Does Trichomycosis Prevent the Validity of My Ritual Bath?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Ustadh Sufyan Qufi
Question
Does Trichomycosis axillaris prevent water from reaching hair during ghusl or is it excused?
Answer
In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
I pray this finds you in the best of states.
Trichomycosis axillaris is a superficial bacterial infection of underarm hair.
This infection which produces a thick body of matter around the hair cannot be removed by using water alone. This indicates that this infection constitutes a physical barrier preventing water from reaching the hair underneath. Thus a ritual bath performed while being affected by this infection is invalid. [Shurunbulali, Nur al-Idah]
The easiest way to deal with this issue is to simply fulfill the Prophetic Sunna of plucking or shaving one’s armpits.
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings upon him) said: “Five things are part of the fitra: circumcision, shaving the pubes, cutting the nails, plucking the armpit hairs, and trimming the mustache.” [Bukhari]
This is also one of the most common ways modern medicine deals with this issue.
And Allah knows best.
Wassalam
[Ustadh] Sufyan Qufi
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadh Sufyan Qufi is an advanced seeker of knowledge, originally from Algeria, who grew up in France. He began searching far and wide for answers to the fundamental questions of life and was disappointed at the answers he found.
Then he connected with various traditional teachers and gradually connected with SeekersGuidance. He embarked on his journey of learning through the various teachers at SeekersGuidance, including his mentor Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.
He studied numerous texts in Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith, and other areas with Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and other teachers, including Shaykh Abdurrahman al-Sha‘ar, Shaykh Ali Hani, and others.
He is an active instructor at SeekersGuidance and answers questions through the SeekersGuidance Answers Service.
