BEAUTIFICATION OF WOMEN IN ISLAM

CONCEPT OF WOMEN IN ISLAM:-The experiences of Muslim women

(Arabic: ‫ مسلمات‬Muslimāt, singular ‫ مسلمة‬Muslima) vary widely between and within different
societies. At the same time, their adherence to Islam is a shared factor that affects their
lives to a varying degree and gives them a common identity that may serve to bridge the
wide cultural, social, and economic differences between them.
Among the influences which have played an important role in defining the social,
spiritual and cosmological status of women in the course of Islamic history are Islam's
sacred text, the Qur'an; the Ḥadīths, which are traditions relating to the deeds and
aphorisms of Islam's Prophet Muḥammad; ijmā', which is a consensus, expressed or
tacit, on a question of law; qiyās, the principle by which the laws of the Qur'an and the
Sunnah or Prophetic custom, are applied to situations not explicitly covered by these
two sources of legislation; and fatwas, non-binding published opinions or decisions
regarding religious doctrine or points of law. Additional influences include pre-Islamic
cultural traditions; secular laws, which are fully accepted in Islam so long as they do not
directly contradict Islamic precepts; religious authorities, including government-
controlled agencies such as the Indonesian Ulema Council and Turkey's Diyanet and
spiritual teachers, which are particularly prominent in Islamic mysticism or Sufism. Many
of the latter – including perhaps most famously, Ibn al-'Arabī – have themselves
produced texts that have elucidated the metaphysical symbolism of the feminine
principle in Islam.
There is considerable variation as to how the above sources are interpreted by
Orthodox Muslims, both Sunni and Shi'a – approximately 90% of the world's Muslim
population – and ideological fundamentalists, most notably those subscribing to
Wahhabism or salafism, who comprise roughly 9% of the total. In particular, Wahhabis
and Salafists tend to reject mysticism and theology outright; this has profound
implications for the way that women are perceived within these ideological
sects. Conversely, within Islamic Orthodoxy, both the established theological schools
and Sufism are at least somewhat influential.

BEAUTIFICATION OF WOMEN IN ISLAM:- It’s the 21st century and women all over the
world, Muslim or not, are being influenced to adhere to the impossible beauty standards
set my mainstream; flawless faces, pointy noses, high cheekbones, archy eyebrows,
flawless pearly whites, pouty lips and countless other features women ‘must’ have to be
considered beautiful today. The bummer here is that most of these alterations Muslim
women are influenced to do in order to meet the impossible beauty standards are
actually prohibited in Islam.
Islam teaches that Allah, the ultimate creator created everyone perfectly and trying to
alter it in any way; tattooing, using extensions, trying to straighten teeth, etc. is haram
(forbidden) because it is equivalent to asserting that Allah’s creation is imperfect and
you can do a better a job. Here are a few rulings about beautifications for women in
Islam.
As Narrated by Abdullah, “Allah has cursed those women who practise tattooing and
those who get it done for themselves, and those who remove hair from their faces, and
those who artificially create spaces between their teeth to look beautiful, such women
as alter the features created by Allah. Why should I not then curse those whom Allah’s
Apostle has cursed and that is in Allah’s Book?” Sahih Bukhari.
As Narrated Asma: (the daughter of Abu’ Bakr) A woman came to Allah’s Apostle and
said, “I married my daughter to someone, but she became sick and all her hair fell out,
and (because of that) her husband does not like her. May I let her use false hair?” On
that the Prophet cursed such a lady as artificially lengthening (her or someone else’s)
hair or got her hair lengthened artificially. (Sahih Bukhari).
It is confirmed that the Prophet (P.B.U.H) cursed the one who has them removed and
the one who removed them. The scholars have stated that the Hadith is in reference to
those who remove eyebrow hairs.

Allowing the fingernails to grow counters the ruling of the sunnah of the Prophet
(P.B.U.H). He said, “From the acts of nature are five: circumcision, removing pubic
hairs, trimming the moustache, cutting the nails and plucking the hair from under the
armpits.”

It is prohibited to leave them for more than forty nights. This is based on the Hadith of
Anas who said, “The Messenger of Allah set a time limit for us for trimming the
moustache, trimming nails, removing armpit hairs and removing pubic hairs. They
cannot be left for more than forty nights.” Letting them grow long resembles animals and
some of the disbelievers.

Wearing false eyelashes for the purpose of beautifying is not permissible as this is
changing the creation of Allah mainly if the eyelashes are permanent.

Wearing contact lenses is prohibited if it is not necessary, as that expresses deceit and
concealing the reality because they make the eyes appear in a colour other than their
natural colour

As for nail polish, it is better to avoid it. One must remove it when making ablution since
it prevents water from reaching the nails.