Question 950: In which hand and on which finger should a ring be worn, and is there a priority for a specific finger for a specific ring?
Answer
1 جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنْ آبَائِه فِي وَصِيَّةِ النَّبِيِّ لِعَلِيٍّ يَا عَلِيُّ تَخَتَّمْ بِالْيَمِينِ فَإِنَّهَا فَضِيلَةٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ لِلْمُقَرَّبِينَ
📚Faqih, vol. 4, p. 374
The Prophet of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, said in his will to the Commander of the Faithful, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: 'O Ali! Wear the ring on the right hand, for this is a virtue from Allah, the Almighty and Exalted, for the close ones!'
2 الْعَرْزَمِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ قَالَ: كَانَ أَمِيرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَتَخَتَّمُ فِي يَمِينِه
📚Al-Kafi, vol. 6, p. 470
Imam Sadiq, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: 'The Commander of the Faithful, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to wear his ring on his right hand!'
3 عَنْ أَبِي عَبْداللَّه أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ كَانَ يَتَخَتَّمُ فِي يَمِينِه
📚Al-Kafi, vol. 6, p. 469
Imam Sadiq, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: 'The Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, used to wear his ring on his right hand!'
4 عَنْ أَبِي عَبْداللَّه أَنَّ عَلِيَّ بْنَ الْحُسَيْنِ كَانَ يَتَخَتَّمُ فِي يَمِينِه
📚Al-Kafi, vol. 6, p. 470
Imam Sadiq, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: 'Imam Sajjad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to wear his ring on his right hand!'
5️⃣ Ibn Abi Umayr said: 'I said to Imam Kazim, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him: 'Tell me, why did the Commander of the Faithful wear the ring on his right hand?' He said: 'Indeed, he used to wear the ring on his right hand because he was the Imam of the people of the right after the Messenger of Allah, and Allah (in the Quran) has praised the people of the right and condemned the people of the left. The Messenger of Allah also used to wear the ring on his right hand, and this is a sign for our Shi'a by which they are known, and they are also known by their preservation of prayer times, giving zakat, showing solidarity with their brothers, and enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil!'
📚Ilal al-Shara'i, p. 158
6 عَلِيِّ بْنِ جَعْفَرٍ قَالَ: سَأَلْتُ أَخِي مُوسَى عَنِ الْخَاتَمِ يُلْبَسُ فِي الْيَمِينِ فَقَالَ إِنْ شِئْتَ فِي الْيَمِينِ وَ إِنْ شِئْتَ فِي الْيَسَار
📚Al-Kafi, vol. 6, p. 469
Ali ibn Ja'far said: 'I asked my brother Musa ibn Ja'far, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, about the ring, whether it should be worn on the right hand.' He said: 'If you wish, on the right hand, and if you wish, on the left hand!'
7 عن أَبِی عَبْداللَّه قال: تَعَلَّمُوا الْعَرَبِیَّةَ فَإِنَّهَا کَلَامُ اللَّهِ الَّذِی تَکَلَّمَ بِهِ خَلْقَهُ وَ نَظِّفُوا الْمَاضِغَیْنِ وَ بَلِّغُوا بِالْخَوَاتِیم
Muhammad ibn Ali ibn al-Husayn, the author of this book, may Allah be pleased with him, says: This hadith has also been narrated by Abu Sa'id al-Adami, and he said at its end: 'Make the rings reach' means, 'Place the rings on the end of the fingers and do not place them on their tips, for it has been narrated that this is from the actions of the people of Lut.'
📚Khisal, p. 258
Imam Sadiq, peace be upon him, said: 'Learn the Arabic language, for it is the speech of Allah with which He spoke to His creation, and clean your teeth (with a toothbrush and toothpick), and place the rings at the end of the fingers!'
Muhammad ibn Ali ibn al-Husayn, the author of this book, says: Abu Sa'id al-Adami also narrated this hadith and said at its end: 'Make the rings reach' means, 'Place the rings on the end of the fingers and do not place them on the tip of the finger, for it has been narrated that it is from the actions of the people of Lut!'
8 عَنِ الصَّادِقِ قَالَ: قَال رَسُولُ اللَّهِ أَنْهَى أُمَّتِي عَنِ التَّخَتُّمِ فِي السَّبَّابَةِ وَ الْوُسْطَى
📚Makaram al-Akhlaq, p. 93
Imam Sadiq, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: 'The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, said: 'I forbid my ummah from wearing a ring on the index finger (the finger between the thumb and the middle finger) and the middle finger!'
✅Based on the above narrations and others, it is clear that in many narrations, there is a recommendation and encouragement to wear a ring on the right hand, but it is also permissible to wear a ring on the left hand.
Also, wearing a ring on the middle finger and the index finger is prohibited, and it is also recommended to place the ring at the end of the finger. The narration in the book 'Makaram al-Akhlaq' that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, sometimes placed the ring on the second joint of the middle finger or the second joint of the index finger is not reliable because it is not attributed to the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, and it contradicts the attributed narrations.
The narration from 📚Al-Kafi, vol. 6, p. 476, hadith 9, from Imam Sadiq, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, indicates that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him and his family, wore a ring on his little finger (khinsir).
✅A narration regarding a specific ring for a specific finger has not been reported.
اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَی مُحَمَّدٍ وَ آلِ مُحَمَّدٍ وَ عَجِّلْ لِوَلِیِّکَ الْفَرَجَ وَ الْعَافِیَةَ وَ النَّصْر