Is Silk Haram or Halal In Islam?

The history of silk dates back thousands of years, and it is one of the best stories ever, and silk till this day has stayed a relevant item that is used in numerous industries, and some of them will come to you as a major surprise.

China is the birthplace of the mulberry silkworm, and old China is where the art of growing and weaving silk was primarily uncovered.

Some say that the story about silk is just like a fairy-tale story and it leans on the idea that it impacted the building of the legendary Silk Road, and how the craft of making silk scattered throughout the world.

For many years, till this day, silk is regarded as one of the most lavish and comfy materials, used not only as a clothing material but so much more than that.

It’s abundantly utilized in clothes making, but also for example surgery.

There are many other usages of silk, for sure.

Now, the question here is can Muslim people wear silk, or is it something that is greatly haram in the world of Islamic faith, as we know that it has some of the most detailed rules?

Now, if the silk turns out to be haram, is there any way that these rules do not apply in some cases?

And what are those cases?

Also, we must say that like in all, here also there are different interpretations of rules.

Is Silk Haram or Halal In Islam? 

Islamic faith is known to regulate every part of the lives of its believers, and; food and clothes are just one part of it, for example.

Clothes and the covering of the private parts are a man’s decoration and covering on his body, just as the chastity of clothes and the covering of the private parts of his soul is.

It is not as much about the clothes, as much here is about the protection of the soul of a Muslim believer.

There are numerous verses in the Quran that depict this – and one of them, respectively, points to the importance of covering the human body and clothing, which is necessary for human life because nudity is natural to animals.

Men and women must not fall to the animal level, and therefore a man will tend to be tickled only when he falls to the level of an animal.

Holding that tickling is an expression of beauty symbolizes the loss of human taste, and it is seen as a major sin in the Islamic faith for sure.

Now, silk is such a wonderful and luxurious fabric, can people of this faith wear it?

The answer is yes, it is halal, but only for women, men are not allowed to wear, sleep, touch, or lean on any part of silk.

The Islamic scholars compromised that it is acceptable for women to sport silk, and not only that, they are allowed to use it.

But when we look at men, for them it is not halal to do so.

It was said that the Prophet on one occasion have a piece of silk in one of his hands and that in another he had a bit of gold, and he said that both of these things were haram for males and allowed for females.

It was also added that the silk must be worn by someone who will not wear such an item in the Hereafter.

Everything that Allah commanded people, certainly brings them good and happiness, as Islamic scholars like to point out.

In the same way; it is said that all that he has restricted, certainly harms their health and conveys misfortune.

Men are forbidden by Allah Almighty to wear silk and lean on it.

In addition, he forbade them to wear gold jewelry.

Islamic scholars called upon some medical research that says that

a much higher percentage of men with prostate problems are among those who wear gold jewelry.

They also say that they expect how medicine will demonstrate the harmfulness of silk on the body and health of men.

Now, a man must not dress in anything made out of silk, wear a tie or something else around himself that is made out of silk, he cannot even sleep on the sheets that are made out of silk or sit on it.

Is there any occasion when men can wear silk?

They can in certain situations, for example, if there are fighters and they want to make the enemy confused or annoyed, then they can wear silk.

Also, such a thing is allowed when a person is sick, and if the piece of silk can help that person to be better, then there is no doubt that wearing silk is ok from this point of view.

Those who have problems with skin, that is irritated in some way, can also wear silk on certain occasions, and it is allowed.

One more exception is noticeable here – Islamic scholars agree that wearing silk is halal if the length of the complete size of the silk is around a couple of fingers, two or four maybe.

We must also add that some scholars claim that men should not wear silk because they should not resemble women; as silk is only made for women to carry and that it is haram for men as it can make them admire themselves too much and this is seen as a major sin according to the Muslim faith.

Women are there to be loved and admired by their husbands, and in his eyes, they can wear silk and put gold on them, but a man must not look like a woman, and therefore one of the more reasons why he should carry it.

Does Islam allow the usage of silk in surgery?

It does allow it – even men in this case are permitted to wear silk if there are some medical reasons to do so.

It is a known fact that silk has been utilized to stitch incisional injuries until the healing cycle starts.

Since silk is not toxic to tissue that is alive, and it does not call for a response from the immune system, it can be biodegradable and is believed an ideal cloth for healing injuries and skin rejuvenation.

In this sense, if Muslim men need it, they can use silk for such purposes.

So, wearing silk, when it comes to Muslim men is haram, and it is halal only when it is used for medical purposes.

More about silk

Legend has it that the history of silk begins around 2700 BC when silk was discovered in ancient China.

Even Confucius, one of the most famous Chinese philosophers and politicians spoke and write about silk.

There is a legend that says that a Chinese Empress discovered it when a silkworm has fallen into her tea.

As the warmth from the tea let the bug come out from its cocoon, it was easily noticeable that some strands were extraordinary.

When it was wheeled it was likely to be created into a fragment of cloth.

She began to grow these bugs and make silk, and this was seen as the birth of silk manufacture.

But do not be fooled, silk making was known long before ancient China, as archaeologists have established that silk materials have been discovered before China’s discovery of it.

Not long after the finding of silk, this material evolved into a status sign.

Constructing silk fabrics demands a lot of action and resources, so silk was prized.

Silk was so invaluable in ancient China that it was even utilized as banknotes for some time.

Since silk is one of the most powerful raw fibers in essence, it was assumed to be good for numerous things except creating fabric.

Silk was also employed for the making of tools, and musical instruments.

This fabric was even utilized as paper, and this was before the Chinese discovered papyrus.

Many years later this secret of silk manufacture left China and entered into the world – one emperor from Byzantine in 500 AD employed monks to smuggle silkworm eggs to him.

A similar thing occurred in Japan – they managed to bring on silkworm eggs and discover the magic behind silk manufacturing.

There, silk is used for the production of kimonos.

And in time besides China, Japan become the largest manufacturer of silk.

It took some time for others in the west, to discover the art of silk manufacture.

In the Middle Ages, Italy and Spain began to make silk and take the lead in Europe.

Separated from occasional technological advancements to rush up the manufacturing procedure, silk is nonetheless made today in the same manner as it was in the old days.

After a millennium of knowledge in silk production, China stays the biggest producer of silk around the globe.

Conclusion

As you were able to see here, silk, all over the world, and also in the Muslim world, has a great value – it is a luxury item, that makes us feel great when we wear it, particularly in hot wheater.

But, it has many other usages, some of them come for some as a surprise, as silk is used in medicine, in surgery.

Now, we have come to the conclusion that women can carry silk, as it is allowed by the Almighty Allah, but for men, it is strictly haram, for numerous reasons.

They should not try to look like women and by doing so they are looking like them.

Islamic scholars say that it is obliged to look at the veiling of women in the entirety of Islamic teachings so that we have a clear answer to the question: does Islam want to humiliate women, and make them less valuable – as ignorant minds claim and utter evil tongues – or with this command, Islam pointed her out honor and raised him from moral dust.

A man is obliged to cover his body from the waist, i.e. from the navel to the knees; this is the general rule when it comes to clothing in the Islamic religion, but things can have some exceptions that are also mentioned in the Quran.

A man should try to wear the nicest clothes possible, especially when he prays and goes to the mosque.

It is said that women can wear silk as well as gold, but for men the situation is haram.

They are not allowed to wear silk, the only circumstances where it is allowed is when they are on the combat field and they want to annoy the opponent, or for health reasons.

Health reasons can vary, but for example when the permission and recommendation come from a doctor who says that it would be best for that male patient to wear silk if he has some kind of infection on his body, or perhaps when he has some kind of allergy.

In other any case, it is not allowed for silk to be worn, as it is a strict haram for them, but we can also say that if there are some health reasons, like for example if the skin of the person is allergic to other materials, then that person can wear silk.

Alos, some scholars say that a man can wear a piece of silk somewhere on his body, but just a tiny bit, not bigger than a couple of fingers.

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