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Alcoholic Perfumes and Shampoos

Answered as per Hanafi Fiqh by IslamicPortal.co.uk

Many perfumes and shampoos contain some form of alcohol. Is it permissible to use such perfumes and shampoos?

Answer

بسم الله الرحمن الرحیم

Generally, the alcohol used in perfumed and shampoos is not sourced from grapes or dates or ethanol and is not intoxicating. It is therefore permissible to use such perfumes and shampoos (Aḥsan al-Fatāwā, 8: 486; Takmilah Fatḥ al-Mulhim, 3: 608). It is worth noting that alcohol has thousands of types and forms as apparent from the study of Organic Chemistry. The Arabic term ‘Khamr’ usually translated as alcohol, is not an accurate translation, as ‘Khamr’ refers to specific types of alcohols. It is nevertheless preferable to use the traditional non-alcoholic perfumes in accordance with the Prophetic Sunnah.

Allah knows best

Yusuf Shabbir

17 Rabīʿ al-Awwal 1427 / 15 April 2006

This answer was collected from IslamicPortal.co.uk, which is a repository of Islamic Q&A, articles, books, and resources. Various schools write and oversee the answers, including Maulana Yusuf Shabbir, Mufti Shabbir Ahmed, and Mufti Muhammad Tahir. 

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