Answered by Ustadh Shuaib Ally
Question: As salam alaikum,
Recently I was advised that wearing a ring in the index finger of the right hand is not permitted/disliked in Islam.
Can you shed some light on this?Is it the same ruling if its worn on the left hand index finger? Does the same ruling apply to both men and women?
Answer: wa `alaykum assalam
For women: It is permissible, by consensus, to wear rings on her fingers, on any hand, without it being disliked.
For men: It is permissible, among all schools, to wear a ring on his little finger.
It remains permissible for men to wear it on any other finger, but is disliked by some scholars, such as in the Shafi’i school. Some, such as the Hanbali school, restricted this dislike to only the index or middle fingers.
It also remains permissible for men to wear it on either hand. However, in making sense of the various reports regarding where the Prophet (peace be upon him) and others wore their rings, scholars have held varying preferences. Some, like the Hanbali school, held that the left hand is recommended, the right disliked. The Shafi’i school generally held that while either is permissible, the right is better.
Because the matter is open to some interpretation and there is room for disagreement, there doesn’t seem to be any need to strongly advise others regarding their ring-wearing preferences.
Sources: al-Mawsu’ah al-Fiqhiyyah al-Kuwaitiyyah; Sharh al-Nawawi ‘ala Sahih Muslim; Fath al-Mulhim; Nihayat al-Muhtaj; Tuhfat al-Muhtaj; Kashshaf al-Qina’; al-Iqna’
Shuaib Ally