Some people cite the saying of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), “Actions are only by intentions,” in certain matters, such as a woman greeting a man. Please inform us.
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The questioner : The questioner from Libya, Muftah Ali, says in this question: Some people cite the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), which states , in certain matters, including a woman greeting a man. Please inform us. May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : Yes. A person’s argument using the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) to justify doing a forbidden act is an invalid argument, because this hadith is the standard for the actions of the hearts, meaning what is in the heart. As for the apparent action, its standard is the hadith of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), established in the two Sahihs, in which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said Sahih Muslim 1718b, meaning it is rejected and invalid. Accordingly, if an action is forbidden, it remains forbidden whether the person intends good by it or not. If a man shakes hands with a non-mahram woman and says, “I shake her hand to reconcile hearts and for the love of believers for one another, and I have no intention of aiming for anything else,” we tell him: But this action itself is forbidden. It is not permissible for you to shake hands with a non-mahram woman, even with a good intention. Just as if a person wanted to worship Allah the Exalted with a prayer or something else not prescribed by the Shari'ah, and said, “I do not want to oppose the Shari'ah or innovate anything in the religion of Allah, but I want my faith to increase and my deeds to become purer,” we say: This is also not permissible, because apparent actions have a different standard than hidden actions. The hadith of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in which he said Sahih al-Bukhari 1, is with regard to the action of the heart, which is a hidden matter that no one knows except Allah. And the saying of Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) Sahih Muslim 1718b is the standard for apparent actions. So if the apparent action is forbidden, it becomes forbidden even if the person intends a good intention by it.
Accordingly, it is not permissible for a man to shake hands with a non-mahram woman under any circumstances, even if he shakes her hand through a barrier such as gloves, the edge of a khimar, or the like. It is not permissible for him to do this. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
Actions are only by intentions
إنما الأعمال بالنياتThe Shaykh : Yes. A person’s argument using the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family)
Actions are only by intentions
إنما الأعمال بالنياتHe who did any act for which there is no sanction from our behalf, that is to be rejected.
من عمل عملا ليس عليه أمرنا فهو ردThe reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended.
إنما الأعمال بالنيات وإنما لكل امرئ ما نوىHe who did any act for which there is no sanction from our behalf, that is to be rejected.
من عمل عملا ليس عليه أمرنا فهو ردAccordingly, it is not permissible for a man to shake hands with a non-mahram woman under any circumstances, even if he shakes her hand through a barrier such as gloves, the edge of a khimar, or the like. It is not permissible for him to do this. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.