What is the Shariah ruling on having a hair transplant and getting Botox and filler injections? Where is the boundary between changing the creation and treating a defect?

Satan's misleading endeavour is mentioned in the Noble Qur'an in this way: ﴿وَلَآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُغَيِّرُنَّ خَلْقَ اللَّهِ﴾ (Surah An-Nisa: 119), i.e. I will surely command them and they will change the creation of Allah. And it is narrated from Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ cursed the women who tattoo and the women who get tattooed, the women who pluck hair, and those women who create gaps between the teeth for the sake of beauty, who change the creation of Allah (Sahih Al-Bukhari: 5943; Sahih Muslim: 2125). Similarly, a curse has also come upon the woman who joins [false] hair (wasl) (Sahih Al-Bukhari: 5940). Thus, any act that changes the original form made by Allah merely to increase beauty falls under this warning.

In contrast to this, removing a defect that has arisen from an accident or illness and restoring the original form is not “changing the creation of Allah” (taghyir khalq Allah) but treatment. The nose of Arfajah ibn As'ad, may Allah be pleased with him, was cut off in battle, so he had a nose made of silver; when it began to smell, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ ordered him to have a nose made of gold (Sunan Abi Dawud: 4232; Jami' At-Tirmidhi: 1770; Sunan An-Nasa'i: 5161 — Hasan). The scholars of Al-Lajnah Ad-Da'imah, including Shaykh Ibn Baz and Shaykh Ibn Uthaymin, may Allah have mercy on them, have clarified that surgery performed to remove a defect — for example, correcting marks of an accident, burn scars or a congenital deformity — is permissible and does not fall under the ruling of changing the creation (Fatawa Al-Lajnah Ad-Da'imah: 25/55).

In a hair transplant, a person's own hair is taken from one place and transferred to a bald place; this is not joining false hair (wasl), because in wasl another's hair or an artificial thing is joined. This falls under the ruling of treatment to grow hair and restoration of the lost original state, therefore it is permissible in Shariah. A fatwa of its permissibility is transmitted from Shaykh Ibn Uthaymin, may Allah have mercy on him, that this is bringing back something created by Allah and removing a defect (Fatawa Ulama Al-Balad Al-Haram, p. 1185). Similarly, the Islamic Fiqh Academy (OIC), in its resolution in its eighteenth session (Malaysia, 2007), has declared hair transplant permissible as a treatment for hair loss.

The effect of Botox and fillers is temporary and they do not cause a permanent change in the creation, therefore their ruling is separate from the warning concerning changing the creation. If the purpose is correction of a prominent defect and the following conditions are found, there is scope for their use: (1) they do not cause harm to the body, because the statement of the Noble Prophet ﷺ is: “Do not cause harm (to yourself) and harm should not be caused (to another)” (Sunan Ibn Majah: 2341 — Sahih); and the substance used is halal and pure; (2) deception of anyone is not intended thereby, for example, hiding age or appearance on the occasion of a marriage proposal; (3) there is no excessive extravagance and wastefulness beyond limits. Contemporary fatwa centres have also given permission for this with the condition of being free from harm (Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 146289; Islamweb, Fatwa No. 87794). However, some scholars have kept even the removal of facial wrinkles merely for adornment close to dislike (karahah) or prohibition, therefore avoiding the attempt to change the natural form without a genuine need is more precautionary and preponderant.

Maqasid note: This body and this wealth are both trusts from Allah; the requirement of preservation of life (hifz al-nafs) and preservation of wealth (hifz al-mal) is that, going beyond the limit of treatment and need, both health and wealth should not be put at risk in pursuit of artificial beauty.

Translated from the original Urdu fatwa.