Question and Answer Details
Name of Questioner
J. K.
Title
Islams Stance on Tattooing
Question
Dear scholars, As-salamu `alaykum. Ive asked this question before but have not gotten a reply. Is it forbidden in Islam to have ones body tattooed? Jazakum Allah khayran.
Date
29/May/2005
Name of Counsellor
Ahmad Kutty
Topic
Dress & Adornment
Answer
Wa `alaykum as-salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
Dear questioner, we would like to thank you for the great confidence you place in us, and we implore Allah Almighty to help us serve His cause and render our work for His sake.
Islam denounces excesses in personal beautification when they alter the physical features that Allah created one with. The Glorious Quran considers such alterations as inspired by Satan, who (will command them (his devotees) to change what Allah has created) (An-Nisaa 4:119).
Tattooing is one of those excesses. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is reported to have cursed the tattooer and the tattooed.
In his response to your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states:
Tattooing, in all forms and stripes, is explicitly forbidden in Islam by the categorical statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) who said, Allah curses those who receive tattooing and practice it
thus seeking to distort Allahs creation" (Al-Bukhari and Muslim).
We are reassured in the Quran that when Allah declares something as forbidden He does so only because of the ills associated with it, for Allah tells us in the Quran that He has permitted for us all the good things, while He has forbidden only that which is harmful and impure for us. In other words, things are forbidden only because of the harm, ills, and adverse effects associated with them. Allah says, (Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find described in their Torah and Gospelhe will enjoin on them good and forbid them evil, he will make lawful for them all good things and prohibit for them what is foul, and he will relieve them of their burden and the fetters that were upon themthose that believe in him, honor him, support him, and follow the light which has been sent down with him: they are the successful) (Al-A`raf 7:157).
Although in some societies, past and present, tattooing has often been touted as a hallmark of fashion, researches have disclosed a number of adverse health effects and infectious diseases associated with tattoos such as:
- Viral infections such as hepatitis, HIV, and cutaneous infections;
- Bacterial infections such as impetigo, toxic shock syndrome, tetanus, venereal ulcer, tuberculosis and leprosy;
- Fungal infections such as sporotrichosis and zygomycosis;
- Allergic reactions such as cutaneous irritation and urticaria;
- Granulomateus/lichenoid reactions;
- Pseudo-lymphomas;
- Lymphadenopathy;
- Sarcoidosis;
- Malignant lesions such as melanoma and skin cancer;
- Behavioral changes;
- Other skin diseases such as psoriasis, photosensitisation, phototoxicity and photogenotoxicity.
For details see the following Web sites:
http://www.jrc.cec.eu.int/ and
http://europa.eu.int/comm/consumers/cons_safe/news/eis_tattoo_proc_052003_en.pdf.
All of the above is what we have been able to discover so far in light of our limited scientific knowledge; who knows what other adverse health effects associated with such practices are yet to be discovered. We certainly bear witness that Allah is Infinite in Wisdom and that His decree for us is good for us.
In light of the above, we can truly appreciate the wisdom inherent in the Islamic interdict against practices such as tattooing. May Allah grant us the humility to trust in Gods will and may He forgive us all our evil thoughts, words, and deeds, and guide us unto the straight path. Ameen.
www.fatwa.org
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