Can women cut their hair by any margin? Is there a restriction on the length of women's hair?

Kindly find attached our reply to a similar query.%0D%0A%0D%0Aand Allah Ta'ala Knows Best%0D%0A%0D%0AMufti Ebrahim Desai%0D%0AFATWA DEPT.%0D%0A%0D%0AJazaakumullah for having placed your confidence in me and affording me the%0D%0Aopportunity to endeavour answering your query.%0D%0A%0D%0AThe Fuqahaa had sound knowledge of the different branches of Deen, Qur'aan,%0D%0AHadith, Fiqh, syntax, etymology, semantics, rhetoric, derivatives, lughaat,%0D%0Ailmul bayaan, ilmul Qira'ah, ilmul Aqaaid, Asbaabun nuzool, naasikh wa%0D%0Amansookh, etc. They were well versed with ilm riwaayatul hadeeth and ilm%0D%0Adiraayatul hadeeth which included mu'allaq, mu'dhal, munqati,%0D%0Atadlees-shuyookh, tadlees-taswiya, mursal khafi together with mudraj,%0D%0Amusahhaf, mudtarib, maqloob not forgetting munaawala, wijaada, mu'talif,%0D%0Amukhtalif, jarh mubham and ta'deel mufassar. They knew the implications of%0D%0Aa Dha'eef Hadith which had shawaahid and mutaaba'aat. They knew how to%0D%0Arecognize mudabbaj, muttafiq, muftariq and mazid fee muttasil asaaneed. They%0D%0Awere well-versed with haqeeqat muta'azzara, haqeeqat-mahjoora, haqeeqat%0D%0Amusta'mal, majaaz lughawi, majaaz aqli, bayaan taghyeer, bayaan daroora,%0D%0Abayaan tadbeel, istihsaan, istishaab haal, takhfeef isqaat, takhfef tanqees,%0D%0Atakhfeef ibdaal and takhfeef tarkhees. The mujtahideen deduced innumerable%0D%0Aprinciples from which many denominations were derived.%0D%0A%0D%0AI confess my ignorance and inability in answering you and I turn my gaze to%0D%0AAllah Ta'ala and seek His assistance through the guidance of our learned%0D%0AFuqahaa.%0D%0A%0D%0AFor purposes of convenience, we hereby summarise your letter in three%0D%0Apoints, a, b and c:%0D%0Aa) You have mentioned that women experience difficulty in maintaining long%0D%0Ahair due to the following reasons.%0D%0A. Long hair takes extremely long to dry.%0D%0A. Difficulty in drying the hair leads women to sleep with wet hair which%0D%0Aresults in neckaches, backaches and terrible headaches.%0D%0A. Reluctance of marital relations due to difficulty in keeping long hair.%0D%0A. Excessive hair loss.%0D%0A. Maintaining long hair is cumbersome and one feels extremely hot.%0D%0Ab) Substantiations for permissibility of cutting hair.%0D%0A. There is no Hadith or any other Naas Qat'ee which prohibits women from%0D%0Acutting their hair.%0D%0A. Two Ahaadith in which one says that some of the wives of Nabi (Sallallaahu%0D%0AAlayhi Wasallam) cut their hair upon his demise. The other Hadith states%0D%0Athat a Sahaabi saw Hadhrat Aaisha (Radhiallaahu Anha) whilst her hair was up%0D%0Atill her ears.%0D%0A. Everything is Halaal until declared Haraam.%0D%0Ac) The ruling of Shaykh Zuhayli (RA) and the Fatwa of Shaykh ibn Baaz (RA)%0D%0A%0D%0AIn principle, in order to establish anything Haraam in Shari'ah, it must be%0D%0Asupported by an express Nass. It is for this reason that Imaam Muhammad (RA)%0D%0Aalways issued the ruling of Karaahat unless there was a clear Nass. (Hidaaya%0D%0Avol.4 pg.452; Kitaabul Karaahiyyah). Furthermore, some laws in Shari'ah are%0D%0Aexpress and some are indicative, i.e. ibaaratunnaas and ishaaratunnaas, as%0D%0Aexplained in the books of Usool Fiqh.%0D%0A%0D%0AAfter understanding the above, our humble opinion is that it is not%0D%0Apermissible for women to cut, trim, clip or shave their hair.%0D%0A%0D%0AThis view is supported not only by indo-pak Ulama but also by many Syrian%0D%0AUlama., for example, Allaamah ibn Aabideen from Damascus, an expert in%0D%0Aalmost every branch of knowledge including Fiqh and Hadith, has supported%0D%0Athis in his famous book, Shaami vol.6 pg.408.%0D%0A%0D%0AAssuming it is permissible for women to cut their hair not imitating men,%0D%0Athen where do we draw the line? To what extent will this permissibility be%0D%0Aeffective. Every woman will now use her own discretion as to how long or how%0D%0Ashort her hair be in order to prevent Tashbeeh. Which males hair do we use%0D%0Aas criteria to say that up till this length is Tashbeeh? In order to prevent%0D%0Athis abuse and many other possible abuses, the Fuqahaa on numerous occasions%0D%0Aapply the Usool of 'Saddan lil baab'%0D%0A%0D%0AWe would now like to remove the misconceptions and objections that you have%0D%0Araised. Please refer to the above mentioned summarized version of your%0D%0Aletter. Under section (b), you had mentioned two Ahaadith.%0D%0A%0D%0AThe first Hadith you have stated is, 'some of the wives of Rasulullah cut%0D%0Atheir hair upon the death of Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam).' This%0D%0AHadith is in Muslim vol.1 pg.148 under the chapter of Ghusl.%0D%0A%0D%0AAbu Salma ibn Abdurrahmaan says that, 'the foster brother of Hadhrat Aaisha%0D%0A(Radhiallaahu Anha) and the narrator himself (Abu Salma), both went to%0D%0AAaisha. The foster brother asked Aaisha about how Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi%0D%0AWasallam) used to take Ghusl. Aaisha (Radhiallaahu Anhu) asked for a large%0D%0Acontainer which was approximately one Saa'. She then arranged for a curtain%0D%0Aand thereafter performed Ghusl. She poured water three times over her head%0D%0Aand thereafter said the wives of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) used%0D%0Ato . their hair until it reached till just above the shoulders.'%0D%0A%0D%0AThe word in the Hadith is 'akhz' which is incorrectly translated as 'cutting%0D%0A'. Imam Muslim quoted this Hadith together with other Ahaadith of Ghusl%0D%0Aunder the chapter of Ghusl. This indicates that this Hadith has nothing to%0D%0Ado with the cutting of hair. Instead, the word akhz has another meaning: The%0D%0Ahair of the wives of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) was long. Instead of%0D%0Aallowing the hair to hang down whilst performing Ghusl, they used to take%0D%0Atheir hair and plait it up into a bun in order to reach just above their%0D%0Ashoulders. Their long hair was made into a bun to sit on top of the neck.%0D%0AThis was done so that it becomes easy for them to wash their back whilst%0D%0Aperforming Ghusl. Whilst the hair is hanging down, it was difficult for%0D%0Awater to reach all parts of the back thoroughly , therefore, this method was%0D%0Aadopted. This is the meaning of 'akhz' in the Hadith.%0D%0A%0D%0AThe second Hadith, 'a young Sahaabi saw Hadhrat Aaisha (Radhiallaahu Anha)%0D%0Aand her hair was up till her ears.' We have not been able to locate this%0D%0AHadith in Bukhari. Kindly provide us with the specific reference of this%0D%0AHadith.%0D%0A%0D%0ANevertheless, it is also far fetched that Hadhrat Aaisha (Radhiallaahu Anha)%0D%0Ahad her hair only uptill her ears. A Hadith in Bukhari indicates that%0D%0AHadhrat Aaisha (Radhiallaahu Anhu) herself had long hair. When Aaisha%0D%0A(Radhiallaahu Anhu) was performing Hajj, her menses began on the day of%0D%0AArafaat. Being the narrator of this Hadith, she says, 'I found myself to be%0D%0Ain my menses on the day of Arafaat so I explained my condition to Nabi%0D%0A(Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam). Thereupon, he replied, 'Leave out your Umra,%0D%0Aundo your head and comb your hair.' (Bukhari). Ibn Hajar has mentioned that%0D%0Athe meaning of 'undo your head' is 'open up the plaits of your hair.'%0D%0A(Fathul Baari vol.1 pg.331). The fact that Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi%0D%0AWasallam) commanded her to do this clearly indicates to this fact that%0D%0AHadhrat Aaisha had long hair. If her hair was up till her ears, then how was%0D%0Ashe then going to open up her plaits?%0D%0A%0D%0AIn another Hadith in Muslim, Hadhrat Umm Salma (Radhiallaahu Anhu) enquired%0D%0Afrom Rasulullah (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam), 'O Rasulullah (Sallallaahu%0D%0AAlayhi Wasallam). I most certainly have thick plaited her. Should I undo and%0D%0Aopen it up whilst I am performing a Ghusl for Janaabat?...' (Muslim vol.1%0D%0Apg.149; HM Saeed). This clearly indicates that Umme Salma (Radhiallaahu%0D%0AAnha) also had long hair.%0D%0A%0D%0AThe third principle, 'everything is Halaal until declared Haraam'. This%0D%0Aprinciple is not unanimously accepted by everyone. Some Fuqahaa state the%0D%0Adirect opposite. Nevertheless, this principle is not general. Everything is%0D%0AHalaal until declared Haraam. If there is a proof of karaahat or Hurmat,%0D%0Athen this principle will not apply.%0D%0A%0D%0AIn the third aspect you quoted Shaykh Zuhayli and a Fatwa of ibn Baaz.%0D%0AProbably, they did not come across the Ahaadith of prohibition or probably%0D%0Athey interpreted it differently. We, however, humbly disagree with their%0D%0Aview.%0D%0A%0D%0AReverting to the first aspect of your letter, you have mentioned five%0D%0Adifficulties experienced by women keeping long hair.%0D%0A%0D%0A'Hair takes extremely long to dry'. We do not understand what you mean by%0D%0A'extremely long' - how long? One hour, two hours or ten hours? During the%0D%0Atime of Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam), the Arab women had long hair%0D%0Awith tough plaits. In those days, there was no electricity and neither was%0D%0Athere hot water. The solution was never ever to 'cut the hair'. Nowadays%0D%0Awith technology advancing almost every second, we have highly advanced 'hair%0D%0Adryers'.%0D%0A%0D%0A'Reluctance of marital relations (due to difficulty of long hair)'. Surely,%0D%0Awomen of the past also experienced this difficulty? The solution was never%0D%0Ato cut the hair. If this was a serious issue, then why didn't Rasulullah%0D%0A(Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) explicitly issue a directive that women should%0D%0Acut their hair?%0D%0A%0D%0A'Excessive hair loss'. This problem could easily be overcome by consulting%0D%0Aone's physician who will prescribe appropriate medication.%0D%0A%0D%0A'Maintaining long hair is cumbersome and one feels extremely hot'. Again,%0D%0Athe argument is baseless. Today, long hair is cumbersome and one feels hot,%0D%0Atomorrow, another woman will say that Hijaab is cumbersome and one feels%0D%0Aextremely hot in it. Another woman will claim that to wear normal clothes on%0D%0Aa hot summer's day is cumbersome . It is the natural Fitrat of a woman to%0D%0Amaintain long hair. The intensity of the heat in Arab countries needs no%0D%0Aexplanation. Despite that, Nabi (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam) never made%0D%0Acutting the hair the solution to this problem. There are so many women with%0D%0Along hair who do not complain or feel cumbersome and hot on account of their%0D%0Ahair. Rather than squandering wealth at hair beauty salons, save they very%0D%0Asame wealth and utilize it to purchase a few fans or an air conditioner.%0D%0A%0D%0A'Maintaining long hair is Takleef maa laa yutaaq'. Allah Ta'ala is Hakeem%0D%0Aand He never makes one mukallaf of something beyond his%2Fher capability. If%0D%0Amaintaining long hair was takleef maa laa yutaaq, then Allah Ta'ala would%0D%0Ahave clearly and explicitly said, 'O women, cut your hair, keep it short,%0D%0Aits cumbersome, don't grow it.'%0D%0A%0D%0A'How long should a woman grow her hair'. The Fuqahaa have granted permission%0D%0Athat if the hair of a woman grows beyond her back%2Fhips then it will be%0D%0Apermissible to trim the excess hair.%0D%0A%0D%0Aand Allah Ta'ala Knows Best%0D%0A%0D%0AMoulana Asad Haffejee%0D%0ASTUDENT: DARUL IFTA