against the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The Sunnah of the Prophet ﷺ is the most worthy of being followed.
The Fatwa of Sayyid Sabiq:
Sayyid Sabiq permitted black dye in
, which is incorrect.
Likewise, his statement that dyeing is not a Sunnah but a custom is also incorrect. Rather, it is a continuous Sunnah.
Abu al-Barakat:
In
, he established a chapter:
“Chapter: Changing white hair with henna, indigo and the like, and the disliking of black dye”
Then he mentioned hadiths on this topic.
Conclusion:
◈ Plucking white hairs is not permissible
◈ Dyeing hair with black dye is haram
◈ Dyeing with henna or yellow dye is preferable and a Sunnah
ھذا ما عندي، واللہ أعلم بالصواب
