What is the ruling on a woman driving a car if it is out of necessity?
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The questioner : Here is the same matter concerning the fatwa of the Shaykh ... another matter.
The Shaykh: All right.
The questioner : The questioner says here: What is the ruling on a woman driving a car to fulfill a need? ... .
The Shaykh : We were asked this before the issuance of the fatwa, and we said briefly: If it is permissible for a woman, and that was permissible at the beginning of Islam; if it is permissible for her to ride a donkey, then it is even more permissible for her to ride a car. This is a self-evident matter for us. However, people have opinions and ideas; if one hits the mark, he has two rewards, and if he errs, he has one reward. The women of the Companions in the early period used to ride on animals. It is not hidden from anyone that a woman riding an animal is exposed in her body, no matter how she is veiled; even if it is the first Arab veil of the old days, she is prominent like this with her person. So who doubts that a woman in a car is more concealed for her and more veiled from people? From this perspective, there is no doubt or ambiguity in its permissibility. However, the mufti’s view of prohibition may be due to what a woman might encounter in some incidents, such as getting stranded on the road, or the car breaking down and her not finding anyone to help her. Someone might come to help her and harm her, or similar things that might interfere with what befits a woman in terms of modesty and proper conduct. But these incidental matters do not make ordinary life for a woman differ from what is originally permissible to this ruling of prohibition, especially since prohibiting something for which there is no text from Allah and His Messenger is difficult, in our belief. Rather, it is perhaps better to say that it is not permissible for some women, those who might take the car as a means of play, a means of contact with young men outside the Islamic circle, and the like. As for prohibiting a woman from riding a car absolutely, I do not see a basis for that. And Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is the most knowledgeable of the truth.
The Shaykh: All right.
The questioner : The questioner says here: What is the ruling on a woman driving a car to fulfill a need? ... .
The Shaykh : We were asked this before the issuance of the fatwa, and we said briefly: If it is permissible for a woman, and that was permissible at the beginning of Islam; if it is permissible for her to ride a donkey, then it is even more permissible for her to ride a car. This is a self-evident matter for us. However, people have opinions and ideas; if one hits the mark, he has two rewards, and if he errs, he has one reward. The women of the Companions in the early period used to ride on animals. It is not hidden from anyone that a woman riding an animal is exposed in her body, no matter how she is veiled; even if it is the first Arab veil of the old days, she is prominent like this with her person. So who doubts that a woman in a car is more concealed for her and more veiled from people? From this perspective, there is no doubt or ambiguity in its permissibility. However, the mufti’s view of prohibition may be due to what a woman might encounter in some incidents, such as getting stranded on the road, or the car breaking down and her not finding anyone to help her. Someone might come to help her and harm her, or similar things that might interfere with what befits a woman in terms of modesty and proper conduct. But these incidental matters do not make ordinary life for a woman differ from what is originally permissible to this ruling of prohibition, especially since prohibiting something for which there is no text from Allah and His Messenger is difficult, in our belief. Rather, it is perhaps better to say that it is not permissible for some women, those who might take the car as a means of play, a means of contact with young men outside the Islamic circle, and the like. As for prohibiting a woman from riding a car absolutely, I do not see a basis for that. And Allah (Mighty and Majestic) is the most knowledgeable of the truth.
Source
www.al-albany.com
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