He replied:

Praise be to Allah. As for his hand, if there is no impurity on it, it is like the hands of other Muslims. Contact with blood does not affect its purity once he washes it, just as contact with filth while cleaning himself after relieving himself does not affect its purity if he washes it afterward.

It is established in the two Sahīh collections that Ibn ʿAbbās said:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, underwent cupping and paid the cupper his fee.”

Had it been unlawful gain, he would not have paid it to him. Also in the two Sahīh collections, Anas was asked about a cupper’s earnings and said:

“The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, underwent cupping. Abū Tībah performed it, and he ordered that he be given two sāʿ measures of food. He also spoke to his masters, who reduced the dues they required of him.”

There is no doubt that, according to the overwhelming majority of scholars, a cupper who performs cupping is entitled to his fee, although there is a weak opinion to the contrary. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, permitted him to use these earnings to feed his water-drawing camel and his slaves, as related in the hadith of Muhsan:

“His father asked the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, for permission concerning income from cupping, but he refused to grant him permission. He persisted in asking until he said: ‘Use it to feed your slaves and your water-drawing camel.’”

Abū Hātim Ibn Hibbān narrated it in his Sahīh, as did others. Most scholars cited this as evidence that such earnings are not unlawful; for a free person, they are merely disliked, not prohibited. They argued that, had these earnings been unlawful, he would not have instructed him to use them to feed his slaves, since they too are bound by religious obligations.