Surah An-Noor (24) — Ayah 27

(Ayah 27) ➊ { يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا لَا تَدْخُلُوْا بُيُوْتًا …:} From the beginning of the surah, the limits and condemnation of adultery and slander are being mentioned; now the mention of those rulings begins which prevent such mingling of men and women that leads to adultery and slander. These rulings include etiquettes such as seeking permission to enter homes, guarding the gaze, observing hijab, emphasizing marriage, and prohibiting prostitution.

➋ { غَيْرَ بُيُوْتِكُمْ :} That is, permission is not required to enter your own homes, where a person lives alone or with his wife. Although it is better that even before entering there, one should somehow inform the household of his arrival, as they might be in a state in which the husband would not like to see them. Thus, Abdullah bin Mas'ud's wife Zainab narrates: [ كَانَ عَبْدُ اللّٰهِ إِذَا جَاءَ مِنْ حَاجَةٍ فَانْتَهٰی إِلَی الْبَابِ تَنَحْنَحَ وَ بَزَقَ كَرَاهَةَ أَنْ يَّهْجُمَ مِنَّا عَلٰی أَمْرٍ يَكْرَهُهُ ] [ ابن جریر : ۲۶۱۳۱ ] "When Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) would return home after finishing some work, he would cough and spit at the door so that his eyes would not fall upon anything of ours that he disliked." Ibn Kathir has declared its chain Sahih. Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ إِذَا أَطَالَ أَحَدُكُمُ الْغَيْبَةَ فَلَا يَطْرُقْ أَهْلَهُ لَيْلًا ] [ بخاري، النکاح، باب لا یطرق أھلہ… : ۵۲۴۴ ] "When any of you has been away from home for a long time, he should not come to his family at night." In Muslim, these additional words are found: [ نَهٰی رَسُوْلُ اللّٰهِ صَلَّی اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَ سَلَّمَ أَنْ يَّطْرُقَ الرَّجُلُ أَهْلَهُ لَيْلًا يَتَخَوَّنُهُمْ أَوْ يَلْتَمِسُ عَثَرَاتِهِمْ ] [ مسلم، الإمارۃ، باب کراھیۃ الطروق… : 715/184، قبل ح : ۱۹۲۹ ] "The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade (the one who has been away from home for a long time) from coming to his family at night suddenly to search for their betrayal or their mistake."

➌ The literal translation of {’’ حَتّٰى تَسْتَاْنِسُوْا ‘‘} is "until you become familiar." Therefore, it includes not only the meaning of seeking permission, but also the meaning that you should find out whether there is anyone in the house or not, and if there is, whether your coming is unpleasant to them or not.

➍ The method of seeking permission: A man from Banu Amir came and sought permission to enter upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), saying, "May I come in?" The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to his servant, "Go to him and teach him the way to seek permission, that he should say: [ اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَ أَدْخُلُ؟ ] 'Peace be upon you, may I come in?'" The man heard this and said: [اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَ أَدْخُلُ؟] So the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) gave him permission and he entered." [ أبوداوٗد، الأدب، باب کیف الاستئذان ؟ : ۵۱۷۷ ]

Kaladah bin Hanbal (may Allah be pleased with him) says: "I went to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and went straight in to him; I neither greeted nor sought permission, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ اِرْجِعْ فَقُلْ اَلسَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ ] [ أبوداوٗد، الأدب، باب کیف الاستئذان؟ : ۵۱۷۶، صححہ الألباني ] 'Go back and say: Peace be upon you.'"

➎ Permission should be sought at most three times; if permission is not granted, one should return. [ دیکھیے بخاري، الاستئذان، باب التسلیم و الاستئذان ثلاثا : ۶۲۴۵، عن أبي موسٰی رضی اللہ عنہ ]

➏ If, upon knocking or greeting, the household asks, "Who is it?" one should state one's name. Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) says that I came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding a debt that was upon my father; I knocked at the door, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: [ مَنْ ذَا؟ فَقُلْتُ أَنَا، فَقَالَ أَنَا أَنَا ] "Who is it?" I said, "It is I." The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "I, I," as if he disliked it. [ بخاري، الاستئذان، باب إذا قال من ذا؟ فقال أنا : ۶۲۵۰ ]

➐ Huzail (may Allah be pleased with him) says, a man came and stood in front of the door of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and began to seek permission, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ هٰكَذَا عَنْكَ أَوْ هٰكَذَا، فَإِنَّمَا الْاِسْتِئْذَانُ مِنَ النَّظَرِ ] [ أبوداوٗد، الأدب، باب کیف الاستئذان ؟ : ۵۱۷۴، صححہ الألباني ] "Move to this side or that side, for permission is sought because of looking."

➑ Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ لَوِ اطَّلَعَ فِيْ بَيْتِكَ أَحَدٌ وَ لَمْ تَأْذَنْ لَهُ خَذَفْتَهُ بِحَصَاةٍ فَفَقَأْتَ عَيْنَهُ مَا كَانَ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ جُنَاحٍ ] [ بخاري، الدیات، باب من أخذ حقہ… : ۶۸۸۸ ] "If a man peeps into your house without your permission, and you throw a pebble at him and put out his eye, there is no sin upon you." In such a case, there is neither retaliation nor blood money for putting out the eye.

➒ { ذٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ … :} That is, in these etiquettes there is benefit for both sides, for the one seeking permission and for the household. (Ibn Kathir) {’’ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُوْنَ ‘‘} So that you may take heed, that just as you dislike others entering your home without permission, others also dislike your entering their homes without permission. Alas, Muslims have stopped acting upon the command to seek permission. (Except whom Allah wills) Now, even for entering the homes of relatives, neighbors, and even strangers, there is no need for permission; on top of this, there is the widespread immodesty and clothing worse than being unclothed, due to which a flood of indecency is coming into Muslim society. As a result, adultery, suspicion, slander, rivalry, murder, and other evils are spreading. May Allah grant us the ability to act upon His limits and His commands. (Ameen)

27-1 In the previous verses, the rulings regarding adultery and slander and their punishments were mentioned. Now Allah Almighty is describing the etiquettes of entering homes so that there is no unnecessary mixing between men and women, which usually leads to adultery or slander. The meaning of اَسْتِیْنَاس is to ascertain, that is, until you know who is inside and that person has granted you permission to enter, do not enter. In the verse, seeking permission to enter is mentioned first and greeting (salam) is mentioned afterwards. However, from the hadith it is known that the Prophet ﷺ would first greet (say salam) and then seek permission to enter, and this was also his ﷺ practice that he ﷺ would seek permission three times; if there was no response, he ﷺ would return. And it was also his ﷺ blessed habit that when seeking permission, he ﷺ would stand to the right or left side of the door, so that there would not be a sudden face-to-face encounter, which could lead to exposure (see Sahih Bukhari). Similarly, the Prophet ﷺ strictly forbade peeking inside while standing at the door, to the extent that if someone poked out the eye of the one peeking, he ﷺ said there would be no sin upon him (al-Bukhari). The Prophet ﷺ also disliked that when the owner of the house asked from inside, "Who is it?" the response would be "It's me, it's me." This means that one should introduce oneself by name (Sahih Bukhari).

27-2 That is, act upon it. The meaning is that after seeking permission and greeting, entering the house is better for both of you than entering suddenly.

27. O you who believe! Do not enter houses other than your own [32] until you have sought permission and greeted their inhabitants with peace [33]. That is better for you, so that you may be mindful (and act accordingly) [34].

[32]
Prohibition of Entering the Households Without Permission:

Previously, in Surah Al-Ahzab, the command to enter homes only after seeking permission had already been given. However, the scope of that command was limited only to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. But through this command, it has been extended to all homes. Earlier in this Surah, such commands were mentioned that pertained to situations where some mischief had already arisen due to indecency. Now, such commands are being given, adherence to which minimizes the chances of any mischief arising. In other words, these commands serve as a preventive measure against the spread of indecency. In Arab society, it was a common practice that people would enter each other's homes without hesitation. Through this verse, such unrestricted comings and goings have been prohibited.

[33]
The Literal Meaning of "Istianas":

In this verse, the word "tastanisu" has been used, whose root is "uns," which in Arabic has the same meaning as understood among us, i.e., to be familiar with someone or to make someone familiar. And it means to do anything by which the owner of the house becomes aware that a certain person is standing at the door seeking permission to enter. Sometimes, this purpose is achieved simply by clearing one's throat. And sometimes by speaking or saying "Assalamu Alaikum." In this way, the owner of the house recognizes from the cough or voice that it is the voice of a certain person. Sometimes, a person presses the electric bell in such a manner that is familiar between him and the owner of the house, and by ringing the bell, the owner of the house knows that a certain person has come and is calling. All such situations are included in the meaning of "tastanisu." That is why it has been translated with its close meaning, "to seek approval." Now, if this "istianas" is done simply by saying "Assalamu Alaikum," then it is fine. And if it is done in some other way, then it is also necessary to say "Assalamu Alaikum" when entering the house. Here, another question arises: What is meant by "your houses"? And which houses are included in its meaning? The answer is that by "your house" is meant only that house where his wife resides. This is the house in which the husband can enter at any time without hesitation and without permission. Even when entering the houses of one's mother and daughters, seeking "istianas" is necessary, as is evident from the following hadith: Alaa bin Sayyar says that a man asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, "Should I seek permission even when entering my mother's house?" He ﷺ replied, "Yes." He said, "But I live with her in the house." He ﷺ replied, "Still, seek permission before entering." He said, "But I am the one who serves her." He ﷺ replied, "Still, seek permission before entering. Do you like to see your mother naked?" He said, "No." The Prophet ﷺ said, "Then seek permission before entering." [موطا امام مالک۔ کتاب الجامع۔ باب الاستیذان]

And entering "your house" without permission is certainly allowed. However, it is better not to enter your own house suddenly and abruptly.

[34]
Why is Permission Necessary?

That is, it is better for both the owner of the house and the visitor that the visitor first obtains permission from the owner of the house and then enters. Because if the visitor enters the house without permission, it is possible that the family members are engaged in some private conversation, or a woman is moving about without hijab, or the owner of the house, due to some other compulsion or excuse, does not wish to meet at that time, and thus the visitor may unnecessarily face embarrassment or regret. Therefore, the courteous way is to seek permission before entering someone's house.