or from a prominent rooftop and the like, or through the doorway or the wall-windows—the act is prohibited, regardless of the route taken. It exposes people’s private parts, especially those of women, and lays bare their circumstances; this is an unlawful assault.
2 – Whoever peers into another person’s house without permission forfeits all inviolability for himself and for his gaze. If the homeowner hurls a pebble at him and puts out his eye, he incurs neither sin, retribution, nor blood money, for he is authorised to defend himself in this way, and whatever flows from a permitted act is not subject to liability.
3 – By contrast, if permission was granted—either to enter or to look down from a height—and the outsider’s eye then caught sight of something impermissible, he bears no blame. Should the homeowner nevertheless blind him, the homeowner is sinful and liable, because the negligence lies with the one who was looked at. This is the view adopted by the majority of scholars.
4 – The ḥadith also shows that it is permissible to strike the onlooker before issuing any warning, for in another narration it states that “the Prophet ﷺ would stealthily approach the one peering in so as to stab him.”
5 – All of this Islamic disciplinary measure is designed to safeguard a person’s legitimate freedom within his own home. A person relaxes and lets down his guard there, adopting states he would hate others to witness. If an aggressor tries to expose him without permission, the aggressor deserves to be deterred in a manner proportionate to the offence.
6 – From this we learn that neighbours must take precautions when building so that one does not overlook another. The body responsible for urban planning—the municipality—must likewise ensure that the buildings in any district are of a uniform height, or adopt a special layout and design so that no neighbour is exposed to another’s gaze. Al-Wāqidī reports that ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb wrote to ʿAmr ibn al-ʿĀṣ while the latter was governor of Egypt: “Peace be upon you. Word has reached me that Khārijah ibn Ḥudhāfah has built an upper room; he wants to look upon his neighbours’ private quarters. When this letter reaches you, demolish it, God willing. Peace.”