Q. When I mention to my friends that doing the eyebrows is forbidden in Islam, they find it very strange and show great reluctance to accept it. When I tell them that it is permissible for a woman to cut her hair short, they refuse to accept, saying that this is forbidden, including arms or legs hair. Please explain.
S. Javed
A. This question by a lady reader indicates how we sometimes take things for granted, and then we are shocked when we learn the Islamic rulings that relate to them. What is forbidden of make up practices is anything that seeks to change the way we have been created, unless what we do is meant to remove what is harmful. Thus the Prophet (peace be upon him) cursed women who thin their eyebrows, separate their teeth, add to their hair, and the women who help them do such things. He explains this by saying that these women “aim to appear pretty by altering God’s creation.” Needless to say that these practices may be fashionable in certain periods or certain communities, but not in others. Hence, the Prophet stated the reason why God curses such women, expelling them from His mercy, by stating the reason, which can be summarized as going out of one’s way in order not merely to have a beautiful appearance, but to attract men’s eyes. Thus, we may look in the same light at other practices that have the same nature and are done for the same purpose, such as changing the color of one’s skin, etc.
Having said this, we must qualify it with regard to cosmetic surgery that aim to correct certain defects in one’s body, or to treat the effects of accidents, such as skin grafting after suffering burns. Moreover, even if one has some congenital defect that causes one some problems, either physical or psychological, and it can be treated by cosmetic surgery, then such surgery is permissible. The aim here is to remove the cause of pain. Hence, the difference.
It is the tradition of certain Muslim communities that women should leave their hair uncut, allowing it to grow as long as it may. They think that for a woman to cut her hair is forbidden. What we must realize is that a verdict of prohibition requires evidence from the Qur’an or authentic Hadith. In the absence of such evidence, the practice concerned is permissible. This is based on two elements: 1) the rule that says that everything is permissible unless pronounced otherwise; and 2) the authority to forbid anything belongs to God alone. There is certainly nothing in the Qur’an to suggest that a woman must keep her hair long, or that cutting it short is forbidden. Moreover, I have never come across a Hadith to such effect. Nor have I heard it from anyone of my teachers. Moreover, women in many Muslim countries cut their hair short without provoking any objection by any scholar. What is voiced in certain Muslim communities on this point is cultural, and part of their social traditions. As such, it cannot be treated as religious.
The reader also asks about a certain Hadith she read and wants to know if it is authentic. I do not know this Hadith, and I cannot trace anything that has a similar purport. She should find out in which Hadith anthology it is reported. If it is just quoted without reference, she may dismiss it as unauthentic, because the idea it suggests is in direct conflict with Islamic values.
Graves and Mosques
Q. In Islam, it is forbidden to have graves in mosques. Please comment on the status of the Prophet’s mosque where he is buried.
S. Muzaffer
A. The Prophet (peace be upon him) was not buried in his mosque. He was buried in the place where he died, as happened with earlier prophets. After his death, his companions were discussing where to bury him, and Abu Bakr told them that he heard the Prophet saying: “Wherever a prophet died he was buried.” Therefore, his grave was dug at the spot where he died, in his wife’s, Aishah’s room. His home was adjacent to the mosque, not inside it. Thus, there is no question as to the legitimacy of what was done. It was perfectly appropriate, and according to the Prophet’s own instructions.
The Prophet’s mosque has been enlarged time after time. Its enlargement has been mostly to the side of his homes. Moreover, his grave is enclosed in the building where it has been. Nobody sees it, and there is a wall between it and the worshippers, wherever they happen to be. As such, there is no problem with this. It is perfectly appropriate.