We understood from the hadith of Salman al-Farisi, when he entered upon Umm al-Darda' and spoke with her, that it is permissible to speak with a non-mahram woman and to be in seclusion with her. Is this understanding correct?

The questioner : A brother asks: We understood from the narration of Salman and Abu al-Darda', when the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) had established brotherhood between them, that it is permissible for one of them to sit and converse with the other's wife in his absence, and so on. Can we know all the aspects and conditions, what is permissible and what is not, and what follows from this brotherhood? And is brotherhood permissible and possible in all times and circumstances, or was it a characteristic specific to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)?

The Shaykh : There is no doubt among the scholars that the brotherhood (mu'akhah) mentioned in the hadith of Abu al-Darda' and Salman is a ruling that has passed and ended, and it will not return until the end of time. Therefore, the rulings that were attached to such brotherhood have also ceased and ended. Thus, it is not permissible for a Muslim today to enter the home of his Muslim brother in Allah unless the husband of the woman in the house is present, or at least there is someone in the house who is considered a mahram to the wife. It is not permissible to enter or to mix with her, based on his (peace and blessings be upon him) saying in the authentic hadith: , and in another hadith with a similar meaning, there is an addition: , meaning it is a cause of death. As for "al-hamaw" (the husband's relatives), there is disagreement in its interpretation, and the correct view is that it refers to the husband's relatives, such as his brother, maternal uncle, paternal uncle, and the like. It has been said in its interpretation, in a very strange way that contradicts the texts of the Shari'ah, that it refers to the husband's father. And the husband's father, as you know, is a mahram, indeed one of the primary mahrams for the wife. Therefore, it is not permissible to interpret "al-hamaw" in the hadith as the husband's father; rather, they are the husband's relatives who are not mahrams to the wife. It is not permissible today for a Muslim to be in seclusion with the wife of his brother in religion and in Islam, due to the prohibition of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) in many hadiths of this seclusion, except if there is a mahram present, or if those who are in seclusion with the woman are righteous men, and not just one person, but three or more. In that case, there is no harm in such seclusion with a woman, because the suspicion that any harm might occur due to their seclusion with her is far away. Yes.