Is it shirk to wear a bindi / teep?
I am a Bengali Muslim. We are south Asian so we have been wearing teeps since nearly ancient times. It is from the Hindu religion in origin, but in modern times it’s worn for fashion / reminder of our culture & heritage.
On deeper parts of the internet, I’ve seen both Hindus and Muslims demand that I either leave my culture or religion because the two cannot co-exist.
I don’t wear one to pray to any god or open my third eye, I just wear one because it’s beautiful, part of my culture and women have been wearing it for hundreds and thousands of years.
If there are any Islamic scholars that are knowledgeable on this topic, I will listen to your input. This is a topic that makes me feel very conflicted inside.
I’ll be very honest with you, if I see someone wearing that I will 100% assume that they’re Hindu. I saw an elderly lady in the park the other day and she had a scarf over her head. I could only see her from the back so thought she was Muslim. When I approached her I saw her bindi and immediately assumed she was Hindu (despite the head covering) - which she was.
Idk what the scholars say but I would definitely want to avoid doing something by which someone would think I am anything other than a muslimah.
I would opt to wear the jewellery versions of them? I'm also Bengali and I get what you're saying. As a child I wore them but as an adult I wear the jewellery head pieces instead.
Lol I wear tiklis too!! but sometimes they feel a little heavy and pull on my hair ☹️
Yes I hate it when my hair gets caught too 😖
It takes some practice but once you learn how to secure it properly with pins, it's not so bad. I usually use 3 pins.
You need to first learn the history and meaning behind the bindi; then, you should ask a scholar with that context.
What I know is that bindi has to do with some concepts about chakra or maybe third eye. Does that make it shirk? It's hard to say, so go learn more about it.
Also, being a Muslim does not by any means giving up your cultural heritage including your expression of it. Being a Muslim does, however, mean purifying that expression of culture.
For example, in Texan culture, eating bbq/steak/brisket is a big deal. Islam doesn't demand that they eat maqloob instead. Islam does demand, however, that they make sure the meat is halaal and earned through halaal means.
This is a great answer!
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Assalamualaikum. Im not from the subcontinent. Whenever I see that dot on the forehead, I immediately assume that they are a religious hindu.
I feel like many people would think the same. Its doesnt seem to have disassociated itself from its origins and became merely a fashion statement yet.
Ibn Umar reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.”
Source: Sunan Abī Dāwūd 4031
Grade: Sahih (authentic) according to Al-Albani
Plus you may have to consider if this is an adornment and also if it is implying you are a Hindu etc
See scholary answer here
Allah knows best
At the same time, Allah divided us into nations and tribes, and we Bengali Muslims are Bengali, at the end of the day. And the dot is part of Bengali culture. Wallahu a‘lam.
I'm an Indian Muslim and technically its part of my culture too, but just like Christmas is now part of culture it is still inherently a religious symbol.
You won't see muslim Indian hijabis wearing it In or outside of India because it is a Hindu symbol. We can try and paint things how we are used to seeing them, but the reality is our biases cloud our perceptions.
And for the record, I've grown up around Bangladeshi Muslims, so I'm aware of this being part of the culture, alhamdulillah most if not all my friends recognised its wrong.
Yeah, I'm not Bengali so if it's widely recognised as bengali culture and no one would confuse it with being Hindu etc maybe the ruling differs, I think a scholar would have to determine that
I am not a Scholar but with what I have heard that one shouldn't participate in Culture and Festivals (or donate for these festivals)oF Non Muslims coz it's promoting Shirk in the End and also As another Saying goes one who imitates a certain group of people will be raised amongst those (not referring to things like modest Clothing and Things in line With Our Principles )& as of my knowledge Bindi comes From Hinduism which means it's not even Culture coz it was Buddhists actually living there before them .
If this was purely a religious symbol then it would be an act of apostasy to use or wear such symbols, because if it's agreed by Muslims that a particular action can't be done by anyone but a disbeliever, then the one who did is considered a disbeliever
Imam Nawawi ash-Shafii Ashari رحمه الله said
وكذا من فعل فعلا أجمع المسلمون أنه لا يصدر إلا من كافر ، وإن كان صاحبه مصرحا بالإسلام مع فعله ، كالسجود للصليب ، أو النار والمشي إلى الكنائس مع أهلها بزيهم من الزنانير وغيرها
📚 روضة الطالبين
Since it became more of a symbol of tradition, or since it is used not only for religious reasons then it isn't kufr, but still prohibited.
https://islamqa.org/?p=9308
Im south Asian too, but we've never worn those at all. We've been trying to let go of hindu culture for generations, and Alhamdulillah my family even stopped wearing saris a very long time ago, I dont think ive ever seen any of them in one in my lifetime. They switched it up for a more modest cultural dresss instead. My generation stopped the dowries too(mahr only). Whatever was taken from as an imitation of the Hindu culture is not right, we should not imitate the kuffar. We have our beautiful islamic identity that matters the most ❤️
Sorry but, if I see people with bindis, I will never assume they are Muslim, which beats the purpose of being and dressing like a Muslim so everyone knows that you are. I’m south Asian, and I’m very exposed to other Asian nationalities. I know it’s cultural for you, but the automatic understanding upon seeing a bindi is that they are a Hindu.