The second kind is shaving the head out of necessity, such as for medical treatment. This too is permissible according to the Quran, the Sunnah, and scholarly consensus. Allah has permitted a person in ihrām, who is ordinarily forbidden to shave his head, to do so if he suffers from an ailment, as He Most High says:

“Do not shave your heads until the sacrificial animal reaches its place of slaughter. But whoever among you is ill or has an ailment of the head must offer compensation by fasting, charity, or sacrifice.”

The report of Kaʿb ibn ʿUjrah is established by the agreement of the Muslims. During the ʿumrah of al-Hudaybiyyah, the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—passed by him while lice were falling from his head. He asked, “Are your lice troubling you?” He replied, “Yes.” He said, “Shave your head and sacrifice a sheep, or fast for three days, or distribute a faraq (a measure of food) among six needy people.” The authenticity of this hadith is agreed upon, and all Muslims have received it with acceptance.

The third kind is shaving the head as an act of worship, religious devotion, or asceticism, outside Hajj or ʿumrah. Examples include instructing someone who repents to shave his head; making a shaved head a distinguishing mark of people of devotion and religion, or part of the perfection of asceticism and worship; or considering someone who shaves his head better, more devout, or more ascetic than someone who does not.

Another example is trimming the hair of someone who repents, as some who claim spiritual leadership do when they guide someone through repentance: they cut some of his hair, and the shaykh appoints a bearer of scissors and a prayer rug. His praying on the rug and cutting people’s hair are then treated as part of the qualifications for spiritual leadership that make him fit to be an exemplar who guides