Can women cut their hair?
In the name of Allah, the most Beneficent, the most Merciful.
Answer
Keeping long hair for women is a sign of beauty. The angels in the sky praise women with long hair. (Fatawa Rahimiyah p.120 v.10)
Allahma Haskafi (RA) a famous Hanafi scholar wrote in his book Durre-Muhtar:
“A woman who cuts her hair will be sinful and cursed upon.” In Fatawa Bazaziyah it says “even if it is with the husbands consent as there is no reward in following a human in the disobedience of Allah (SWA).
Saaiduna Ali (RA) narrates a hadith where he has said that the Prophet of Allah (SAW) has prohibited women from shaving their heads. (Sunan Nasaai p.275 v.2)
Hazrat Ashraf Ali Thanwi (RA) has said it is haraam for women to shave or cut their hair. (Imdadul Fatawa p.217-218 v.4)
There are two main reasons upon why the jurists forbid women from cutting their hair.
- It is the trend of the disbelieving women nowadays who cut their hair.
- It is imitating men as men generally have short hair.
The imitation of the disbelievers and for women to imitate men has been mentioned in numerous hadiths:
The Prophet of Allah (SAW) has said:
“He who imitates any group of people is one of them.” (Sunan Abu Dawud P559 V.2)
The Prophet of Allah (SAW has also cursed those men who imitate women and those women who imitate men.” (Sahih Bukhari P874 V.2)
Thus the conclusion is that it is not permissible for women to cut their hair based on the above-mentioned hadith’s and texts.
However if the women’s hair is so long that it has reached or passed her bottom then it will be permissible to cut the extra hair until the bottom. (Fatawa Rahimiyah P120 v10)
Only Allah Knows Best.
Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
