to Fāṭimah bint Qays: “Spend your waiting period in the house of Ibn Umm Maktūm, for he is a blind man and you may lay aside your garments in his presence.” This report is found in the two Ṣaḥīḥ collections.

As for the narration cited by the author—may Allah have mercy on him—Imam Aḥmad stated that tracing it back to the Prophet is a mistake, meaning it is not authentically attributable to him (peace and blessings be upon him). On this basis it is not unlawful for a woman to look at a man, even if he is a non-maḥram, provided her gaze is free of desire or the intent to enjoy what she sees—that is, it is merely an ordinary look. Hence we observe men walking in the markets with their faces uncovered and women looking at those faces, and in the Prophet’s time women attended the mosque while the men did not screen themselves from them. If it had been forbidden for a woman to see a man, men would have been obliged to veil themselves just as women veil themselves from men.

The correct view, therefore, is that a woman may look at a man so long as it is without lust, enjoyment, or gratification, whereas it is forbidden for a man to look at a woman, as has just been clarified and as was explained earlier.

Regarding the final hadith, it is the narration of Abū Saʿīd al-Khudrī (may Allah be pleased with him) in which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “A woman must not look at the private parts of another woman, nor a man at the private parts of another man, and a man must not …”