The Meaning of the Statement of Allah, the Exalted: “And they shall not display their adornment except to their husbands or their fathers” (the verse)
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : ... the place for earrings ... and the hand up to ... what is called the bracelet is placed there, and ... these places, including the foot and what is above it from the lower half of the leg, which is the place for the anklet, the adornment of the foot, the anklet; these are the places that it is permissible for a woman to show in front of her father and all her mahrams. So it is not permissible for her to show anything other than that. What has become common in some countries, such as Syria, for example, where a sister sits in front of her brother with her entire arm exposed, including under the armpit, because she wears a shirt with no sleeves, and she may also sit in a way that her thigh is seen, or something of her back is seen, or something of her chest is open up to the breasts; all of this is forbidden and not permissible, to the extent that even a mother should not see any of that from her daughter.
Among the customs is that the daughter enters the bathroom and the mother takes a bath in it. Why? He said: To rub her back for her! So the mother exposes her back to her daughter without any hesitation she would otherwise have, and this is forbidden and not permissible; because the back of a woman is not among the adornments that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) permitted in the verse for a woman to show in front of her mahrams.
So a woman sits in the house between her father, her brother, and all her mahrams, and she does not reveal anything except the arm, if she wishes, at times for wudu or the like, or otherwise the face and something of the neck.
The questioner: And upon you peace.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Or otherwise the foot and something of the leg above it. Nothing other than that is permissible for a woman to show of her adornment in front of her father, let alone in front of all her mahrams. So when the places of adornment are specified, what remains other than that stays forbidden; so it is not permissible for the suitor to look at anything other than that.
The questioner : What is the evidence for this specification?
The Shaykh : The word:[An-Nur 24:31], what are the places of adornment? Is under the armpit among the places of adornment?
The questioner : No, for example, the breasts.
The Shaykh : I, for example, am looking under the armpit; is it among the places of adornment?
The questioner: No.
The Shaykh : Do you know what the meaning of places of adornment is? It means the places where adornment is hung.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So your saying the breasts, is there a place of adornment there? ...[An-Nur 24:31] meaning: the places where adornment is hung; therefore we said: the places of adornment are the head, where she may adorn her hair with combs of ivory, gold, silver, and so on, and the earrings that are usually hung on the ears, and the necklace that is hung on the neck, and the ring and bracelet and the like. These are the places of adornment; these are the ones that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) permitted for a woman to show in front of her mahrams.
The questioner ... something else ...?
The Shaykh : More than that is not permissible for her father, let alone for the suitor.
Among the customs is that the daughter enters the bathroom and the mother takes a bath in it. Why? He said: To rub her back for her! So the mother exposes her back to her daughter without any hesitation she would otherwise have, and this is forbidden and not permissible; because the back of a woman is not among the adornments that Allah (Mighty and Majestic) permitted in the verse for a woman to show in front of her mahrams.
So a woman sits in the house between her father, her brother, and all her mahrams, and she does not reveal anything except the arm, if she wishes, at times for wudu or the like, or otherwise the face and something of the neck.
The questioner: And upon you peace.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
Or otherwise the foot and something of the leg above it. Nothing other than that is permissible for a woman to show of her adornment in front of her father, let alone in front of all her mahrams. So when the places of adornment are specified, what remains other than that stays forbidden; so it is not permissible for the suitor to look at anything other than that.
The questioner : What is the evidence for this specification?
The Shaykh : The word:
not expose their adornment
وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّThe questioner : No, for example, the breasts.
The Shaykh : I, for example, am looking under the armpit; is it among the places of adornment?
The questioner: No.
The Shaykh : Do you know what the meaning of places of adornment is? It means the places where adornment is hung.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : So your saying the breasts, is there a place of adornment there? ...
not expose their adornment
وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّThe questioner
So look at what calls you to marry her
فانظر ما يدعوك إلى نكاحهاThe Shaykh : More than that is not permissible for her father, let alone for the suitor.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.