Title: Can an old lady cut her long hair so that they become managable for her in her old age

Question: My grandmother who is between 65-70 years old has very dense and long hair (1 inch below her knees, approx. 4.5 feet), such long sized hair have become unmanageable for her because she gets tired while plating such long hair but out of fear of Allah she does not allow us to cut her hair (because in Hanafi Maslak it is prohibited to cut hair as we know). Sometimes the hair fall into the toilet sheet and she has to do ghusl for taharah, she is very upset because of her long her. Kindly advise if we can cut her hair to that level that they become manageable for her in this old age (approx. 1 foot).

Answer ID: 39868Posted on: Aug 31, 2020

Bismillah hir-Rahman nir-Rahim !

(Fatwa: 529/571/N=1433) Yes, the hair of your grandmother is too long and it shall be very difficult for her to manage them in her old age. Hence if you cut the hair of your grandmother to an extent that she could manage her hair herself then it shall be allowable as per the Shariah. قال النووي في شرح الصحيح لمسلم (1:148): قوله : "وكان أزواج النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم ياخذن من رؤسهن حتى تكون كالوفرة": ...... وفيه دليل على جواز تخفيف الشعور للنساء اهـ