Fatwa No. 49 — p. 82

Question:

What is the ruling on online conversation (chat) between a young man and a young woman for the purpose of becoming acquainted with one another for marriage? I have heard some say that this is considered khalwah (seclusion) under Islamic law. What is your view?

Answer:

Al-ḥamdu lillāhi rabb al-ʿālamīn. To proceed:

The foundational principle in this matter is one of restriction (al-taDyīq) — and any dispensation (rukhṣah) should remain within narrow limits sufficient to fulfil the need and achieve a clear and recognised legitimate interest (maṣlaḥah muʿtabarah ẓāhirah). The Sharīʿah has established the principle of blocking the pathways to prohibited ends (sadd al-dharāʾiʿ) and preventing the causes of temptation (fitnah).

The Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America (AMJA) has issued the following resolution on this matter: (1)

“— Private conversation in a virtual chat room does not constitute permissible seclusion except within the most restricted limits — such as a conversation between a female student and her teacher who is known for his religious commitment and uprightness. If, however, the virtual room is open during the time of a lecture and other students are expected to join it, this does not constitute seclusion (khalwah).

— The foundational principle governing the relationship between the two sexes is the lowering of the gaze and the prohibition of either sex looking at the other — as a means to an end and as a blocking of pathways to what is forbidden. An exception is made where looking is required by a need, necessity, or overriding legitimate interest — such as: a prospective husband looking at his prospective bride; a physician looking at a female patient; a student looking at a female teacher; a witness when giving testimony; a judge when adjudicating; and similar situations. Religious and worldly education are among the general needs of both men and women — and thus permit looking to the extent that need requires and without which learning or teaching cannot be accomplished. In general, according to the majority of scholars, the scope permitted for a woman looking at a man is broader than that permitted for a man looking at a woman — contrary to the position of the Shāfiʿī school(2). — A woman’s voice does not carry the legal status of ʿawrah — provided she does not speak in a soft or alluring manner (khudūʿ bi-l-qawl). There is therefore no objection to hearing her voice to the extent required for learning, teaching, or legitimate interactions arising in the ordinary affairs of life.”

And Allah Most High knows best.

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Footnotes (Takhrīj):

(1) Resolution of the Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America (AMJA) — cited verbatim from the Shaykh’s source text. Available at amjaonline.com. The resolution addresses three distinct sub-questions embedded in the enquiry: the status of virtual chat rooms as khalwah; the rules governing the gaze between the sexes; and the status of a woman’s voice. The Shaykh delegates his answer entirely to the institutional resolution, reflecting his consistent methodology of anchoring rulings on novel digital matters (nawāzil) in collectively ratified positions.

(2) Ḥanafī: Al-Mabsūṭ (10/148) states: “As for a woman looking at a man — it is like a man looking at another man, since, as we have established, what is above the navel and below the knee is not considered ʿawrah in a man. And whatever is not ʿawrah, looking at it is permissible for both men and women.”

— Mālikī: Al-Tāj wa-l-Iklīl (2/182–184) states: “There is no objection to a woman looking at a man without suspicion.”

— Ḥanbalī: Al-Kāfī (3/8–9) states: “Regarding a woman looking at a man, there are two narrations: the first holds that what is forbidden for him to look at is forbidden for her as well… The second holds that she may look at what is not ʿawrah of him.”

The Shāfiʿī school takes a more restrictive position, as stated in Tuḥfat al-Muḥtāj (7/207–208): “A woman looking at a man is permissible except for what is between the navel and the knee — as is clearly stated in al-Anwār before this. He said: it is forbidden for her to look when there is fear of temptation, in an unrestricted sense.”