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What is the ruling on dyeing hair black for a woman whose hair has turned gray prematurely, and she does not intend to deceive, and her husband is aware of it? And what are the sayings of the Four Madhhabs on this?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Scholars have differed on the ruling of dyeing hair black, but the most correct and sunnah-compliant view is its prohibition, based on the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) saying: "Change this with something, but avoid black," and his (peace be upon him) saying: "Towards the end of time, there will be people who dye their hair black like the crops of pigeons; they will not smell the fragrance of Paradise."

The Hanafis, Malikis, and Hanbalis consider it reprehensible for a man to dye his hair black, except in jihad. The Shafi'is, however, view dyeing hair black as generally forbidden, except for jihad.

There is no difference in the prohibition of dyeing hair black between men and women, except that some jurists permitted a woman to adorn herself with it for her husband if he allows her.

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

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