Question:
Assalamu ‘Alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakaatuhu
My question is as follows
Is it permissible to make eye contact with a ghair mahram (e.g. a receptionist or in an interview or a cashier). If I do not, I fear that they may have a bad opinion of Islam.
Answer:
In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.
Dear brother,
We apologize for our belated response.
A human being is naturally attracted to the opposite gender. If the contact between genders is not limited, it will lead to immorality.It is precisely for this reason that Shariah has prohibited mixed-gender gatherings.Shariah has made segregation of sexes and laws of hijab compulsory.If one is put in a difficult situation, one should adhere to the laws of hijab to the best of one’s ability by at least lowering one’s gaze. Eye contact should be kept to a complete bare minimum.
As Muslims, we should not feel inferior to our values. In a world filled with vice immorality, we should pride ourselves on the noble values Islam promotes. By lowering your gaze, the non-Muslims will observeyour modesty and nobility and will respect you. In turn, it will hopefully serve to portray the conduct of Islam to them.
Our promotion of Islam should always be in line with the values the Qur’an advocates. While one may commit an action to try and save a corrupt person from having a bad opinion of Islam, the result may be that one distorts the true message of Islam.
