Short answer
Yes. The Prophet ﷺ was cupped himself, paid the cupper and called cupping one of the best remedies, so hijama is a praised and permitted treatment. It is part of prophetic medicine, not an act of worship you must do. The four schools agree it is allowed, and it should be done by a trained practitioner after checking with your doctor.
Hijama is permissible (mubah) as treatment, and doing it while intending to follow the Prophet ﷺ brings reward. It is not an obligation or a confirmed sunnah of worship. Taking a fee for cupping is allowed.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Hijama (cupping) means drawing blood from the skin with cups, usually after small cuts. The Prophet ﷺ said that healing is in three things: a drink of honey, the cut of the cupper and cauterising with fire, and that he forbade his ummah from cauterising. He also said that if there is good in any of your remedies, it is in the cupper's cut, and that the best of the remedies you use is cupping.
So when people call hijama "sunnah", they mean it is a remedy the Prophet ﷺ used and praised. It belongs to prophetic medicine (tibb nabawi). It is not like the sunnah prayers, and a Muslim who never has hijama has left nothing required. If you have it with the intention of following him, you hope for reward on top of the benefit.
Some points people ask about:
- Payment. The Prophet ﷺ was cupped and gave the cupper his wage, so charging and paying for hijama is allowed.
- Women. Women may have hijama. A female practitioner is best, and only the area being treated should be uncovered.
- Wudu. Wet cupping makes blood flow, and in the Hanafi school flowing blood breaks wudu, so renew it before you pray.
- Dates. The 17th, 19th and 21st of the Hijri month come in weaker reports. They are a recommendation, not a condition. See hijama dates.
- Fasting. In the Hanafi school it does not break the fast, but avoid it if it will weaken you. See what breaks your fast.
Treat hijama as a medical procedure. Go only to a trained, licensed practitioner who uses sterile single-use blades and cups. Speak to your doctor first if you are pregnant, anaemic, diabetic, have a heart or bleeding condition, or take blood thinners, and follow a qualified doctor's advice. Hijama sits alongside medical treatment. It does not replace it.
The evidence
Sahih al-Bukhari 5680
Sahih... الشفاء في ثلاثة شربة عسل وشرطة محجم ...
"Healing is in three things: a drink of honey, the cut of the cupper, and cauterising with fire."
The Prophet named cupping as a means of healing.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5696
Sahih... إن أمثل ما تداويتم به الحجامة ...
"The best of the remedies you use is cupping."
He praised cupping as a remedy, which is why it is called sunnah.
Sahih al-Bukhari 2278
Sahih... احتجم النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم وأعطى الحجام أجره ...
"The Prophet was cupped and gave the cupper his wage."
Paying for hijama is allowed.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya, Kitab al-Karahiyya, chapter on treatment. Treatment, including cupping and bloodletting, is permitted.
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Ijarat, chapter on invalid hire. Taking a wage for cupping is allowed, since the Prophet paid his cupper.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.