Verily, the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) disavowed the Sāliqah (wailing woman), the Hāliqah (shaving woman), and the Shāqqah (woman tearing garment)

Explanation

Abu Burdah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that his father, Abu Mūsa al-Ash‘ari (may Allah be pleased with him), got severely sick and lost consciousness. His head was in the lap of a woman from his family, so she screamed and wailed, but he could not respond to her because of being unconscious. When he regained his consciousness, he said that: He dissociates himself from whoever the Messenger of Allah (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) dissociated himself from, and he (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) dissociated himself from the: Sāliqah: a woman who raises her voice in wailing upon calamity. Hāliqah: a woman who shaves her hair upon calamity. Shāqqah: a woman who tears her garment upon calamity. This is because they are from the practices of the pre-Islamic era of ignorance. Instead, one is commanded to be patient in times of calamity and to seek reward from Allah for it.

Lessons

• Tearing the clothes, shaving the hair, and raising the voice in wailing when calamities strike are prohibited and are considered major sins.
• Grief and crying, without wailing and raising the voice, are not forbidden, as they do not contradict patience with the decree of Allah; rather, they are a form of mercy.
• It is prohibited to express discontent with Allah's painful decrees through speech or actions.
• Patience is obligatory in times of calamity.