What is the ruling on a woman greeting and speaking with non-mahram men?
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Question:
From Jazan, Halimah sent a message, and included in it two questions. In her first question, she says: I am, praise be to Allah, a committed and observant woman, but I have a paternal cousin who is very old, and he is a blind man, as his age is approximately seventy. Is there any sin on me in speaking with him and greeting him? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
There is no sin in speaking with him and greeting him; rather, this is maintaining family ties. There is also no harm in speaking with others, even if they are non-mahram, provided there is no evil, no fitnah (trial, discord or temptation), and no seclusion. The Muslim woman greets her relatives, even if they are not mahram, greets her neighbors, her husband's brother, and the like, without seclusion and without engaging in matters that would lead to suspicion.
So if the matters are clear and there is no suspicion, then greeting is a right for your paternal cousin and others, without seclusion, but without handshaking. Asking "How are you?" and saying "Peace be upon you" and "And upon you be peace," "How are you?" "How are the family and the children?"—all of this is permissible, without handshaking and without kissing, as some ignorant people do. No.
Handshaking is done with women or with mahram, such as a brother or a paternal uncle. As for a non-mahram, it is a greeting without handshaking, without kissing the head or anything else, and without seclusion. If she greets him in the presence of someone who removes the seclusion, such as her mother, or her sister, or her brother, or otherwise, the point is that it is without seclusion, meaning there is a third person with you, and without suspicion. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
From Jazan, Halimah sent a message, and included in it two questions. In her first question, she says: I am, praise be to Allah, a committed and observant woman, but I have a paternal cousin who is very old, and he is a blind man, as his age is approximately seventy. Is there any sin on me in speaking with him and greeting him? May Allah reward you with good.
Answer:
There is no sin in speaking with him and greeting him; rather, this is maintaining family ties. There is also no harm in speaking with others, even if they are non-mahram, provided there is no evil, no fitnah (trial, discord or temptation), and no seclusion. The Muslim woman greets her relatives, even if they are not mahram, greets her neighbors, her husband's brother, and the like, without seclusion and without engaging in matters that would lead to suspicion.
So if the matters are clear and there is no suspicion, then greeting is a right for your paternal cousin and others, without seclusion, but without handshaking. Asking "How are you?" and saying "Peace be upon you" and "And upon you be peace," "How are you?" "How are the family and the children?"—all of this is permissible, without handshaking and without kissing, as some ignorant people do. No.
Handshaking is done with women or with mahram, such as a brother or a paternal uncle. As for a non-mahram, it is a greeting without handshaking, without kissing the head or anything else, and without seclusion. If she greets him in the presence of someone who removes the seclusion, such as her mother, or her sister, or her brother, or otherwise, the point is that it is without seclusion, meaning there is a third person with you, and without suspicion. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.