no one else notices it; people may be unaware, yet Allah knows it. He knows the stealthy glance of the eyes, and—Exalted and Most High—He knows what the breasts conceal, whether good intentions or evil ones. Indeed, He is aware of the whisperings of the soul and of whatever the future holds for a person. The Almighty has also said, “Surely the hearing, the sight, and the heart—each of those will be called to account” (Q 17:36). Thus a human being will be questioned about his hearing: what did he take in with his two ears? Did he listen to something forbidden, or lend an ear with delight to the voice of a woman who is not lawfully his? The same reckoning applies to the sight and to the heart, so it is incumbent upon a person to safeguard himself.
As for a woman who is not a stranger to you—one whom it is permanently unlawful for you to marry—there is no harm in looking at her: at her face, her head, her hands, her forearms, her shins, and her feet. All of this is permissible unless a person fears temptation for himself; should he fear it, he must avert his gaze even from his own maḥrams (permanently unmarriageable relatives). Suppose, for example, that a man has a beautiful sister through nursing: she is a maḥram to him just like a full sister by blood, yet if he fears being tempted by looking at her he is obliged to lower his gaze, and she is obliged to veil herself from him as well. The basis of the ḥijāb-obligation is the fear of temptation; therefore, whenever temptation exists the face must be covered—even from maḥrams.
If, on the other hand, there is no fear of temptation and a person’s heart is sound and chaste, it is nevertheless forbidden for him to look at anyone other than his maḥrams. He must not, for instance, look at his paternal or maternal cousin, at his wife’s sister, or at his brother’s wife, and so on. In brief, it is allowed to look at one’s maḥrams so long as no temptation is feared, whereas looking at non-maḥrams is categorically forbidden. Allah is the One who grants success.
1622 – Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “The son of Adam has been decreed his share of adultery—he will inevitably meet it. The eyes commit adultery by looking, the ears commit adultery by listening, the tongue commits adultery through speech, the hand commits adultery by grasping, the foot commits adultery by walking, and the heart longs and desires; then the private parts either confirm that or deny it.” Agreed upon. This is Muslim’s wording; al-Bukhari’s narration is shorter.
[Commentary]
After citing the verses in the chapter on the prohibition of looking at an unrelated woman or at a handsome, beardless youth without a valid religious need, the author (may Allah have mercy on him) brings the hadith of Abu Hurayrah in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “The son of Adam has been allotted his share of adultery—he will inevitably encounter it,” meaning that, except for those whom Allah protects, every person will experience some form of it. The Prophet then illustrated this: “The eye commits adultery by looking,” that is, when a man looks at a woman—even without desire—and she is not among his maḥrams, this is a type of adultery, the adultery of the eye. “The ear commits adultery…”