Removing dead skin still attached to the body
Fatwa No: 266704

Question

wa alaykum salaam wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh, i received a answer on question nr: 2512616 by email. i realy still dont understand what you mean, how is it possible that dead skin that seperates from the body is still attached to the skin?? why is it that the scholars i asked in the example of my said no need to remove??? i.e. circles of fungal these are circles loose from the layer beneath but surroundingly attached to skin

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

The answer we have given you is clear but it seems that you found it difficult to understand. There is no contradiction between the fact that the skin is dead and that it is still attached to the body; its attachment does not indicate that it is not dead. Normally, the dead skin is dry and the new skin cells grow underneath it to replace the old dead skin. This dry skin is considered alien to the body (it is no longer part of the body) and therefore scholars said that it should be removed if it remains attached to the new living skin provided that removing it does not cause harm. This is the same as the need to remove any substance that prevents water from reaching the skin, such as dyes and the like.

If there is a scholar who advised you that you do not have to remove this dead skin, then we cannot know for sure what caused him to form such an opinion; perhaps he believes that the skin is in a state in which it is not obligatory to be removed or perhaps he fears that you would be harmed if you removed it. The answer we have given you is our own opinion regarding your condition.

Allaah Knows best.

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