In our country, a man’s uncle’s wife does not cover herself from her husband’s brother or from her husband’s brother’s father. What is the ruling of the Shari'ah in your view regarding this, and what do you advise these people?

The questioner : From Yemen, the listener 'Abd al-Muhsin says in his first question: In our country, a man’s uncle’s wife does not cover herself from her husband’s brother or from her husband’s brother’s father. What is the ruling of the Shari'ah in your view regarding this, and what do you advise these people?

The Shaykh : Yes. We advise these people to fear Allah (Mighty and Majestic) in themselves and in their families, and to know the limits of what Allah has revealed to His Messenger, so that they worship Allah with insight and with clear proof regarding their affair. It is well known that customs do not rule over the Shari'ah; rather, the Shari'ah is what rules over customs. It is known that the husband’s brother, the husband’s paternal uncle, and the husband’s maternal uncle are not mahram (a relative one may not marry) to his wife. Therefore, the wife must cover her face from her husband’s brother, his paternal uncle, and his maternal uncle. As for the husband’s father and the husband’s grandfather, whether from the father’s side or the mother’s side, they are mahram to the wife of their son, based on the saying of Allah the Exalted in the list of those who are forbidden: The sons here include sons of the loins and sons of the belly, meaning it includes the son and the son of the son, and it includes the son of the daughter, however far down the line. And on this basis, the grandfather from the mother’s side or from the father’s side is mahram to the wife of his son’s daughter and his son’s son. Yes.

The questioner : May Allah bless you...

The Shaykh : As for the paternal uncle, the maternal uncle, and the brother of the husband, they are not mahram. Likewise, the husband of a sister is not mahram to her. Yes.

The questioner : May Allah bless you.