Is It Permitted to Wear a Protective Amulet Whilst in a State of Pilgrim Sanctity?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

Is it permitted to wear a protective amulet whilst in a state of pilgrim sanctity?

Answer: Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullah,

Yes, it is permitted to wear a protective amulet (ta‘widh/ruqya) whilst in a state of pilgrim sanctity (ihram).

Stitches and stitching aren’t inherently impermissible, but rather, the interdiction relates to wearing clothing in a normal manner. Accordingly, watches, [eye] glasses, belts and the like are excusable as they are not considered to be clothing.

Tabarani and Daraqutni both relate from Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be well-pleased with him) that he permitted the wearing of a ring and the like in a state of pilgrim sanctity. Similar reports can be found from ‘A’isha (may Allah be well-pleased with her).

[Birgivi, al-Tariqa al-Muhammadiyya; ‘Ayni, Minhat al-Suluk fi Sharh Tuhfat al-Muluk (299); Shurunbulali, Maraqi al-Falah, with Tahtawi’s Gloss (2.414)]

Please also see: Is Using a Ta’wiz (Amulet) Permissible? and: Can I Wear Stitched Footgear, Belts, or a Backpack While in Ihram? and: Can Women Wear Ornaments While Performing Umrah? and: A Hajj Reader

And Allah Most High knows best.

wassalam,

[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.