Hijama dates, the sunnah days for cupping

Hijama (cupping) is a Sunnah treatment: the Prophet ﷺ was cupped himself and praised it as a cure. The authentic hadith say so plainly. The hadith that name the 17th, 19th and 21st of the Hijri month are weaker but acceptable to many scholars, and the reports about which weekdays to choose or avoid are weaker still. So the sunnah dates are a recommendation, not a condition: hijama on any day is allowed when you need it.

What is authentic about hijama

Ibn Abbas reports that the Prophet ﷺ said healing is in three things: a drink of honey, the incision of the cupper, and cauterising with fire, and that he forbade his ummah from cauterising.¹ Anas reports that the Prophet ﷺ was cupped by Abu Taybah, paid him, and said: "The best of the remedies you use is cupping."² He was cupped while in ihram and while fasting.³

The 17th, 19th and 21st

So there is real disagreement. Many scholars accept these days as a recommendation because the reports support one another, while others, including several contemporary hadith specialists, hold that no report on the timing of hijama is sahih. Both groups agree that hijama is allowed on any day when there is a need.

The days some reports discourage

A report from Ibn Umar says cupping on an empty stomach is best, names Monday, Tuesday and Thursday as good days, and says to avoid Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.⁴ Al-Albani graded it hasan by its routes, but each of its chains is weak and other scholars, such as Shuaib al-Arnaut, graded it weak. A separate report from Abu Bakrah discourages Tuesday, calling it the day of blood. It is graded weak.⁵ The two reports even disagree about Tuesday, which is one reason many scholars do not treat the weekday as binding. The table above marks each date's weekday so you can choose if you wish to follow these reports.

Hijama while fasting

A health caution

Hijama with cuts (wet cupping) draws blood, so treat it as a medical procedure. Go only to a trained, licensed practitioner who uses new sterile blades and single-use cups, and who asks about your health first. Speak to your doctor before hijama if you are pregnant, have anaemia, diabetes, a heart condition or a bleeding disorder, take blood thinners, or are unwell. Do not stop any treatment your doctor has given you. The hadith praise cupping as a remedy; they do not replace medical care, and AmalKit does not give medical advice.

How the dates are worked out

The Islamic day begins at sunset, but hijama is done in the daytime, so the table gives the Gregorian date of the day itself. For example, the 17th of a month that begins on a Monday falls on a Wednesday. Dates follow the Umm al-Qura calendar. If your local month started a day later, use the toggle and the whole table moves by a day. The Islamic calendar shows every day of the year, and today's Hijri date is one tap away.

1. Sahih al-Bukhari 5680.
2. Sahih al-Bukhari 5696.
3. Sahih al-Bukhari 1938, from Ibn Abbas.
4. Sunan Ibn Majah 3487 and 3488, from Ibn Umar. Graded hasan by al-Albani, weak by Shuaib al-Arnaut and Zubair Ali Zai.
5. Sunan Abi Dawud 3862, from Abu Bakrah. Graded weak by al-Albani.
6. Al-Marghinani, al-Hidayah, Kitab al-Sawm, on cupping for the fasting person. The other madhhabs' positions are summarised from their standard manuals.

The rulings on this page are pending review by the scholars on our team.