What is the ruling on men teaching female students who wear the niqab in universities and the conversation between them? And what is the ruling on a man training a woman to drive a car?
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The Shaykh : Yes?
The questioner : In our country, free mixing of men and women has become widespread.
The Shaykh : Which country?
The questioner : Kuwait.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Free mixing is widespread in the universities, even in the College of Sharia. The women are wearing the niqab, but a male doctor is teaching them.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : And the second complaint is regarding teaching women to drive cars. We find that the trainer is alone with the girl while he trains her for an hour or two hours.
The Shaykh : We seek refuge in Allah.
The questioner : So if we say that this trainer has a good intention, when do we apply the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):?
And our common saying: "The devil does not die", even if we say that his intention is good and he is alone with her for an hour or two hours.
And regarding the College of Sharia, the girls are wearing the niqab, but the problem is that the doctor has a conversation and talk with the students and some of this. Is this permissible? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : By Allah, first of all, may Allah bless you. This question has two parts, and you, may Allah be pleased with you, appear to be intelligent, may Allah be pleased with you!
The first question: Is the free mixing in the university such that every one of the students is next to a female student?
The questioner : Their classroom contains only female students; the male doctor is the one teaching.
The Shaykh : Okay, does he enter upon them while they are wearing the niqab or with their faces uncovered?
The questioner : Some of them are wearing the niqab and some of them have their faces uncovered.
The Shaykh : I say: As for the female students, it is obligatory for them to cover their faces.
And as for looking at the teacher, there is nothing wrong with that if it is not for desire or for taking pleasure in looking at him, but rather it is for the sake of strengthening the reception of knowledge from him. This is not a problem, because a woman’s looking at a man is not forbidden, as evidenced by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said to Fatimah bint Qays:Sunan Abi Dawud 2284Sahih (Al-Albani), and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to cover Aishah while she was looking at the Ethiopians as they played in the mosque. So the stronger opinion among the opinions of the scholars is that there is nothing wrong with a woman looking at a man, on the condition that her looking is not for desire or taking pleasure.
And as for training a girl to drive a car and her being alone with a man who trains her, this is not permissible. This is a greater trial than if he were alone with her in a room, because it is well known that the soul loves whoever treats it well. And if this trainer treats the girl with kindness and gentleness and the like, there will be a great trial that a person cannot imagine. And how so when she sits next to him and he shows her how to operate the steering wheel, how to operate the brakes, and how to do such and such. It is very, very dangerous.
Then, in my opinion, a woman should not drive a car. I mean: Have men become few such that we are forced to rely on women?!
No, men have not become few. Men are many, and a woman driving a car involves many dangers. If we are now afraid for our young men when they go out to the desert with cars and the like, and we fear for them from trials, what about the woman?!
Who controls the woman if she takes the car and goes out to the desert or to any person she wants?! Who controls this?!
The truth is that I am amazed at some people for how they look at matters by their appearances and say: There is nothing wrong with a woman driving a car, just as women used to ride camels in the time of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). We say: We do not deny the original permissibility of a woman driving a car; it is a work like other works. But we prohibit the many, great harms that result from it.
And the Islamic Shari'ah came to block the means leading to the forbidden.
Then, we are not in dire necessity, praise be to Allah. The young men are many, and if a woman’s brother or son is accustomed to driving a car, that is sufficient for her.
So may you spread this word there, and that it is not befitting for a woman to drive a car, and that it is obligatory to prevent her from doing so. Not that the original act of driving is forbidden, so that no one can argue with us. We say: Driving is lawful, but the harms that result from it must prevent the woman from it. The time has ended with the call to the midday prayer, and we ask Allah the Exalted to accept from us and from you, and until another meeting, if Allah wills, after the start of the studies, and peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
The questioner : In our country, free mixing of men and women has become widespread.
The Shaykh : Which country?
The questioner : Kuwait.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : Free mixing is widespread in the universities, even in the College of Sharia. The women are wearing the niqab, but a male doctor is teaching them.
The Shaykh : Yes.
The questioner : And the second complaint is regarding teaching women to drive cars. We find that the trainer is alone with the girl while he trains her for an hour or two hours.
The Shaykh : We seek refuge in Allah.
The questioner : So if we say that this trainer has a good intention, when do we apply the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
No man is alone with a woman except that the devil is the third of them.
ما خلا رجل بامرأة إلاّ كان الشّيطان ثالثهماAnd our common saying: "The devil does not die", even if we say that his intention is good and he is alone with her for an hour or two hours.
And regarding the College of Sharia, the girls are wearing the niqab, but the problem is that the doctor has a conversation and talk with the students and some of this. Is this permissible? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : By Allah, first of all, may Allah bless you. This question has two parts, and you, may Allah be pleased with you, appear to be intelligent, may Allah be pleased with you!
The first question: Is the free mixing in the university such that every one of the students is next to a female student?
The questioner : Their classroom contains only female students; the male doctor is the one teaching.
The Shaykh : Okay, does he enter upon them while they are wearing the niqab or with their faces uncovered?
The questioner : Some of them are wearing the niqab and some of them have their faces uncovered.
The Shaykh : I say: As for the female students, it is obligatory for them to cover their faces.
And as for looking at the teacher, there is nothing wrong with that if it is not for desire or for taking pleasure in looking at him, but rather it is for the sake of strengthening the reception of knowledge from him. This is not a problem, because a woman’s looking at a man is not forbidden, as evidenced by the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said to Fatimah bint Qays:
Spend the waiting period in the house of Ibn Umm Maktum for he is blind and you can undress
اعتدّي في بيت ابن أمّ مكتوم، فإنّه رجل أعمى تضعين ثيابك عندهAnd as for training a girl to drive a car and her being alone with a man who trains her, this is not permissible. This is a greater trial than if he were alone with her in a room, because it is well known that the soul loves whoever treats it well. And if this trainer treats the girl with kindness and gentleness and the like, there will be a great trial that a person cannot imagine. And how so when she sits next to him and he shows her how to operate the steering wheel, how to operate the brakes, and how to do such and such. It is very, very dangerous.
Then, in my opinion, a woman should not drive a car. I mean: Have men become few such that we are forced to rely on women?!
No, men have not become few. Men are many, and a woman driving a car involves many dangers. If we are now afraid for our young men when they go out to the desert with cars and the like, and we fear for them from trials, what about the woman?!
Who controls the woman if she takes the car and goes out to the desert or to any person she wants?! Who controls this?!
The truth is that I am amazed at some people for how they look at matters by their appearances and say: There is nothing wrong with a woman driving a car, just as women used to ride camels in the time of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). We say: We do not deny the original permissibility of a woman driving a car; it is a work like other works. But we prohibit the many, great harms that result from it.
And the Islamic Shari'ah came to block the means leading to the forbidden.
Then, we are not in dire necessity, praise be to Allah. The young men are many, and if a woman’s brother or son is accustomed to driving a car, that is sufficient for her.
So may you spread this word there, and that it is not befitting for a woman to drive a car, and that it is obligatory to prevent her from doing so. Not that the original act of driving is forbidden, so that no one can argue with us. We say: Driving is lawful, but the harms that result from it must prevent the woman from it. The time has ended with the call to the midday prayer, and we ask Allah the Exalted to accept from us and from you, and until another meeting, if Allah wills, after the start of the studies, and peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.