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Fatwa CenterDescription of houris in hadeeth
Question
Is the following hadith from At-Tirmithi authentic?
A Houri (maiden of Paradise) is a most beautiful young woman with a transparent body. The marrow of her bones is visible like the interior lines of pearls and rubies. She looks like red wine in a white glass. She is of white color and free from the normal physical disabilities of the women of this world such as menstruation, menopause, urine and waste, and child bearing and the related pollution. A Houri is a girl of tender age having large breasts that are round (pointed) and not inclined to dangle. Houris dwell in palaces of splendid surroundings.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
The hadeeth was cited by At-Tirmithi and Ibn Hibbaan with the following wording, "Indeed, a woman from the people of Paradise, the whiteness of her shin is visible through seventy silk garments, as Allah says: {As if they were rubies and coral.} [Quran 55:58] As for the ruby, it is a stone that if you were to enter a wire through it, you would surely be able to see it through it."
The hadeeth was declared weak by Shaykh Al-Albaani in his revision and commentary on the ahaadeeth of Sunan At-Tirmithi and in other books of his. Ibn Hibbaan also cited this hadeeth in his book Saheeh Ibn Hibbaan. Shu'ayb Al-Arnaa’oot classified it as inauthentic in his revision and commentary on the ahaadeeth of Saheeh Ibn Hibbaan.
The version cited by At-Tirmithi that you referred to mentioned some descriptions that we could not find combined in one hadeeth. As for being purified and void of all the defects of women in the worldly life, Abu Nu‘aym Al-Asfahaani cited a hadeeth about the description of Paradise in which the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, commented on the verse that reads: {And they will have therein purified spouses...} [Quran 2:25] stating that the term "purified" means the one who is pure from menstruation, excrement, nasal mucus, spit (and every kind of filth associated with the worldly life). Al-Haafith Ibn Hajar said in his book Al-Fat-h that "the chain of narration of this hadeeth is inauthentic." A similar meaning was reported in the interpretation of the verse on the authority of Mujaahid and Qataadah.
As for the description of the Houri as "a girl of tender age having large breasts that are round (pointed) and not inclined to dangle," we could not find it in any Marfoo‘ hadeeth (a hadeeth directly attributed to the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). However, it was cited by Tafseer (exegesis) scholars such as Ibn Katheer and others from Ibn ‘Abbaas and others. Ibn Katheer said, "Ibn ‘Abbaas, Mujaahid, and others said that the meaning of the word Kawaa‘ib is 'having big round breasts, pointed and not dangling' because they are still young, and of the same age..." He said elsewhere that they are of the same age, thirty-three.
As for the description, "She looks like red wine in a white glass," we could not find it in any hadeeth or report.
Allah knows best.
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