Fatwa

Pardah when eating with the whole family

Question

Assalamualaykum ww. How does a woman live in a joint family when the family eats together (mainly regarding pardah )

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

In principle, a woman is supposed to maintain hijab whenever she is around non-mahrams. This would apply in a joint household too. We understand that living in a joint household is not easy, however, if this is due to financial restrictions on your husband, there is not much choice in the matter.

If forced to stay in the same house, then ideally, the husband and wife should broach the subject respectfully with the family and highlight the importance of spouses bonding over having their meals together in privacy. The spouses can then opt to have their meals together in the absence of non-mahrams.

Another possible solution is to have the seating arrangement on the dastarkhan/table in such a way that the non-mahram males cannot see the face of the non-mahram female. The husband and wife can also sit next to each other.

In the event the husband can easily afford to stay separate, then though it is not necessary to do so in all circumstances, it would be practical to do so as it makes things easier for everyone involved. Once again, one must take into consideration the sentiments of the parents. It is unwise to break relations with ones parents over this matter.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Mufti Bilal Pandor

Concurred by
Mufti Muhammad Patel

Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah
Lusaka, Zambia

www.daruliftaazambia.com