Using markers that contain alcohol

6-4-2014 | IslamWeb

Question:

al—Salam.Please forgive my grammatical mistakes. I am studying landscape architecture and maker pens which contain alcohol are commonly used. I konw drinking is absolutely forbidden.But can we use products like soaps、perfumes or maker pens which contain alcohol？ It was narrated from Jabir bin 'Abdullah that he heard the Messenger of Allah say, when he was in Makkah during the Year of the Conquest: "Allah and His Messenger have forbidden the sale of wine, dead animals, pigs and idols." It was said: "O messenger of Allah, what do you thing about the fat of the dead animal, for ships are caulked with it, skins are daubed with it and people use it in their lamps." He said: "No, it is Haram." And the Messenger of Allah then said: "My Allah curse the Jews, for when Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, forbade the meat (of dead animals) to them, they melted it down and sold it, and consumed its price." According to this Hadith, any way of using fat of the dead animal is Haram. So,can I conclude that any products contain alcohol are Haram? Waiting for your answer.

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

Alcohol is an intoxicant, and therefore, the same religious ruling of wine applies to it. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Every intoxicant is Khamr (wine) and every intoxicant is unlawful.” We have underlined in many Fataawa that it is unlawful to apply any substance containing alcohol to the body of a human being – unless the alcohol has turned into a different substance before applying it. For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 81246, 90937 and 83627.

We have also underlined in some Fataawa the permissibility of using alcohol-based perfumes, soap, and the like outside of prayer according to the opinion of some scholars – the Maalikis, for example - who deemed it permissible for a Muslim to use substances that contain impurity in any way other than oral intake.

As for the use of alcohol-based markers and the like which is not used on the body, the matter is not that strict and the permissibility of using them is the most evident opinion.

As for the words of the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, in the Hadeeth: “No, it is forbidden” - scholars held different opinions whether the pronoun “it” refers to selling or to using the fat of the dead animal. The more likely opinion is that it refers to selling and not to using it. An-Nawawi said, “The pronoun “it” refers to selling, not to using. This is the preferred opinion of Ash-Shaafi‘i and his followers; it is permissible to use the fat of the dead animal in caulking ships or lighting lamps and the similar uses other than oral intake or application to the human body.” Ibn Taymiyyah considered this opinion to be the most evident one.

Allaah Knows best.