Wearing Hair in a Bun at the Back of the Head Under the Hijaab
Compiled & Translated
by
Abbas Abu Yahya
The Hadeeth
From Abu Hurairah who said the Messenger of Allaah -SallAllaahu alayhi wa Sallam- said:
صنفان من أهل النار لم أرهما قوم معهم سياط كأذناب البقر يضربون بها الناس ونساء كاسيات عاريات مميلات مائلات رءوسهن كأسنمة البخت المائلة لا يدخلن الجنة ولا يجدن ريحها وإن ريحها ليوجد من مسيرة كذا وكذا
‘There are two types of the people of the Hell-Fire who I have not seen, a people who have whips like cows’ tails with which they are hitting the people, and women who will be naked in spite of being dressed, who are seduced (to wrong paths) and seduce others, their heads will be high like a camel with humps they will not enter Paradise, nor will they find its fragrance, even though its fragrance can be found from travelling such and such distance.’
[Collected by Imam Ahmad in ‘al-Musnad’ & Muslim in ‘as-Saheeh’]
Shaykh, Allaama, Muhadith Muhammad Nasir Deen al-Albaani – May Allaah have mercy upon him.
The Questioner:
‘What is the ruling of a woman gathering her hair above her neck at the back of the head whereby it is shaped like a ball, taking into consideration that when a woman covers herself with Hijaab the shape of her hair would be apparent from her Hijaab?’
Shaykh Albaani said:
‘This is a mistake many women who wear Hijaab fall into, whereby they gather their hair at the back of the head and it bulges out from the back of their head, even though they have covered it with covering Hijaab over it.
Indeed this opposes a condition from the conditions of Hijaab, which I had gathered in my book ‘Hijaab Al-Marata Al-Muslimah min Al-Kitab wa Sunnah‘. From these conditions is that the clothing should not show the shape of the limb or anything from the woman’s body, this is why it is not permissible for a woman to put her hair in a circular shape at the back of her head or at the side of her head whereby it bulges out, so that it appears to the one who sees her, even unintentionally that she has shaggy hair or that she has little hair.
It is obligatory that it is left hanging and not piled up/crumpled up.’
[From the cassette collection ‘Silsilah al-Huda wa Noor’ No.386, see http://albanyimam.com/play.php?catsmktba=13094]
The Ruling of a Woman Winding up her Hair at the Top of her head
Shaykh Allaama Muhammad bin Salih al-Uthaymeen – May Allaah have mercy upon him.
Question:
‘Some women gather their hair in the shape of a bun at the back of the head, does this enter into the warning mentioned in the Hadeeth: ‘Women whose heads will be like the inclined hump of a camel they will not enter Paradise’.
Shaykh al-Uthaymeen said:
‘If a woman gathers her hair for when she is busy working away, then afterwards she lets it down, then there is no harm in this, since she does not do this as an adornment or beautification but rather out of necessity.
As for gathering her hair and raising it up for the purpose of beautification, and it is facing upwards then it enters under the prohibition, due to the saying of the Prophet -sallAllahu alayhi wa sallam:
‘Their heads will be like the hump of a camel.’
A camel hump is at the top, and if the hair is above the neck then it does not enter under the Hadeeth. However, it is warned against doing so if a woman wants to go out to the market, since if she goes out to the market and gathers her hair on her head then it will appear from within her Abaya (outer garment), and it will cause attention, so she is prohibited from having this hair-style if she goes out to the market places.
[From ‘Liqa al-Baab al-Maftooh’ Tape 161, see: http://www.mktaba.org/vb/showthread.php?t=13165]