Question:

What do the scholars of Islam say about micropigmentation of the scalp to hide baldness?

Answer:

In modern society cosmetic surgery and tattooing is common, in the Prophet’s time, it was also a fashion among women. Tattooing is performed by piercing the body with needle for drawing out blood and then filling this cavity with dye of antimony, indigo, etc., to make the spot green or black. This is called tattooing. This is considered by some scholars as body modification, a deliberate change to the ones body to change how it looks. It can range from tattoos, piercings, gilding teeth with gold, hair extension, skin implants to plastic surgery and more. What are the motives of this practice? Some people want to look beautiful or scary. They often quote this verse: “Those who worship idols invoke nothing but female deities besides and Satan, a persistent rebel! Cursed by Allah. The Satan said: ‘I will take fixed number of your slaves and mislead them and arouse false desires in them; furthermore, I will tell them to slit the ears of cattle, and to change the nature created by Allah’…” (Al-Nisa: 117-119). So, they conclude that it is prohibited to interfere, modify, and disfigure any part of Allah’s creation.

Here are two ahadith that further add weight to this opinion of the scholars. Asma’ said: A woman came to the Prophet and asked, “Messenger of Allah, I have a daughter who had an attack of smallpox and her hair fell out. Now I want to celebrate her marriage, so can I get her a wig?” The Prophet said, “Allah has cursed the maker and wearer of wig.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Ibn ‘Umar said: The Messenger of Allah cursed the maker and wearer of a wig; the one who tattoos and the one who is tattooed. [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Another opinion is that it is allowed. They cite a hadith that is agreed upon in which an angel comes to three men one is blind, second is alopecia, and third is bald. So, the angel asks them what their wish is, it’s obvious they want to get rid of their defect, so the angel fulfils their wish to become sighted, free from white skin patches and gain full head with hair. The scholars conclude that it’s allowed to have your defects cured and remedied.

So, in conclusion if any of the procedures are genuinely done for correcting a defect it is allowed, but if it is done for vanity, showing off or playfully then it’s considered disliked or forbidden.

Allah ﷻ knows the best.

This Fatwa is written by Dr Musharraf Husain Al-Azhari

Director of British Fatwa Council UK