swimming so that I can lose some weight. Can I goswimming in a
swimming pool wearing clothes that cover me from the top of my head to
the bottom of my feet? There are special clothes for Muslim womenwho
want to swim and they cover the entire body, but they cling to thebody
when wet. What does Islam have to say about this? What if I wear a
towel over these clothes and cover myself beforehand and straight
after coming out of the pool? Is it permissible for me to swim in this
case? Isit permissible for me to swim if there are some men present?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Islam takes complete care of the Muslim woman and preserves her
modesty, conceals her and keeps heraway from places of
fitnah(temptation).
Islam enjoins women to stay at home and not go out unnecessarily, so
as to preserve their chastity, maintain their dignity and protect them
from all evil.
Muslim women going out to public centres and swimming pools is
something that is emphatically forbidden, because it involves a number
of evils and negative consequences.
If these swimming pools are in public centres that are frequented by
men and women, this is a greatevil. Abu Dawood (4010) and at-Tirmidhi
(2803), who classed the report as hasan, narrated from Abu Maleeh
al-Hudhali that some women from Syria entered upon 'Aa'ishah and she
said: Perhaps you are the people whose women enter bathhouses?They
said: Yes. She said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) say: "There is no woman who removes her
clothes anywhere other than her house, but she has torn (the screen)
that is between her and Allaah."
Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh at-Tirmidhi.
At-Tirmidhi (2801) also narrated from Jaabir (may Allah be pleased
with him)that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said: "Whoever believes in Allahand the Last Day should not let his
wife enter bathhouses." Classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh
at-Tirmidhi.
What is meant by bathhouses here is the kind of bathhouses that
existed in the past (hamaam or "Turkish bath"), because houses didnot
have bathrooms at that time.
The reason why women were forbidden to enter them is because of what
happens in them of uncovering the 'awrah, looking at that which is
haraam and exposure to fitnah (temptation), although bathhouses at
that time were not mixed.
So what about bathhousesthat are mixed and public swimming pools in
which 'awrahs are uncovered and exposed? The scholarsof the Standing
Committeefor Issuing Fatwas said:
For men and women to swim together and then shake hands with one
another after swimming isa great evil and it is not permissible to do
it. The one who does that should be denounced and the ruler should
prevent them from doing it.
End quote from Fataawa al-Lajnah ad-Daa'imah, 17/49
If these swimming pools are only for women it is not permissible to go
to them either, even if that isless serious than public baths. That is
because women uncover their 'awrahs, and even if the Muslim woman
covers her body she will see those naked women and she will not be
able to tell them not to do this evil action.
The scholars of the Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas were asked:
I am an engineer working in the holy city; my job is in the building
permits department. A citizen has submitted to us a plan for a health
centre offering natural remedies, with two sections, one for men and
one for women. After studying the drawings andplans it was noted that
there is a large swimming pool in the women's section. The project
manager was informed that this swimming pool isnot permissible,
because swimming requires women to take off their clothes and then put
on tight clothes that, even if they do not show her 'awrah, will show
the shape of her body, and as is well known it is not permissible for
women to uncover the 'awrah among other women. So we explained to the
project manager that, by way of blocking the means to evil and
wardingoff evil consequences, he should not build this swimming pool
because it was highly possible – especially nowadays – that among the
workers would be someone who did not fear Allah, even among the women,
and might take pictures of the women in secret, whether with a regular
camera or avideo camera such as is available nowadays. This would
cause a great of trouble and would turn this centre from being a
centre for healing to a centre of corruption and fitnah. And it is
well known that everything that leads to haraam is also haraam.
We hope that you can clarify the Islamic ruling on such cases.
:-> see next post *
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