The short answer
The days reported for hijama (cupping), often called the sunnah days, are the 17th, 19th and 21st of the month in Sunan Abi Dawud 3861 and Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051. The first is graded hasan (good) on one grading; the second is graded differently. Cupping carries real risks, including infection C, so speak to your doctor before considering it. The sections below report the sources and are not medical advice.
What do the reports say about hijama?
A hadith is a report of what the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said or did. Three reports in Sahih al-Bukhari are quoted here. Each is sahih by its inclusion in Sahih al-Bukhari, and each is quoted only for what it says.
| Report | Who speaks | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Sahih al-Bukhari 5683 | Jabir ibn 'Abd Allah, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the Prophet's words | If there is any good in your medicines, it is in a cut of the cupper's instrument, a drink of honey or a burn of fire that suits the illness. He added that he did not like to be cauterised |
| Sahih al-Bukhari 5697 | Jabir, visiting a sick man named al-Muqanna' | He would not leave until al-Muqanna' was cupped, because he had heard the Prophet say that in it there is healing |
| Sahih al-Bukhari 5696 | Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, answering a question about the cupper's wage | The Prophet was cupped by Abu Tayba, may Allah be pleased with him, and gave him two sa' of food. Anas also gives the Prophet's words that the best (amthal, which sunnah.com renders "best" and can also mean "most fitting") of what people treat themselves with is cupping and sea costus. The report names no illness |
1AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 5683
2AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 5697
3AuthenticSahih al-Bukhari 5696
Sahih al-Bukhari 5697
لاَ أَبْرَحُ حَتَّى تَحْتَجِمَ فَإِنِّي سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ " إِنَّ فِيهِ شِفَاءً
I will not leave until you are cupped, for I heard the Messenger of Allah say: in it there is healing.
None of the cupping sayings in the three reports names an illness, a day or a frequency, and none says cupping is required. Sahih al-Bukhari 5683 names the cut of the cupper's instrument, a drink of honey and a burn of fire in a sentence that begins with if; none of them is described here. The Arabic of Sahih al-Bukhari 5697 does not name what "it" refers to. Some reports name places on the body, such as Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051 (graded differently). They are not listed here, and no method is given.
Which days of the month do the reports name?
Reports on hijama days name the 17th, 19th and 21st. Three reports below give those numbers. The Arabic gives only the numbers.
| Report | Who speaks | What it says | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunan Abi Dawud 3861 (hasan on one grading) | Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the Prophet's words | Whoever is cupped on the 17th, 19th and 21st, it is a cure (shifa') from every disease | Hasan, on one grading |
| Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051 (graded differently) | Anas describes what the Prophet used to do | He used to be cupped on the 17th, 19th and 21st | Graded differently |
| Sunan Ibn Majah 3486 | Anas reports the Prophet's words | Whoever wants to be cupped should seek out the 17th, 19th or 21st. A second sentence warns that blood must not be allowed to "rage" so that it kills the person; it is not interpreted here | Weak, on one grading |
4AuthenticSunan Abi Dawud 3861
5Graded differently Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051
Sunan Abi Dawud 3861
مَنِ احْتَجَمَ لِسَبْعَ عَشْرَةَ وَتِسْعَ عَشْرَةَ وَإِحْدَى وَعِشْرِينَ كَانَ شِفَاءً مِنْ كُلِّ دَاءٍ
Whoever is cupped on the seventeenth, the nineteenth and the twenty-first, it is a cure from every disease.
That is the wording of Abu Dawud 3861, not a medical finding: nothing here says that cupping on any day does what the wording says. Its grading rests on one grader. Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051 describes what the Prophet did and does not carry that wording.
Reports on days of the week
Sunan Ibn Majah 3487 (weak) goes further. Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the Prophet advising days for cupping, and avoiding Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with reasons about healing, memory and illness. Sunan Abi Dawud 3862 (weak) pulls the other way on Tuesday: Kabsha bint Abi Bakra says her father forbade his family cupping that day and claimed the Prophet had called Tuesday the day of blood. That report is weak, so the claim is not established. Both are graded weak on the one grading, and neither is preferred here.
How are the day reports graded?
Graders judge the chain of narrators. Hasan means good, a step below sahih (sound). Da'if means weak.
- Abu Dawud 3861: hasan on the one grading sunnah.com shows, which this site shows as Authentic.
- Tirmidhi 2051: graded differently: one grading says hasan, another says da'if. The sources list shows who said which.
- Ibn Majah 3486 and 3487, and Abu Dawud 3862: weak, on the one grading for each.
Other gradings may be listed on dorar.net, which our tools could not read, so the gradings shown here are only the ones we could check.
Risks and safety
Nothing here is medical advice. The sections above report what hadith collections say and how their records are graded. They do not say that cupping treats, prevents or cures any condition, or that any day is safer or better for it, and they give no method.
Cupping carries real risks. The NCCIH, a US government health body, lists side effects including infections, burns and scars. It reports anaemia from blood loss after repeated wet cupping, rare cases of bleeding inside the skull after cupping on the scalp, and the spread of hepatitis B and C when equipment is used on more than one person without sterilisation. It also says most research on cupping is of low quality C. Wet cupping involves cuts and blood loss, so ask a doctor about the risk of bleeding and fainting too.
If you are pregnant, take blood-thinning medicine, or have anaemia, diabetes or a bleeding disorder, speak to your doctor before anyone considers cupping. The same goes for any long-term condition or regular medicine.
Cupping should only be done by a trained practitioner working hygienically, with sterile, single-use equipment. The NHS has no page on cupping itself. Its page on complementary therapies says they are not all safe or suitable for everybody, notes that most complementary therapists are not required by law to register, and suggests checking that a private therapist is registered with a professional body accredited by the Professional Standards Authority N.
If you are unwell, speak to your GP. The NHS advises telling any doctor treating you that you use a complementary therapy, and not stopping any prescribed medicine without first talking to your doctor N.
What should I ask a qualified clinician?
These are questions to take to a GP, pharmacist or other qualified clinician before anyone considers cupping. They do not suggest what the answers are.
- Given my health conditions and the medicines I take, is cupping suitable for me?
- Does anything change if I am pregnant, or if this is for a child or an older person?
- What are the risks, and what could go wrong?
- What evidence is there for my own condition, and what are the standard treatments for it?
- Who would carry it out, what training and registration do they hold, and with which body?
- How are equipment, hygiene and skin care handled, and is anything single-use?
- Should my GP know, and could it affect my existing care or tests?
For a question of religion, ask a scholar you trust. For a question of health, ask a clinician.
Reading the reports showed which sayings are sound, which are weak, and where graders disagree. The page keeps each grade with its report and gives no advice on treatment.
Questions people ask
What does hijama mean?
Hijama, also written hijamah, is the Arabic word for cupping. Several reports in Sahih al-Bukhari mention it. No method for doing it is given here, and cupping carries real risks, so speak to your doctor first.
Which days of the month do the reports name for hijama?
Sunan Abi Dawud 3861, Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051 and Sunan Ibn Majah 3486 name the 17th, 19th and 21st. Abu Dawud 3861 is graded hasan on the one grading we could read, Tirmidhi 2051 is graded differently, and Ibn Majah 3486 is graded weak on the one grading. Further gradings on dorar.net could not be read.
Do the reports say hijama has benefits?
Some wordings use the words healing and cure, such as Sahih al-Bukhari 5697 and Sunan Abi Dawud 3861 (hasan on one grading). Those are the words of the reports, not a medical finding, and nothing here says that hijama treats, prevents or cures any condition. The NCCIH, a US government health body, says most research on cupping is of low quality. Speak to your doctor about your own health.
Is hijama safe?
Cupping carries real risks. The NCCIH, a US government health body, lists infections, burns and scars among its side effects, and reports anaemia from blood loss after repeated wet cupping. Wet cupping involves cuts and blood loss, so ask a doctor about bleeding and fainting too. If you are pregnant, take blood-thinning medicine, or have anaemia, diabetes or a bleeding disorder, speak to your doctor first. It should only be done by a trained practitioner working hygienically with sterile, single-use equipment.
Is there a day of the week for hijama?
Sunan Ibn Majah 3487 (weak) advises Thursday, Monday and Tuesday and avoiding Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Sunan Abi Dawud 3862 (weak) reports that a father forbade his family cupping on Tuesday. Each is graded weak on the one grading, and the two disagree about Tuesday. Neither is preferred here.
Are hijama points listed here?
No. Some reports name places on the body, but no method is given here, so none are listed. For how and where cupping is done, and whether it is safe for you, speak to a qualified clinician.
Sources
Every claim here comes from one of these. The hadith were read on sunnah.com on 27 October 2026 and checked against printed editions of the collections on 29 October 2026. dorar.net, where further gradings are listed, could not be read. Gradings are reported with their graders; we do not grade hadith ourselves.
- 1
Jabir ibn 'Abd Allah, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, saying that any good in people's medicines is in the cupper's cut, a drink of honey or a burn that suits the illness, and that he disliked being cauterised.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5683 Book 76, Hadith 6
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 2
Jabir, may Allah be pleased with him, says he would not leave the sick al-Muqanna' until he was cupped, having heard the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, say that in it there is healing.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5697 Book 76, Hadith 19
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 3
Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, says the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was cupped by Abu Tayba and gave Abu Tayba two sa' of food, and called cupping and sea costus the best of what people treat themselves with.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5696 Book 76, Hadith 18
Authentic: in Sahih al-Bukhari
- 4
Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, saying that whoever is cupped on the seventeenth, the nineteenth and the twenty-first, it is a cure (shifa') for every disease.
Sunan Abi Dawud 3861 Book 29, Hadith 7
Authentic: Hasan (Al-Albani). Remarks: Other gradings listed on dorar.net were not read: the site is blocked to our tools, so any further gradings are unverified (Ilmwell team note)
- 5
Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, says the Prophet used to be cupped on the seventeenth, nineteenth and twenty-first, and at two places on the body; graded differently.
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051 Book 28, Hadith 16
Graded differently. Here is who graded it which way:
- SoundAl-Tirmidhi
- WeakDarussalam
- Other remarksIlmwell team note
See each grading in full, with its wording and where it was given
Scholars disagree about this hadith. Here is how each graded it, so you can follow the scholar you trust.
- حسن (hasan): Al-Tirmidhi, Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2051 (as written in the Shakir and Bashar 'Awwad editions; the JK000140 copy reads حسن غريب, hasan gharib)
- Da'if: Darussalam, as shown on sunnah.com
- Other gradings listed on dorar.net were not read: the site is blocked to our tools, so any further gradings are unverified: Ilmwell team note
- 6
Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the Prophet saying that whoever wants to be cupped should seek out the seventeenth, nineteenth or twenty-first, and not let his blood rage; graded weak on the one grading we could read.
Sunan Ibn Majah 3486 Book 31, Hadith 51
Weak: Da'if (Darussalam). Remarks: Other gradings listed on dorar.net were not read: the site is blocked to our tools, so any further gradings are unverified (Ilmwell team note)
- 7
Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, reports the Prophet advising cupping on an empty stomach and on Thursday, Monday and Tuesday, and avoiding four other days, with reasons about healing, memory and illness; graded weak on the one grading we could read.
Sunan Ibn Majah 3487 Book 31, Hadith 52
Weak: Da'if (Darussalam). Remarks: Other gradings listed on dorar.net were not read: the site is blocked to our tools, so any further gradings are unverified (Ilmwell team note)
- 8
Kabsha bint Abi Bakra reports that her father forbade his family cupping on Tuesday and asserted from the Messenger of Allah that Tuesday is the day of blood; graded weak on the one grading we could read.
Sunan Abi Dawud 3862 Book 29, Hadith 8
Weak: Da'if (Al-Albani). Remarks: Other gradings listed on dorar.net were not read: the site is blocked to our tools, so any further gradings are unverified (Ilmwell team note)
- C
NCCIH (a US government health body) on cupping: side effects including persistent skin discolouration, scars, burns and infections; anaemia from blood loss after repeated wet cupping; rare bleeding inside the skull after scalp cupping; hepatitis B and C spread by unsterilised shared equipment; most research of low quality. General health information, not a religious ruling.
Cupping (NCCIH) Last updated November 2018. Read 29 October 2026.
- N
NHS guidance on complementary therapies: not all are safe or suitable for everybody; most therapists are not legally required to register, so check for a professional body accredited by the Professional Standards Authority; tell any doctor treating you; do not stop prescribed medicine without talking to your doctor. It does not mention cupping. General health information, not a religious ruling.
Herbal medicines and complementary therapies (NHS) Page last reviewed 1 May 2026. Read 29 October 2026.
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