Is a woman’s voice haram for a man?

- What should be a woman’s manner of speaking like?
- Can a woman talk to a man she knows if she has her child with her? What is the decree on talking to a man she knows in such a situation?

Dear Brother / Sister,

Islam takes protective measures against images, behaviors and situations that lead a person to mischief and sedition because, in Islam, it is essential that the purity and dignity of man be preserved and not spoiled. This precaution and protection are considered equally for both men and women.

On the other hand, the characteristics, abilities and differences given to a person should not cause someone else to suffer, should not allow him to have wrong feelings, and should not inflate his ego. The voice bestowed on women by the Creator should also be considered within this framework. In essence, the voice of any creature, especially human beings, cannot be classified as haram and sin because there is no haram in its creation. Therefore, no Quranic verse or hadith states that a woman’s voice is haram.

The opinions of our mujtahid imams of madhhabs, especially Hanafi and Shafii imams, are like that. In fact, we see the following decree in all fiqh books:

“According to the majority of fiqh scholars, a woman’s voice is not awrah. That is, according to all mujtahids, a woman’s voice is not haram.”

Scholars of Shafii madhhab and other mujtahids state the following:

“A woman’s voice is not awrah because women go shopping and testify in court. She has to speak loudly to do so.”1

The reason why a woman’s voice is not awrah is found the Age of Bliss, the first practical era of Islam. In other words, it is the practice of the Prophet (pbuh) and his Companions. This practice is seen in three ways:

Firstly: The Prophet’s (pbuh) talking to the women Companions, answering their questions, listening to their complaints, and meeting their needs and demands.

We can quote the following hadith as an example:

Amr bin Shuayb narrates:

A woman came to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) with her daughter. Her daughter had two gold bracelets on her arm. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) asked the woman:

“Do you give zakah for these bracelets?”

The woman replied, “No, I don’t.” 

Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) asked again:

“Would you like it if Allah made you wear two bracelets of fire instead of these two bracelets on the Day of Judgment?”

The woman immediately took off the two bracelets, gave them to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) and said, “They belong to Allah and His Messenger from now on.” 2

Secondly: The Companions used to ask both the wives of the Prophet (pbuh) and other women Companions questions about hadiths and similar things, talk and get information on some issues.

Thirdly: During the time of the Companions, women used to express their complaints to the caliphs or ask other Companions about religious issues and learn what they did not know.

An example regarding the issue is as follows:

A woman came to Umar (ra) and said,

“O leader of the believers! My husband worships at night and fasts during the day”, complaining about her husband.  

Umar (ra) said,

“What do you want to say? Do you want me to prevent your husband from praying at night and fasting during the day?”

Thereupon, the woman left without saying anything else, and came back after a while and made the same complaint. Umar (ra) gave the same answer to the woman again. Seeing this situation, Ka’b bin Sur intervened and said,

“O leader of the believers! The woman is right. Since Allah allows a man to marry four women, the fourth day is the woman’s right.”

Thereupon, Umar (ra) called the woman’s husband and ordered him not to fast every four days and to sleep with his wife every four nights. 3

However, all other permissible issues may change their nature and become objectionable; likewise, the same thing holds true related to the issue of women’s voice. Although a woman’s voice is permissible, innocent and legitimate, for what reasons does it become “awrah” and haram for non-mahram men to listen?

The woman’s voice attracts attention due to its nature. Especially if the tone of the voice comes out in way that is different from the normal, it brings about some drawbacks and causes “fitnah (mischief)”. That is to say, what is haram is not the voice itself, but its out-of-normal nature.

Verse 32 of the chapter of al-Ahzab gives the criterion in this regard addressing the wives of the Prophet as follows:

“O Consorts of the Prophet! Ye are not like any of the (other) women: if ye do fear (Allah), be not too complacent of speech, lest one in whose heart is a disease should be moved with desire: but speak ye a speech (that is) just.”

While interpreting the verse, tafsir scholar Vehbi Efendi explains it as follows:

“Do not let the word you say cause fitnah. In other words, do not say it in an attractive manner with an air and mincingly in a way that will affect non-mahram men.”

As Elmalılı puts it, “people with a rotten heart and inclined toward evil” may entertain hope when a woman speaks “coquettishly, charmingly and mincingly”. She will be regarded to have committed a sin because of that.

Wahba Zuhayli regards it as objectionable for the same reason, even if it is in religious content rather than normal conversations:

“It is haram to hear the voices of women while they are reciting something enthusiastically and melodiously even if it is in the Quran because there is a risk of causing mischief.”4

Ibn Abidin clarifies the issue as follows:

“According to the preferred view, a woman’s voice is not awrah. However, those with low intelligence should not think that when we say that a woman’s voice is awrah, we do not mean her speaking. We regard it as permissible for women to talk to non-mahram men in case of need and similar situations. However, we do not regard it as permissible for women to speak aloud, to lengthen their voice, to soften it and to chant in tune because it can make men incline toward them and incite their lust. Therefore, it is not regarded as permissible for a woman to call adhan.”5

The scholar Faruk Beşer succinctly expresses the decree, with which we also agree, as follows:

“A woman is attractive, charming and provocative with her voice, as with everything else, which actually shows that she is beautiful, not ugly. If she uses her attractive aspects, which are blessings, to cause mischief and to arouse men, that is, if she speaks in a mincing and feminine way, or if she makes her already provocative voice more effective while speaking normally, her voice becomes haram, not because her voice is awrah but because it will cause mischief. It will not be haram if she speaks in a dignified way and without giving hope to her addressee.”6

Finally, we will include the interpretation of Muhammad Ali as-Sabuni, one of the contemporary tafsir scholars:

“As it is clearly seen, a woman’s voice is not haram if there is no risk of fitnah (mischief). However, men should keep women away from the situations that lead to mischief and sedition.”7

As for the elements in the question, since the voice in poetry and hymn gets thinner and thicker, has a melody and assumes an attractive nature, reciting it in a way that non-mahram men hear has drawbacks.

If women make dhikr aloud and if non-mahram men can hear them, it falls into the same category and is not allowed, just like calling adhan, as it will cause some wrong feelings to be aroused. However, there is no drawback to reciting the Quran, singing hymns and making dhikr for women among themselves.

Footnotes:

1 Tafsiru Ayatil-Ahkam, 2: 167.
2 Tirmidhi, Zakah: 12.
3 Hayatus-Sahaba, 3: 349.
4 İslâm Fıkhı Ansiklopedisi, 1: 467.
5 Raddul-Muhtar, 1: 272.
6 Hanımlara özel ilmihal, 314.
7 Tafsiru Ayatil-Ahkam, 2: 167.

(see Mehmed Paksu, Aileye Özel Fetvalar)

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