Fatwa No. 25
Question:
Since the onset of the technological revolution — which has succeeded in bridging distances and transforming human communication, yet has turned human beings into programmed machines following its steps — there remain, nonetheless, refined human values that cannot be abandoned, and a person will always feel that something is missing without them.
A few days ago a conversation took place between me and a female friend who asked me for a photograph of myself without ḥijāb and another with ḥijāb. I was surprised — and she said to me: “We have returned to the old days of matchmakers — suitors and prospective brides now exchange photographs, then conduct conversations via Facebook, and then proceed to engagement.”
How astonishing — and then more astonishing still! Where is the counsel of the Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم) ) regarding the matter of proposal — that he should look at her and she at him — and
where is the element of mutual acceptance (qabūl)? This is the harvest of technology.
When I objected, I was accused of backwardness and of not wanting to marry. Is this permissible according to the Sharīʿah? I know that Imām Aḥmad permitted the suitor (khaṭīb) to
see that of the prospective bride (makhṭūbah) — but with the permission of her guardian (walī) — and I respect this opinion. However, if a young woman feels that this diminishes her dignity, that is her right. And I believe that any person whose soul whispers to him that he can bring about his own provision (rizq) is falling into one of the snares of Iblīs. Glorified be Allah — the Provider, the Giver, the Bestower!
I ask Allah to have mercy upon us and keep us firm — for the hardest thing is for a person to feel that he is pressing forward on a path, striving against himself and those around him, when tribulations multiply and matters become confused.
Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāhi rabb al-ʿālamīn. To proceed:
Caution is warranted in the matter of exchanging photographs, and one should avoid broadly expanding upon what has been attributed to Imām Aḥmad (1) in this subject . It should occur only where suspicion is absent and there is a strong presumption of the sincerity of the proposal (ṣidq al-khiṭāb).
Moreover, this matter involves psychological and emotional dimensions that photographs alone naturally cannot fulfil — unless the photograph serves merely as a preliminary step leading to direct communication under the knowledge and supervision of the family. In such a case, a dispensation (rukhṣah) may be granted.
And Allah Most High knows best.
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Footnotes (Takhrīj):
(1) “It is permissible — and a group of scholars hold it to be recommended — for one who wishes to propose to a woman to look at her face only, as it is the locus of beauty. He may repeat his gaze and contemplate her beauty without restriction when he believes it likely she will accept, provided this is not a gaze of pleasure, desire, or suspicion. There is no disagreement regarding the permissibility of looking at the face, as it is not considered a private part — but this must be without seclusion with her, based on the narration of Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with them both), attributed to the Prophet ( صلى الله عليه وسلم): ‘No man is ever alone with a woman except in
the presence of a maḥram’ — Muttafaq ʿalayh, with the wording from al-Bukhārī — and because seclusion is not safe from the commission of what is forbidden, based on his statement ( :(صلى الله عليه وسلم
‘No man is ever alone with a woman but Shayṭān is the third of them’ — recorded by Imām Aḥmad.
A second narration from Imām Aḥmad permits looking at what is ordinarily visible — such as the neck, hands, and feet — based on the narration of Jābir (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet ( صلى الله عليه وسلم) said: ‘When one of you proposes to a woman, if he is able to look at what will
encourage him to marry her, let him do so’ — recorded by Aḥmad and Abū Dāwūd from the narration of Ibn Isḥāq. Imām Aḥmad said: ‘There is no objection to looking at what encourages him to marry her — such as the hand, the body, and the like’ — for since the Prophet ( (صلى الله عليه وسلم
permitted looking at her without her knowledge, it is understood that he permitted looking at what is ordinarily visible, as it is not possible to isolate the face alone when other parts are also visible. Some add: and the head and the lower leg; another narration adds: and the palm. Abū Bakr said: ‘There is no objection to looking at her unveiled at the time of proposal.'”
