Question : A question was asked as to whether one can dye one’s hair black.

Fatwa in Brief: Dying one’s hair black is prohibited.

Shaykh Ibn al-‘Uthaymin, Majmu‘ Fatawa, 11/123

Response:

The act of dying one’s hair black is disagreed upon: some prohibit the practice; others dislike it; while others deem it acceptable.

Commentary:

In a hadith included in the collection of Abu Dawud, the Prophet (upon him be peace) observes: “He who has hair should honor it”. There are other hadiths, considered sound (sahih) by some scholars, in support of the meaning of this. Indeed, there are many ways “to honor” the hair, and these differ according to both man and woman. Each should do what suites him/her best. Therefore, Muslims may brush their hair, put cream in it, and/or dye it to hide grey hairs.

The Muslim scholars discuss dyeing one’s hair black. Most prohibit Muslims from doing so. However, their opinions are based on [materials pertaining to] men, or to fraud, as in the case of old women who were pretending to be young, so as to [re]marry. However, as regards a married woman, whose husband knows [that she dyes her hair], there is no harm in her doing so. Indeed, we find that Ibn al-Jawzi even permits men to dye their hair. What underpins this prohibition, however, is the idea that old men [in particular] should be more concerned with preparing themselves to meet God, than with worrying about the colour and condition of their hair.

According to the Hanbali law school, dyeing one’s grey hairs is recommended, though dying these black is legally disliked (makruh). Ishaq ibn Rahawiyya permits a woman to beautify herself by dyeing her hair black for her husband. In turn, [he declares] that it is not disliked (makruh) for a man to dye his hair black if he does so to prepare for war (jihad). According to the Shafi‘i school, it is recommended for men and women to dye their grey hair yellow or red, though black is prohibited. [To recap] scholars disagree on the subject of dying one’s hair black: some prohibit it, some consider it disliked; while others deem it permitted.

In the Fatwa Centre, under the Supervision of Dr. ‘Abdullah al-Faqih:

There is no harm in a man or woman dyeing their hair any color, other than black. On this point, scholars disagree regarding the matter to fall somewhere between the categories of disliked (makruh) and prohibited (haram). And this opinion is the preferred one [of the majority].[1]

Dr. Ahmad ‘Id