Wearing a face mask in ihram

A question about wearing a face mask in ihram, in which Jordan's General Iftaa Department answered that a man wearing a face mask in ihram commits a prohibited act that in principle requires a compensatory offering (fidya), but if the authorities require masks because of epidemics, men and women may wear them with no sin and no fidya. ¹

The questioner asked whether a pilgrim in ihram for hajj or umrah may wear a face mask, and what this requires of him. ¹

The Department answered that in principle a woman in ihram may not cover her face, while a man may cover his face with something not normally considered a fitted garment, citing a hadith narrated by al-Bukhari on the garments a pilgrim avoids, including that a woman in ihram should not wear a face veil or gloves, and quoting al-Nawawi in Matn al-Idah fi al-Manasik (p. 45) that covering parts other than the head with a wrap or cloak is not forbidden, only garments made to fit the body or one of its limbs. ¹ It said that a man placing a mask over his face in ihram is in principle a prohibited act requiring fidya, since it is a garment covering part of the body; but if the authorities compel pilgrims to wear masks because of epidemics or similar reasons, it is permitted for men and women without fidya or sin, relying on Sharh al-Muqaddima al-Hadramiyya (p. 666) on what is permitted out of need and what is done under compulsion. ¹ It concluded that following these instructions is better than breaking them and exposing oneself and others to the risk of infection. ¹

Jordan's General Iftaa Department published this fatwa on aliftaa.jo as no. 3762, dated 11 April 2023. ¹ The museum records this text as a historical document attributed to the body or scholar that issued it; it issues no ruling of its own.