Darul Ifta Ibn Masood

Where exactly should Surmah (antimony) be applied?

Published as Applying Surmah to the eyes

· 29 Shawwal 1443 AH1 min readEnglish

Question

Where exactly should Surmah (antimony) be applied? Should it be applied to the eyelid or the white of the eye?

Answer

The Ahadith recorded in Shamaa’il-e-Tirmidhi state that Ithmid (a special Surmah which is reddish black in colour) should be applied to the eye which will strengthen one’s vision and cause the eyelashes to grow. A narration of Ibn Abbas Radiallahu Anhu states that Rasulullah Salallahu Alaihi Wasallam used to apply Ithmid Surmah before sleeping, in each eye, thrice. From this narration it seems that the Surmah should be applied to the eye and consequently it will be applied to the eyelids as well.

References (Arabic / Urdu sources)

عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ أَنَّ النبي صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّم َ قال:اكْتَحِلُوا بِالْإِثْمِدِ فَإِنَّهُ يَجْلُو الْبَصَرَ وَيُنْبِتُ الشَّعْرَ وزعم أن النبي صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّم َ كَانَتْ لَهُ مُكْحُلَةٌ يَكْتَحِلُ مِنْهَا (شمائل ترمذي ص34 مكتبة الشيخ)

عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ قَالَ: كَانَّ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَكْتَحِلُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَنَامَ بِالْإِثْمِدِ ثَلَاثًا فِي كُلِّ عَيْنٍ وَقَالَ يَزِيدُ بْنُ هَارُونَ، فِي حَدِيثِهِ: إِنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ كَانَتْ لَهُ مُكْحُلَةٌ يَكْتَحِلُ مِنْهَا عِنْدَ النَّوْمِ ثَلَاثًا فِي كُلِّ عَيْنٍ (شمائل ترمذي ص35 مكتبة الشيخ)

Answered by
Mufti Mohammed Desai
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Source: Darul Ifta Ibn Masood — https://fataawa.co.za/applying-surmah-to-the-eyes/
Fatawa SA: https://fatawa.co.za/fatwa/ibnmasood-18225

People also ask

Is wearing make-up permissible?

“If the surmah is on the skin of the face, then it should be washed off when making wudu. If it is not washed off and wudu is made, then if it does not prevent the water from reaching the face, then the wudu will be valid.”

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