Answered by Shaykh Irshaad Sedick
Question
What is the ruling of using skincare products that contain fermented extract i.e., Mugwort and Ginseng, etc. which is vegan and alcohol-free? Would it still be considered unlawful and/or filth (najis) because it is extracted from the fermentation process even though it does not contain alcohol?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
Skincare products, such as those described, are lawful to use. The process of fermentation is not intrinsically unlawful. It is the byproduct of fermentation, ethanol, that usually poses a problem. Though ethanol is not listed as an ingredient in the described products, there is, however, probably still some traces of ethanol as a result of the fermentation process, but this too does not pose an irreconcilable problem, and the products remain permissible to use. Allah knows best.
The Shafi‘i School on Liquid Intoxicants
According to the dominant view of the Shafiʿi School (Madhhab), najasa or ritualistic filth includes wine and any liquid intoxicants. [Nawawi, Minhaj Al-Talibin]
The alcohol widely used as a solvent today is denatured ethanol. Denatured ethanol is made unfit for human consumption through the addition of toxins, such as methanol, naphtha, and pyridine, or bittering agents such as denatonium benzoate. However, adding toxins and bittering agents does not remove the ability of ethanol to intoxicate; it only adds toxicity and a bitter taste to its existing attributes. As such, since filth (najasa) includes any liquid that can intoxicate, denatured ethanol must be regarded as najasa [according to the preponderant view of the Shafi’i School]. That it can kill, is an additional and coincidental attribute that does not eliminate the point of intoxication. [Karaan, Shellac – a Fiqhi Appraisal]
Practical Application of Rulings About Najasa in the Modern Era
There is widespread usage of denatured ethanol in products such as fruit juice, paint, ink, hand cleaners, soaps, cream, and lotions in the modern era. This widespread usage means that strict adherence to the original dominant view of the Shafiʿi School is challenging, if not impossible. Generally, contemporary Shafi’i scholars do not practice or advocate practicing strictly according to the School’s dominant view in this regard, but recommend general precaution where possible, “while it is religiously more precautionary to treat them as filth.” [Keller, Reliance of the Traveler]
Contemporary Shafi‘i scholars have and continue to encourage practice according to alternative views which do not view alcohol (denatured or other) as filth, and Allah knows best.
See the attached answer:
Are Substances Mixed With Alcohol Excused According to the Shafi’i School?
I pray that this helps.
[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar, Shaykh Taha Karaan.
Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Mawlana Yusuf Karaan, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.
He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has served as the Director of the Discover Islam Centre and Al Jeem Foundation. For the last five years till present, he has served as the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.
Shaykh Irshaad has thirteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town). He is currently building an Islamic online learning and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and pursuing his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy living and fitness.