Ruling on using denatured alcohol

29-5-2013 | IslamWeb

Question:

aslm alkm i saw about denatured alcohol in ur site...actually this denatured alcohol is that which is not consumable bcoz of the addition of certain chemicals in ethanol which causes intoxicity...and so denatured alcohol wonnt cause any type of intoxicity....but u told that if the denatured alcohol causes intoxicity prior to the addition of chemicals then it is not permissible....how is that possibile....in one way,if an alcohol undergoes changes and converts to another new form,then it is permissible naa...i mean in cosmetics and all....plz clarify my doubts....and do guide me tjhe right way

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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.

Our Fatwa regarding the denatured alcohol is clear, as we have pointed out in it that if such alcohol is added while it is in its state of causing intoxication, then its impurity still exists according to the majority of Muslim scholars. Mixing it with those substances does not make it free from that description. Accordingly, we have forbidden using it in cosmetics and the like for its impurity. Actually, using it is more general than just drinking it.

It is worth noting that if the alcohol used has been transferred to another substance prior to mixing it with other substances, in the sense that its intoxicating characteristic is removed, then there will be no harm in using what is mixed with it such as creams and the like.

Allaah Knows best.