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Is it permissible for a woman to go out wearing light makeup, or clear nail polish, or a light fragrance that does not cause temptation? And have scholars differed in their interpretation of the hadith: "Any woman who perfumes herself and passes by a gathering of people so that they may smell her fragrance is an adulteress"?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

A woman is not permitted to display her adornments, such as makeup and the like, to non-mahram men, except for those mentioned by Allah in the verse (An-Nur/31). It is also forbidden for her to go out perfumed in such a way that non-mahram men can smell her scent. This is considered a metaphorical form of zina for one who intends it, and it is forbidden for one who does not intend it but strongly believes that men will smell her scent, though with less sin. The meaning of fragrance includes the display of adornments, beautiful clothes, the sound of anklets and jewelry, and all of these things women must be prevented from when going out. Furthermore, a woman must cover her face and hands from non-mahram men.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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