Response to those who say that isbaal (letting the garment come below the ankles) is only haraam if it is done to show off

Firstly: 

Before discussing the answer, it is
essential to point out two things: 

1.

The issue of isbaal (letting the garment
come below the ankles) is a matter of ijtihaad concerning which the scholars
differed. In fact the majority of them are of the view that it is not haraam
unless it is done by way of pride. 

Their opinions have been discussed
previously in the answer to question no.
102260 

What is required in all matters concerning
which people differ is to refer to the Qur’an and Sunnah in order to find
out what is right and what is wrong. Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):

“(And) if you differ in anything amongst
yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Messenger (SAW), if you believe in
Allah and in the Last Day. That is better and more suitable for final
determination”

[an-Nisa’ 4:59]. 

As this issue is one that is subject to
ijtihaad, it is not permissible to denounce those who differed concerning it
(on either side), because they are not going against a definitive text or
well-known scholarly consensus. 

Based on that, if an individual is not
qualified to determine which scholarly opinion is more correct, and he
follows one of the two groups, trusting in their knowledge or because they
are the majority, he is not to be denounced. 

Similarly, if a person is qualified to
decide which opinion is more correct, and he favours one of the two opinions
based on the evidence he has, he is not to be denounced for that either. 

With regard to these matters that are
subject to ijtihaad, each Muslim should act upon what appears to him to be
correct, as one of the early generation said: “The one who adheres to the
scholarly view that reached him has done well.” These matters should not be
a cause of conflict and disputes. People should not join gatherings to
dispute about such matters and to denounce one another and challenge one
another. 

There is nothing wrong with talking about
and discussing the matter in a calm and gentle manner, with the aim of
finding out the correct view and following it. 

See the answer to question no.
70491 

2.

Some of what you have quoted of differences
does not come under the heading of specious arguments; rather it is evidence
that was quoted by leading scholars, such as the hadeeth of Abu Bakr (may
Allah be pleased with him). Specious arguments are not like that; rather
they have no basis in the Qur’an or Sunnah. 

Secondly: 

We shall refer – as much as we can – to what
the brother who differs mentioned, and we ask Allah, may He be exalted, to
enable us to attain beneficial knowledge and help us to understand our
religion. 

1.

With regard to the first hadeeth that he
quotes as evidence, it is a da‘eef (weak) hadeeth. There follow its text and
the scholars’ verdict on it. 

It was narrated from al-Ash‘ath, from his
paternal aunt Ruhm, from her paternal uncle ‘Ubaydah ibn Khalaf, who said: I
came to Madinah when I was a young man wearing a fine burdah of mine around
my waist that I let drag (on the floor). A man caught up with me and poked
me with a stick he had in his hand, then he said: “If you pull up your
garment it will last longer and be cleaner.” I turned around and saw that it
was the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). I
said: O Messenger of Allah, it is just a cheap burdah. He said: Even if it
is just a cheap burdah; do you not have an example in me? I looked at his
izaar and saw that it came above the ankles and beneath the muscle.

Narrated by Ahmad, 22577 

Shaykh al-Albaani (may Allah have mercy on
him) said: 

This is a da‘eef isnaad. The paternal aunt
of al-Ash‘ath was called Ruhm bint al-Aswad. Al-Haafiz said: She is not
known.

As-Silsilah ad-Da‘eefah,
4/336, 337, hadeeth no 1867 

Shaykh Shu‘ayb al-Arna’oot said in
Tahqeeq al-Musnad: Its isnaad is da‘eef because of the weakness of
Sulaymaan ibn Quram. End quote. 

Even if the hadeeth were saheeh, it could
not be used as evidence for the one who differs; rather the opposite is
true. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) rebuked the
Sahaabi in his actions and words for letting the garment come below the
ankle, and the Sahaabi looked at the garment of the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) and saw that it came to mid-calf. So where in
the hadeeth – if it were saheeh – is there anything to support the view of
the one who differs? 

2.

The one who differs quoted two reports, from
Ibn Mas‘ood (may Allah be pleased with him) and from Ayyoob as-Sakhtiyaani
(may Allah have mercy on him). The former is one of the Sahaabah and the
latter is one of the Taabi‘een. 

(a)

With regard to the report of Ibn Mas‘ood, it
was narrated from Abu Waa’il, from Ibn Mas‘ood, that he used to let his
izaar hang low. When something was said to him about that, he said: I am a
man with thin legs.

Narrated by Ibn Abi Shaybah in
al-Musannaf, 5/166. 

Its isnaad is jayyid, as we shall see below
in the comment of al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar. 

With regard to its meaning, it is – first of
all – a report from a Sahaabi; it is not a hadeeth narrated from the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). The words of a Sahaabi can only
be taken as evidence to support an opinion if they do not contradict a text
from the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). 

Moreover, there is nothing in it to suggest
that he used to let his izaar hang below the ankles; rather it may be that
he let it come lower than was customary among them. 

Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on
him) said: 

With regard to the report narrated by Ibn
Abi Shaybah from Ibn Mas‘ood with a jayyid isnaad, according to which he
used to let his izaar hang low, and when something was said to him about
that he said, I have thin legs, it may be understood as meaning that he let
his izaar hang lower than is recommended, which is mid-calf. It should not
be thought that he went beyond that and let it come below the ankles, and
the reason he gave may indicate that. Moreover, perhaps the story of ‘Amr
ibn Zaraarah had not reached him. And Allah knows best. End quote. 

Fath al-Baari,
10/264 

The story of ‘Amr ibn Zaraarah (may Allah be
pleased with him) was narrated by Imam Ahmad in his Musnad (17817).
It says that he had thin legs and he let his izaar hang low, then the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) rebuked him and told him
to pull up his izaar, and he said to him: “Allah, may He be glorified and
exalted, has made beautiful everything that He has created.”

Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in
as-Silsilah as-Saheehah, 2682 and by Shu‘ayb al-Arna’oot in Tahqeeq
al-Musnad. 

(b)

With regard to the report of Ayyoob
as-Sakhtiyaani, the Prophet’s Sunnah takes precedence over the view of
anyone else, and the words of anyone may be accepted or rejected except the
Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). 

Moreover, it may be that Ayyoob made his
garment longer than mid-calf but not so long as to come below the ankle, as
was said about what Ibn Mas‘ood (may Allah be pleased with him) did, as
stated above. 

3.

With regard to the opinion of those who say
“How can isbaal be equated with drinking alcohol, for example, in the sense
that they are both major sins?” the response is: that sins and acts of
disobedience undoubtedly vary in degree; some of them are minor and some of
them are major, and some are grave major sins. Moreover, minor sins, major
sins and grave major sins may vary within each category. But this variation
does not indicate that something is not haraam. Drinking alcohol is a major
sin, zina (fornication or adultery) is a major sin, and killing a believer
wrongfully and unjustly is a major sin, but these sins vary in degree one
from another; that does not mean that any of them are not haraam. 

4.

With regard to his saying that the majority
are of the view that it is makrooh, yes, that is correct and we do not deny
it. We stated this at the beginning of our answer. But the fact that it is
the view of the majority does not necessarily mean that it is in accordance
with what is correct. We do not worship our Lord, may He be exalted, on the
basis of what the majority of scholars say. Allah, may He be exalted, has
commanded us in the case of differences of opinion to refer to the Qur’an
and Sunnah, not to the opinion of the majority. This is quite clear, praise
be to Allah. 

5.

With regard to his quoting as evidence the
fact that ‘Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allah be pleased with him) rebuked the
one whose garment was hanging below his ankles when he was in pain after he
had been stabbed, this is an argument against them, not for them, because
‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) only rebuked this young man when he
was in that state (between life and death) because he knew that what this
young man was doing was something that it was not appropriate to keep quiet
about, and was not an insignificant matter. The fact that ‘Umar (may Allah
be pleased with him) rebuked him indicates that this action is reprehensible
according to Islam. But from where did this one who differs get the idea
that it is makrooh and not haraam? 

‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) could
not see what is in people’s hearts, and there is nothing in the story to
suggest that he saw in the case of the young man that which was mentioned by
this one who differs; rather it is mere speculation that needs evidence to
prove it. 

6.

With regard to what he mentioned about the
virtue of the martyr and that he is in Paradise, and his thinking that this
contradicts the punishment for the one who lets his garment come below his
ankles, this is unacceptable. If he thinks that this proves that isbaal is
not haraam, then let him say the same with regard to lying, severing ties of
kinship, drinking alcohol and other major sins that bring the warning of
Hell. How can we reconcile between the warning for his sins and the promise
of Paradise for the martyr who
commits these sins or some of them? 

The warning for committing sin may be
retracted for reasons that we cannot go into here. 

7.

With regard to what it says in the hadeeth
of Abu Bakr as-Siddeeq about one side of his garment slipping and how he
used to pay attention to that, and that the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) said to him: “You are not one of those who do that out of
pride,” this does not give them any proof. Rather it counts against them,
not for them. Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) used to pull up his
garment and not let it drag; rather it used to slip but he did not ignore
it; rather he used to pay attention to it. And one who is like Abu Bakr is
excused. 

Al-Imam adh-Dhahabi (may Allah have mercy on
him) said: 

Similarly, you see the faqeeh who is living
a life of ease, when he is criticised for wearing a garment that comes below
his ankles and it is said to him: The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him) said: “Whatever is below the ankles of the izaar is in the
Fire,” – he says: He only said that concerning the one who lets his izaar
drag out of pride, but I am not doing that out of pride. So you see him
showing arrogance and defending his foolish action, taking a hadeeth that is
general in meaning and quoting another hadeeth so as to limit the meaning of
the first one to pride, and he thinks that he can get away with his isbaal
on the basis of what (Abu Bakr) as-Siddeeq said: O Messenger of Allah, my
izaar slips, and the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said, “O Abu Bakr, you are not one of those who do that out of pride.” But
we say: Abu Bakr did not put on his izaar in such a way that it came below
the ankles from the outset; rather he put it on so that it came above the
ankles, then after that it slipped. And the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) said: “The izaar of the believer comes to mid-calf and
there is no problem with the area between that and the ankle.” End quote. 

Siyar A‘laam an-Nubala’,
3/234 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have mercy
on him) said: 

With regard to those who quote to us the
hadeeth of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), we say to him: You have
no proof in this hadeeth for two reasons: 

(i)

Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him)
said: “One of the two sides of my izaar drop unless I pay attention to it…”
So he (may Allah be pleased with him) was not letting his garment drag
deliberately; rather it used to loosen and drop, yet he would still pay
attention to it. Those who let the garment come below the ankles and claim
that they are not doing that out of pride are letting their garments hang
low deliberately. 

(ii)

The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) praised Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) and testified
that he was not one of those who did that out of pride. Have any of these
people attained such praise and such testimony? But the Shaytaan prompts
some people to follow ambiguous texts of the Qur’an and Sunnah so as to
justify what they are doing, and Allah guides whomever He will to the
straight path. We ask Allah to guide us and keep us safe and sound. 

Majmoo‘ Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen
(12/question no. 223) 

Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz (may Allah
have mercy on him) said: With regard to the words of the Prophet (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him) to Abu Bakr as-Siddeeq (may Allah be pleased
with him), when he said: O Messenger of Allah, my izaar slips unless I pay
attention to it, and he (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said to
him: “You are not one of those who do that out of pride”, what the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) meant is that the one who pays
attention to his garment if it slips, and pulls it up, is not regarded as
being one of those who let the garment drag out of pride, because he did not
let it hang low deliberately. Rather it may slip, so he pulls it up and pays
attention to it. Undoubtedly such a person is excused. As for the one who
deliberately lets it drag, whether it is a (man’s) abayah or pants or an
izaar (waist wrapper) or a thobe, he is included in this warning and he is
not excused for letting his garment come below the ankles, because the
saheeh hadeeths that forbid isbaal include him in their meanings. What every
Muslim should do is guard against isbaal and fear Allah with regard to that;
he should not let his garment hang below his ankles, following this saheeh
hadeeth and seeking to avoid the wrath and punishment of Allah. And Allah is
the source of strength. 

Majmoo‘ Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn Baaz,
6/383 

With regard to their saying that the warning
only applies to the one who lets his garment hang below to the ankles out of
pride, it does not seem that it is correct, because there is a warning
against merely letting the garment come below the ankles, and there is
another warning against letting the izaar drag out of pride. It is not
possible to interpret the general report in terms of the specific report in
this case because there are two different actions with two different
punishments, and those whom the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) rebuked were not people of arrogance and pride. 

Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on
him) said: 

In these hadeeths we see that letting the
garment come below the ankles out of pride is a major sin; as for letting
the garment come below the ankles for a reason other than pride, the
apparent meaning of the hadeeths is that it is also haraam. 

Fath al-Baari,
10/263 

Ibn al-‘Arabi al-Maaliki (may Allah have
mercy on him) said: 

It is not permissible for a man to let his
garment come past his ankle and say, “I am not doing that out of pride,”
because the prohibition on that was clearly stated (in the hadeeth) and the
reason for it was stated. So he cannot say, “I am not among those to whom
the hadeeth refers because the reason for the prohibition does not apply to
me,” because this is going against sharee‘ah and it is a claim that cannot
be accepted. Rather because of his pride he is making his garment and izaar
long, so he is definitely lying in his claim. 

‘Aaridat al-Ahwadhi,
7/238 

This was quoted, with some slight
differences in wording, by Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him), who
commented on it by saying: 

The point is that isbaal implies letting the
garment drag, and letting the garment drag implies pride, even if the one
who is wearing it did not intend it as such. This is supported by the report
narrated by Ahmad ibn Munayyi‘ via another isnaad from Ibn ‘Umar in the
hadeeth which he attributed to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him): “Beware of letting the izaar drag, for letting the izaar drag is
a sign of pride.”  

Fath al-Baari,
10/264 

As-San‘aani (may Allah have mercy on him)
said:

 The hadeeths indicate that whatever is
below the ankles is in the Fire, which signals that it is haraam; they also
indicate that the one who lets his izaar drag out of pride, Allah will not
look at him, which also signals that it is haraam and that the punishment
for pride is a specific punishment, which is that Allah will not look at
him. This demonstrates that the view that it is not haraam unless it is done
out of pride is not valid. 

Isteefa’ al-Aqwaal fi Tahreem al-Isbaal
‘ala ar-Rijaal, p. 26 

This is a summary of the response to what
you mentioned in your question. What the Muslims should do is strive to
reach the correct conclusion with regard to matters concerning which the
scholars differed, by means of research and study if he is qualified to do
that. If he is not qualified to do that, then he should follow (a scholar)
whose religious commitment and knowledge he trusts, and he should refrain
from denouncing, debating, and arguing. We ask Allah to teach us that which
we do not know and to benefit us by means of what He teaches us. 

And Allah knows best.