Muslim

Hadith Commentary:
Vocabulary of the Hadith:
(1)
تَمْعَسُ:
She was rubbing.

(2)
سَنِيْئَةٌ:
The hide that is spread out for tanning.

(3)
تُقْبِلُ الْمَرْأَةَ وَتُدْبِرُ فِيْ صُوْرَةِ شَيْطَان:
Just as Shaytan incites and provokes a person towards evil thoughts, ideas, and actions, and leads him astray from the right path, in the same way, the coming and going of a woman stirs up lustful thoughts and imaginations in a person's heart. A person looks at her with sexual thoughts, and lustful ideas dominate his heart and mind, and provocative movements are aroused within him.

Benefits and Issues:
When a man's gaze falls upon a woman, and these imaginations become established in his heart, causing sexual excitement in his heart, and seeing her creates inclination and desire towards her in his heart, then instead of indulging in gazing, if he is married, he should immediately go to his wife and fulfill his desire, even if it is daytime and he is engaged in some work. And it is necessary for the wife, in such a situation, to leave her work and come to her husband. Since the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is a model and example for the Ummah, he (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), realizing this situation, provided a solution for the Ummah through his words and actions, so that a person does not remain lost in these thoughts all day. But if a person is unmarried, then he should immediately refrain from gazing or staring, and seek refuge with Allah from Shaytan, that is, recite: ﴿اَعُوْذُبِاللہِ مِنَ الشَّیْطَانِ الرَّجِیْم﴾, and dismiss these thoughts. If he is able, he should immediately arrange for marriage; otherwise, he should develop self-control through fasting. If he remains captive to lustful and sexual thoughts, then his own heart, mind, body, and sight will be affected, and moral corruption will arise in him, which will impact his ability to work, and thus he will suffer both religious and worldly harm.

1:
"It is said, 'the woman appears in the form of a devil,' because just as Satan leads a person astray, in the same way, an unveiled woman also leads a man astray."

Benefits and Issues:
➊ Some people lacking modesty attempt, through the wording of this authentic hadith, to color the translation in such a way as to suggest—Allah forbid—that the Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was a person overpowered by desire, while others try to cast doubt on the authority of hadith altogether. Both of these stances are contrary to knowledge and intelligence. The Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) was so modest that even the modesty of a veiled maiden paled in comparison to his. Those who translate in such a manner are unaware of the station of Prophethood. In Arabic language and literature, the phrase “he fulfilled his need or necessity” has no other meaning except for intimacy (intercourse). The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) went to the gathering of the Companions and explicitly stated that a woman creates temptations and whispers for a man like Satan and becomes a cause of trial. The best remedy for this is a man’s own wife. To connect this advice with the previous sentences and derive a meaning that would not even befit an ordinary dignified person, let alone to attribute it to the Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam), is extremely inappropriate.

➋ A woman should not go out in such a manner that she comes to be described as having Satan-like qualities.

➌ The pure and lawful place for fulfilling sexual desires is a person’s own home.

➍ A woman should also be obedient to her husband so that the husband remains pure and his honor and chastity remain unblemished.