Question:
Assalamualaikum. I would like to ask. What is the original ruling of opening a beauty centre if it is specifically for women? Hope for an explanation from ustaz.
Brief Answer:
The ruling of opening a beauty centre is permissible as long as it does not provide beauty services which are prohibited or matters contradict with shara’. So, we state here some guidelines to open a beauty centre:
- The act of adorning and beautifying shall be aligned with shara’ which is without having any elements of fabrication and does not change Allah SWT’s creation.
- Does not provide prohibited services like drawing tattoo, shaving the eyebrow and hair extension.
- The apparatus and cosmetic materials in use shall be pure and not harmful.
- The beauty centre premise is not revealing and opened until awrah is exposed.
- Specify the beauty centre for customers and staffs of the same gender.
Explanation:
Alhamdulillah, praise and thanks to Allah for the countless blessings He has blessed us all with. Blessings and salutations to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his wives, his family, companions and all those that follow his teachings to the day of judgement.
The evolving of the beauty world is exponential nowadays that many women do not adorn themselves in their house anymore, but rather choose beauty services provided in the beauty centres. Islam allows its ummah to adorn and beautify themselves minimally and without tabarruj (being excessive in adorning).
Adorning and beautifying oneself is the best deed before performing the prayer. This is mentioned in the saying of Allah SWT:
يَا بَنِي آدَمَ خُذُوا زِينَتَكُمْ عِندَ كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍ
O children of Adam, take your adornment at every masjid
Surah al-A’raf (31)
Adornment meant by the above verse is clothing that covers the awrah to perform the prayer. In addition, wearing the best clothes to perform the prayer is sunnah of the Prophet PBUH. This verse is also a dalil of the obligation of covering the awrah while performing the prayer. (Refer Tafsir al-Baidhawi, 3/405)
Besides, Allah SWT says in another verse on the permissibility of adorning oneself:
قُلْ مَنْ حَرَّمَ زِينَةَ اللَّـهِ الَّتِي أَخْرَجَ لِعِبَادِهِ وَالطَّيِّبَاتِ مِنَ الرِّزْقِ
Say, "Who has forbidden the adornment of Allah which He has produced for His servants and the good [lawful] things of provision?"
Surah al-A’raf (32)
Coming back to the presented question, the ruling of opening a business shall be seen to the original rule of the contract of muamalat among humans which is valid and permissible. (Refer al-Qawa’id li Ibn Rejab, pg. 340)
It is stated as such due to the saying of Allah SWT:
فَإِذَا قُضِيَتِ الصَّلَاةُ فَانتَشِرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَابْتَغُوا مِن فَضْلِ اللَّـهِ وَاذْكُرُوا اللَّـهَ كَثِيرًا لَّعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ
And when the prayer has been concluded, disperse within the land and seek from the bounty of Allah, and remember Allah often that you may succeed.
Surah al-Jumu’ah (10)
Allah SWT says:
هُوَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ لَكُم مَّا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا
It is He who created for you all of that which is on the earth.
Surah al-Baqarah (29)
As we all know, most beauty centres provide services of beautifying and adorning as well as selling beauty stuff and products. Therefore, a question arises, what is the ruling of taking wage (ijarah) from the service of beautifying and adorning offered?
Imam Ibn Hajar al-Haitami states in his book:
يَصِحُّ الِاسْتِئْجَارُ لِلْخِدْمَةِ ثُمَّ إنْ عَيَّنَا شَيْئًا اُتُّبِعَ وَإِلَّا اتَّبَعَ الْعُرْفُ اللَّائِقَ بِالْأَجِيرِ وَالْمُسْتَأْجِرِ
“It is valid to take wage due to service. If both payer and receiver state something in the service, follow. If not, do follow the local practice of the payer and receiver.”
(Refer Tuhfah al-Muhtaj, Ibn Hajar al-Haitami, 24/378)
Based on the above statement, the ruling of taking a wage from services offered is permissible as decided by both the beautician and customer.
Besides, the permissibility of taking a wage from the beauty services is also mentioned in a legal maxim:
الأصل في الأشياء الإباحة حتى يدل الدليل على التحريم
“The original (basic) law for everything is permitted unless there is an indication that shows the forbidden state of it.”
(Refer al-Asybah wa al-Naza’ir, al-Suyuti, pg. 60)
This maxim is a maxim to determine something which dalil is not stated, is halal. This is also based on the opinion of Imam al-Shafi’e that halal matters are matters with no dalil of prohibition. (Refer al-Mantsur fi al-Qawa’id al-Fiqhiyyah, Imam al-Zarkasyi, 2/70-71)
Therefore, based on the dalil mentioned above, opening a beauty centre is a business permissible in Islam aligns with the original rule of adorning itself which is something permitted. However, if the beauty centre commits something haram in adorning like drawing face tattoo, then the ruling of the beauty centre in that sense is haram. This is in accordance with the saying of Allah SWT, to avoid being considered as cooperating towards sins:
وَتَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْبِرِّ وَالتَّقْوَىٰ ۖ وَلَا تَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى الْإِثْمِ وَالْعُدْوَانِ ۚ وَاتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ ۖ إِنَّ اللَّـهَ شَدِيدُ الْعِقَابِ
And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in penalty.
Surah al-Ma’idah (2)
Adornments Which are Haram
Islam permits adorning and beautifying as long as it is not tabarruj or wasteful. Allah SWT says:
وَلَا تَبَرَّجْنَ تَبَرُّجَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ الْأُولَ
and do not display yourselves as [was] the display of the former times of ignorance.
Surah al-Ahzab (33)
Imam al-Qurtubi states in his Tafsir:
الْمَقْصُودَ مِنَ الْآيَةِ مُخَالَفَةُ مَنْ قَبْلَهُنَّ مِنَ الْمِشْيَةِ عَلَى تَغْنِيجٍ وَتَكْسِيرٍ وَإِظْهَارِ الْمَحَاسِنِ لِلرِّجَالِ، إِلَى غَيْرِ ذَلِكَ مِمَّا لَا يَجُوزُ شَرْعًا
What is meant by the above verse is for women to not do as what is done by those women of the pasts (during the time of ignorance) in terms of the way they walked which is coquettish and seductive as well as displaying their adornment to the men in which all of those are prohibited by shara’
(Refer Tafsir al-Qurtubi, 14/180)
In addition, he also states that tabarruj originally is displaying something that is better to be concealed.
Islam put the permitted limitations in adorning which is as long as the adorning does not contain the elements of fabrication or change of the creation of Allah SWT. This is based on a hadith narrated by Abdullah bin Mas’ud RA:
لَعَنَ اللَّهُ الْوَاشِمَاتِ وَالْمُسْتَوْشِمَاتِ، وَالْمُتَنَمِّصَاتِ وَالْمُتَفَلِّجَاتِ لِلْحُسْنِ، الْمُغَيِّرَاتِ خَلْقَ اللَّهِ
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 altering the features created by Allah.
Narrated by al-Bukhari in Sahih al-Bukhari (4886) and Muslim in Sahih Muslim (2125)
Imam al-Nawawi said in his book Syarah:
وَهَذَا الْفِعْلُ حَرَامٌ عَلَى الْفَاعِلَةِ وَالْمَفْعُولِ بِهَا لِهَذِهِ الْأَحَادِيثِ وَلِأَنَّهُ تَغْيِيرٌ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَلِأَنَّهُ تَزْوِيرٌ وَلِأَنَّهُ تَدْلِيسٌ
And the action is haram upon the doer and the one who asked upon based on the hadith. It is because the action is changing the creation of Allah SWT and fabrication and falsehood.
(Refer al-Minhaj Syarh al-Nawawi ‘ala Muslim,14/107)
Besides, as a Muslim who opens the beauty centre shall always take the importance of the awrah between the same gender and even for different gender. It is haram for men to open a beauty centre for women and vice versa.
Therefore, we state here some guidelines for opening the beauty centre:
- Adorning and beautifying shall follow shara’ guidelines which are having no elements of fabrication and do not change the creation of Allah SWT.
- Does not offer prohibited services like drawing tattoo, shaving the eyebrows and hair extension.
- The materials and cosmetic apparatus used shall be pure and not harmful.
- Beauty centre premise shall not be revealing and opened until awrah is exposed.
- Specifying the beauty centre for customers and staffs of the same gender.
CONCLUSION
After analysing the arguments presented, we conclude that the ruling of opening a beauty centre is permissible as long as the centre does not provide beauty services contradict with shara’ like hair extension or using cosmetics which are harmful. This aligns with human nature to appear beautiful especially the women, but shall always follow guidelines of adorning set by shara’.
Wallahu a’lam.