610 – ʿĀʾishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “I used to perfume the Messenger of Allah ﷺ for his iḥrām before he actually entered the state, and for his release from iḥrām before he circumambulated the House.” Agreed upon (1).

Points derived from the ḥadīth:

1. It is recommended to apply perfume shortly before formally entering iḥrām, so that its fragrance remains during the consecrated state.
2. If the scent of perfume lingers on a pilgrim after he has entered iḥrām, his iḥrām is unaffected; it neither harms nor invalidates it, whether the fragrance is on his clothing or his body. This is the view of the overwhelming majority of scholars among the Companions, the Successors, and the leading juristic schools. Among the proofs is the report in al-Bukhārī (1538) and Muslim (1190) in which ʿĀʾishah said: “It is as though I can still see the gleam of perfume in the parting of the Messenger of Allah’s hair while he was in iḥrām.” Ibn al-Qayyim remarked: “The majority of scholars permit the continued presence of perfume, for the sound Sunnah relates that the shine of perfume could be seen in his hair after he had entered iḥrām. The ḥadīth of the man in the cloak occurred at Ḥunayn in the eighth year, whereas ʿĀʾishah’s report is from the Farewell Pilgrimage, and the latter practice supersedes the former.”
3. Perfume becomes lawful once the pilgrim has completed the first disengagement from iḥrām; the two stages of disengagement will be explained, God willing, in due course.
4. It is recommended to apply perfume after the first disengagement and before performing ṭawāf of the House.
5. His use of perfume both immediately before entering iḥrām and again after the disengagement shows that perfume is prohibited during iḥrām itself. The scholars are unanimous on this: it is one of the recognized prohibitions of iḥrām.