Q51 :Is it forbidden to keep ‘bindi’ i.e. adhesive
sticker or colored enamel on our foreheads?
A51 : The general rule which governs the use of
such material is that everything is lawful unless pronounced otherwise.
There may be some rules which restrict the use of certain items and
these rules may apply to other items by analogy. It is forbidden for a
Muslim, for example, to wear clothes or to have an article of equipment
which bears a distinctive mark of unbelievers. I am not sure what this
bindi looks like, but I can say that it is permissible in the first
instance. However, if it is distinctive of women who follow some other
religion like Buddhists or Hindus, it benetes forbidden. The
prohibition does not nete as a result of anything inherent in the
article itself, but as a result of its being distinctive of non-Muslim
women. [Added: If you are living in a society where there are both
Muslim and non-Muslim women living and those non-Muslim women use
‘bindi’, then it will be forbidden for the Muslim women to wear
‘bindi’. However, in a purely Muslim society, where a women is accepted
and treated as a Muslim unless established otherwise, there should be
no restriction on its use. However, one may still say that it is
strongly discouraged.] On the other hand, if this adhesive sticker or
enamel is waterproof, then a Muslim woman who wears it cannot have a
proper ablution. It prevents the water from reaching a part of her face
which should be washed. Since her ablution is innetplete, her prayer
will be invalid. In this case, the prohibition is a consequence of its
effect on prayer. To sum up, if this enamel or sticker is not
distinctive of non-Muslim women, a Muslim woman may wear it provided
she removes it when she wants to have ablution for prayer.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )