What is forbidden while in ihram?

What "prohibitions of ihram" means

The word mahzurat (prohibitions) comes from hazr, which is prevention and prohibition. They are called mahzurat al-ihram — the prohibitions caused by ihram — because they are forbidden for a specific reason: the sacred state itself. They are permitted in ordinary life and become forbidden only once you have entered the rite.

This is the point ordinary people often miss. Al-Shanqiti explains that simply wearing the ihram garments does not obligate you to avoid anything. If you put on the garments without intending the rite, the prohibitions do not apply to you. They begin after you enter the rite by intention — whether you intend Hajj, Umrah, or both together.

Ibn Uthaymeen draws a further distinction: some things are forbidden in ihram and outside it — like fusuq (sinful conduct) and jidal (disputation). These are not prohibitions of ihram as such; they are forbidden at all times and merely emphasised during Hajj. The prohibitions proper are those whose cause is the ihram itself.

The nine prohibitions

The Hanbali works count them as nine. Al-Shanqiti notes that some relate to the body, some to other people, and some free the heart for the remembrance of Allah.

1. Removing hair — shaving the head, and by extension the rest of the body's hair.
2. Trimming the nails.
3. Covering the head (for men) — and, for the woman, covering the face with a niqab and wearing gloves.
4. Wearing the five named garments, and what is cut to the body like them (for men).
5. Using perfume.
6. Killing land game.
7. Contracting a marriage — for yourself or on behalf of another; proposing is forbidden with it.
8. Sexual intercourse — the gravest of them in sin and consequence.
9. Foreplay with desire — kissing, embracing, touching, and repeated looking with desire.

The evidence the scholars rely on

Allah says in Surah al-Baqarah:

"So whoever has made Hajj obligatory upon himself therein, there is no sexual relations, and no wickedness, and no disputing during Hajj."— Qur'an 2:197

Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنهما explained that rafath here means intercourse. Ibn Uthaymeen adds that the prohibition extends to its preliminaries — touching, kissing, and repeated looking with desire — because they lead to it, and because ihram forbids intercourse, it forbids what leads to it.

On marriage, the Prophet ﷺ said:

"A person in ihram may not marry, nor give in marriage, nor propose."— Sahih Muslim 1409

Ibn Uthaymeen notes that if a man in ihram contracts a marriage, the contract is invalid — the prohibition entails the corruption of what is prohibited. He also holds that proposing is forbidden, not merely disliked, since the same hadith covers all three.

On shaving, Allah says:

"And do not shave your heads until the sacrificial animal has reached its place of slaughter."— Qur'an 2:196

The scholars extended this to the hair of the rest of the body — the moustache, the pubic hair, the armpits — and some added the nails. Ibn Uthaymeen notes that a hair or two or three is not called shaving, so it does not count as committing the prohibition.

On hunting, Allah says:

"O you who have believed, do not kill game while you are in ihram."— Qur'an 5:95

Ibn Uthaymeen sets three conditions for the forbidden game: it must be wild by nature, lawful to eat, and not domesticated. Sea game is not included, so fishing is permitted. Domesticated animals and animals unlawful to eat are not included either.

On perfume, the Prophet ﷺ said of the man who died at Arafah: "Do not embalm him" — hanut being the perfume placed on the dead. Ibn Uthaymeen notes that perfume applied before entering ihram leaves no blame and need not be removed, citing Aisha رضي الله عنها:

"I used to see the glistening of musk in the parting of the Messenger of Allah's ﷺ hair while he was in ihram."— Sahih al-Bukhari

What is not included

Ibn Uthaymeen is careful to distinguish the named garments from anything merely containing stitching. The Prophet ﷺ named five things a man in ihram does not wear: the shirt, trousers, the burnous, the turban, and leather socks. Anything of the same meaning takes the same ruling — the kut, vest, undershirt, ghutrah, skullcap and cloak. But a watch, ring, earphone, eyeglasses, or a money belt are not included, by text or by meaning, and may be worn.

The common phrase "the one in ihram does not wear stitched clothing" misleads people: the scholars mean clothing cut and shaped to the body, not anything sewn. If you wrap a shirt around yourself as a lower garment, that is not wearing it. Likewise, shading the head with an umbrella, a car roof, or a cloth held above the head is permitted — what is forbidden is covering the head with something that clings to it.

If a prohibition is committed

The consequences differ by type, and Ibn Uthaymeen sets them out:

• Intercourse before the first release from ihram carries five consequences: sin, corruption of the rite, obligation to continue it, a badanah (a camel) slaughtered and distributed to the poor, and making it up the following year.
• Touching with desire that leads to ejaculation does not corrupt the Hajj, but requires a badanah.
• Shaving, trimming nails, covering the head, wearing the named garments, or using perfume require fidyah (compensation).
• Contracting a marriage is invalid and carries no fidyah.

Al-Shanqiti notes a real disagreement on the amount of hair that triggers compensation — the Hanbali school holds three or more hairs, while others set four, five, or a quarter of the head, and Malik held it is what removes harm. He considers the last closest to the apparent meaning of the Qur'an.

Key takeaways

• The prohibitions begin with your intention, not your garments — wearing ihram without intending the rite obligates nothing.
• Intercourse is the gravest prohibition and, before the first release, corrupts the Hajj and requires a badanah, continuation, and making it up the next year.
• Marriage contracts in ihram are invalid, and proposing is forbidden, not merely disliked.
• "Stitched clothing" means clothing shaped to the body, not anything sewn — watches, rings, glasses and money belts are permitted.
• Shading the head is permitted; covering it is not — an umbrella or car roof is fine, a skullcap or turban is not.

Further reading

• Ibn Qudamah, al-Mughni
• Ibn Uthaymeen, al-Sharh al-Mumti'
• Al-Shanqiti, Sharh Zad al-Mustaqni'

And Allah knows best.