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Can a man wear a ring of silver that weighs more than one mithqal?
I always used to wear a ring of silver on the little finger of my right hand, but I read a Hadith which said that a man can only wear rings made of silver, but less than one mithqal.
My question is: if the silver in my ring is less than one mithqal, but when a carnelian stone is added to it, it weighs more than one mithqal, is this also prohibited?
Praise be to Allah.
It is permissible for a man to wear a ring of silver or other precious metals except gold, because wearing rings made of gold is prohibited for men .
The scholars of the Standing Committee said:
“Wearing rings is permissible for men, if they are made of silver or precious metals other than gold .” (Fatawa Al-Lajnah Ad-Da’imah, 24/67)
Shaykh Salih Al-Fawzan (may Allah preserve him) said:
“It is not permissible for the male Muslim to wear a ring of gold . As for rings that are not made of gold, such as those made of silver or other kinds of metal, it is permissible for a man to wear them, even if they are made of precious metals.” (Al-Muntaqa min Fatawa Al-Fawzan, 95/7)
The jurists differed concerning the permissible weight of a man’s ring:
According to the Hanafis:
Al-Haskafi said: “A man’s ring should not weigh more than one Mithqal . Ibn `Abidin (may Allah have mercy on him) regarded as more correct the view of the author of Adh-Dhakhirah, that it should weigh less than one Mithqal.”
The Malikis said:
“It is permissible for a male to wear a ring of silver if its weight is two Shar`i dirhams or less. If it is more than two dirhams, it is prohibited.”
The Shafi`is did not give a definition of the permissible weight for a ring. Al-Khatib Ash-Sharbini (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Our companions did not discuss the permissible weight of a ring; perhaps they regarded what is customary as sufficient , i.e., they left the matter to local custom and the usual weight of rings therein, so whatever goes beyond that is regarded as excessive. This is our view.”
The Hanbalis said:
“There is nothing wrong with making it one Mithqal or more, because no limit has been narrated concerning that, so long as it does not go beyond what is usual, otherwise it is prohibited. They said: That is because the basic principle is that it is prohibited, and it was only permitted because of the actions of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and the Companions.” (See: Al-Mawsu`ah Al-Fiqhiyyah, 11/27)
Abu Dawud (4223), At-Tirmidhi (1785) and An-Nasa’i (5195) narrated via `Abdullah ibn Muslim As-Sulami Al-Marwazi Abu Taybah, from `Abdullah ibn Buraydah, from his father, that a man came to the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) wearing a ring of yellow copper, and he said to him: “Why do I detect the smell of idols from you?” So he threw it away, then he came wearing a ring of iron. He said: “Why do I see you wearing the jewellery of the people of Hell?” So he threw it away and said: O Messenger of Allah, of what should I make it? He said: “Make it of silver, but do not let it weigh so much as one Mithqal.”
This Hadith is quoted as evidence by those who disallow wearing rings that weigh one Mithqal or more, but its chain of narrators is inauthentic. A report narrated by `Abdullah ibn Muslim from Ibn Buraydah cannot be quoted as evidence. Abu Hatim said: His Hadith may be written down but it cannot be quoted as evidence. Ibn Hibban mentioned him in Ath-Thiqat and said: He makes mistakes.” (Tahdhib At-Tahdhib, 6/30)
It was also narrated via him by An-Nasa’i in As-Sunan Al-Kubra (9442), after which he said: “This is an odd Hadith.”
It was classed as inauthentic by An-Nawawi in Al-Majmu` (4/465) and by Al-Albani in Da`if Abu Dawud, and others.
Ahmad (6518) narrated from `Abdullah ibn `Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) saw one of his Companions wearing a ring of gold, and he turned away from him, so that man threw it away and acquired a ring of iron, but he (the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “This is worse; this is the jewellery of the people of Hell.” So he threw it away and acquired a ring of silver, and he (the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) did not say anything about it.
Al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) classed it as sound in Adab Az-Zafaf and said:
“This Hadith indicates that it is permissible to wear a ring of silver, and its general meaning indicates that it is permissible even if it weighs more than one Mithqal. As for the Hadith, “but do not let it weigh so much as one Mithqal”, it is weak.” (Adab Az-Zafaf, p. 217-222)
There is nothing wrong with a Muslim wearing a ring of silver in the customary manner, even if it weighs one Mithqal or more, so long as it does not reach the level of extravagance or showing off.
But if it goes beyond what is customary and normal, then it is not allowed, if it reaches the level of vanity and fame.
And Allah knows best.