How Much Hair Must I Remove After Hajj/Umrah if My Hair Is Already Short?
Answered by Ustadh Salman Younas
Question
I went to Hajj and did one umrah (a second one) and used a zero trimmer machine to remove my hair. My hair was minimal as I did an umrah (first) earlier and removed all my hair using the same machine. After my 2nd umrah, I had doubts if this was correct or not. I did umrah again before leaving for Hajj, and that time I shaved the hair off. After coming back, I found out that, as per Hanafi Fiqh, 1/3 hair length is minimum to cut, and I have been following most of the Hanafi rulings. Now, what should I do? Do I need to give a dum? Also, is my second umrah valid?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
Assalamu alaykum
The minimum amount that needs to be trimmed off the hair is the extent of a fingertip from a quarter of one’s head, although it is optimal to cut this hair from the entire head. A “fingertip” is defined as one-third of the finger, namely the extent of the first finger joint, and is roughly two centimeters. (Ibn Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar)
If one’s hair is shorter than this amount, then one has to shave a minimum of a quarter of one’s head. Therefore, you should have shaved your head during the second umrah. Because you did not, you will owe a damm. Your second umrah will be valid, however.
[Ustadh] Salman
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadh Salman Younas was born and raised in New York and graduated from Stony Brook University with a degree in Political Science and Religious Studies. After studying the Islamic sciences online and with local scholars in New York, Ustadh Salman moved to Amman. There he studies Islamic law, legal methodology, belief, hadith methodology, logic, Arabic, and tafsir. Ustadh Salman’s personal interests include research into the fields of law/legal methodology, hadith, theology, as well as political theory, government, media, and ethics. He is also an avid traveler and book collector. He currently resides in Amman with his wife.
