SECTION ON DIVORCE · 46 – BEHAVIORS A WOMAN MUST AVOID DURING HER WAITING PERIOD (‘IDDA)
2302 – It is narrated from Umm ‘Atiyya (may Allah be pleased with her): The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “A woman must not mourn for any deceased person for more than three days, except for her husband, for whom she should mourn for four months and ten days. During this period, she should not wear dyed clothing, but she may wear a garment called ‘Asb (a white Yemeni fabric). She should not apply kohl, nor use perfume. However, when her menstruation is about to end and when she becomes pure from menstruation, she may use a small amount of perfume called gust and azfar.” Ya‘qub said: Instead of ‘Asb, she may only wear washed clothing. Ya‘qub also added the phrase: She should not apply henna. [235]
EXPLANATION
‘Asb: A multicolored Yemeni fabric, whose thread is dyed and then woven. Nabdh: A small amount, a piece. Gust: Perfume or a fragrant piece of wood imported from India. Azfar: A type of fragrance, also called black musk. It is so named because its pieces resemble fingernails.
2303 – The aforementioned hadith is also narrated from the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) through the transmission of Hafsa. However, this narration does not include the entirety of the previous hadith as transmitted by Ya‘qub and ‘Abdullah. According to one of the narrators of this hadith, Misma‘i, Yazid said: I know that in this hadith Hisham only said, “(A woman whose husband has died and is in mourning) should not apply henna.” In his narration, Harun ibn ‘Abdullah added the phrase: “A woman in her waiting period should not wear dyed clothing, but she may wear a multicolored Yemeni garment.”
2304 – It is narrated from Umm Salama (may Allah be pleased with her), the wife of the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him): The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “A woman whose husband has died must not wear clothing dyed with usfur or red clay. She must not use adornment, apply henna, or use kohl.” [236]
2305 – It is narrated from the mother of Umm Hakim bint Asid that when her husband passed away, she suffered from an eye ailment and applied kohl made from ismid (antimony). According to Ahmad ibn Salih, the correct expression is that she applied kohl made from ismid. Thereupon, she sent her slave girl to Umm Salama and asked whether she could use ismid kohl. Umm Salama (may Allah be pleased with her) said: Do not apply it, unless your ailment becomes severe and you are compelled to use it; in that case, apply it at night and wipe it off during the day. Then she continued: Umm Salama said: When Abu Salama died, the Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) came to me, and I had applied a medicine called sabr to my eye. The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “What is this, O Umm Salama?” I said, “It is only sabr, and it contains no fragrance.” The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “It makes the face look youthful. Apply it only at night and remove it during the day. Do not perfume or comb your hair with henna, for henna is a dye.” Umm Salama (may Allah be pleased with her) asked, “With what should I comb my hair, O Messenger of God?” The Messenger of God (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Comb it with sidr (lote tree leaves) in such a way that it covers your whole head.” [237]