RAPING WITH THE EYES

Are you one of those who check out ladies on the streets , bus , train or anywhere you see them ? You check her out and in a flash you can tell all about her size and shape. You can also tell color of her lipstick , how her hair was done and what clothes she was wearing , etc ,etc ....

Do you end up saying "wow"...

In modern western terms this is called : Checking her out.

Its also called : Raping with the Eyes.

Rape : The crime of forcing another person to submit to sex acts, especially sexual intercourse

But hey , we did not do anything. We did not even touched or talked with her. How could i have "raped" her with my eyes ? For that ask yourself say... Did not you look at places where you are not allowed to look at non-mehram women ? Somewhere in your mind , you got a naughty thought about her. All said and done.... let us now look from ladies point of view ? Well "THEY DO NOT LIKE IT AT ALL" .

Jareer ibn Abdullaah said: "I asked the Messenger of Allaah (pbuh) about an accidental glance at a woman. He commanded me to turn my gaze away." (Reported by al-Tirmidhi). Commenting on this hadeeth, al-Mubaarakpoori said: "Accidental" means that his gaze fell on a non-mahram woman unintentionally. "He commanded me to turn my gaze away" means that we are not to look a second time, because the first glance was not by choice and would be forgiven, but any further glances would be counted as sin, and we should heed the words of Allaah (interpretation of the meaning): "Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things)…" [al-Noor 24:30]"

The Messenger of Allaah (pbuh) said: "O Ali, do not follow a glance with another, for you will be forgiven for the first, but not for the second." (Reported by al-Tirmidhi)

And if you think that Allah swt does not know where you were looking and what thought went through your mind ? Allah says, “Allah knows the fraud of the eyes, and all that the breasts conceal.” (Surah Ghafir 40:19).

“The adultery of the eyes is the sight (to gaze at a forbidden thing), the adultery of the tongue is the talk,… and the inner self wishes and desires and the private parts testify all this or deny it.” [Sahih Al-Bukhari (no. 6612), Muslim, Ahmed].

Misconception among men We are allowed to look (meaning stare/gaze) at non-muslims women. We are allowed to look at the exposed parts of the ladies those who have exposed themselves. We are ONLY NOT allowed look at muslim girls & it is a sin to look (meaning to stare/gaze) at a muslim lady wearing burkha/hijab. But hey , even if it is sin , it is a minor sin.

The prophet (pbuh) has said "Beware of small sins because small sins when accumulated turn in to a big fire..." You must have all heard this hadith : Ibn Abbas narrated that the Messenger of Allah (saws) passed by two graves and said, "One of them is (getting punishment in the grave) for not cleaning himself after urine...." Related by Bukhari and Muslim. So when the person goes through such a severe punishment for "small sins"... then you be rest assured that your these so called "small sins" (done on daily basis) have turned in a big heap of fire. One of the fitnahs (temptations) with which we are tested is the fitnah of women, as the Prophet (pbuh) said: “I have not left behind me any fitnah (temptation) more harmful to men than women.”

What needs to be done:

1 – Faith in Allaah. Faith in Allaah and fear of Allaah provide a safety valve and protect a person against committing haraam actions and following his own whims and desires. If the believer becomes aware that Allaah is always watching and if he ponders the meanings of His names and attributes, such as the All-Knowing, the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing, the Watchful, the Reckoner, the Preserver, the All-Encompassing, that will generate fear of Him in secret and in public, and will put a stop to disobedience towards Allaah, and will reduce the strength of desire that leads many people to commit haraam actions.

2 – Lowering the gaze and avoiding looking at haraam things The gaze can generate bad thoughts in the heart, which then lead to ideas and then to desires, then to will and resolve, and then inevitably to doing haraam things. Think about the meaning of this verse which makes a connection between the first steps towards haraam and the end result. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts). That is purer for them. Verily, Allaah is All-Aware of what they do” [al-Noor 24:30]

3 – Warding off evil thoughts Bad thoughts pose a danger to the heart… If a person dwells on them and does not push them away, they will develop into an idea, then into will and resolve, then this will inevitably lead to haraam actions. Beware of dwelling on passing thoughts; rather what you must do is to ward them off and crowd them out with good thoughts. The treatment, then, is to ward off these passing thoughts and keep yourself busy with beneficial thoughts.

4 – Marriage It was narrated that Abd-Allaah ibn Masood said: The Prophet (pbuh) said: “O young men, whoever among you can afford it, let him get married, and whoever cannot, let him fast, for it will be a shield for him.” Narrated by al-Bukhari.

5 – Fasting – because of the hadeeth quoted above, in which it says, “…and whoever cannot, let him fast, for it will be a shield for him.” Narrated by al-Bukhari. The less a person eats, the weaker his desire becomes, and the weaker his desire is, the less sins he commits.

6 – Keeping away from bad companions. The Prophet (pbuh) said: “A man will follow the way of his close friends, so let each one of you look at who he takes as a close friend.” Narrated by Abu Dawood.

JIHAD OF THE EYES

Start today!

As temperatures soar and sweat pours down our faces, it is essential to remember this: protect your eyes, and that does not mean wearing sunglasses, it means to lower our gaze - be careful of our glances.

In our culture today, as the temperature increases, so does the amount of exposed skin on people's bodies. Although this is very distressing and disturbing, it has become a fact of life. In fact, those of us, especially our sisters wearing Hijab, who cover to guard their modesty are seen as strange.

SOME ADVICE FROM THE QURAN AND SUNNAH

It is in this instance, surrounded by half-naked people, that we must have the courage to follow the command of Allah and His Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.) and lower our gazes.

Allah says: "Do not go near fornication and adultery, it is an abomination and an evil way." (Quran 17:32).

This sin is so hateful in the sight of Our Lord, that He commanded us to not even go near it. Despite what anyone may say, looking upon that which one is not supposed to is going near adultery. For an illicit affair begins with a lustful glance. Allah wishes for us not to commit this ugly sin, and thus He commands us to lower our gazes:

"Tell the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make far greater purity for them; And Allah is well acquainted with all that they do. And tell the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty." (Quran 24:30-31).

Lowering the gaze does not mean keeping our eyes constantly on the ground and not looking up at all. It is turning our faces away when we see a less-than-decently-dressed woman or man walking on the street in the middle of the day or at anytime.

THE ADULTERY OF THE EYES

The Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.) further explained to us Allah's command. Abu Hurayrah (r.a.) narrated that the Prophet (s.a.w.) said, "(the adultery of the eyes is looking (at [that] which is not allowed)" (Bukhari, Muslim).

Also, on the authority of Jurayr (r.a.) who said, "I asked the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.) about accidentally looking at something that is not allowed and he said, "Turn your eyes away." (Muslim).

In another Hadith on the authority of Abu Sa'eed, (r.a.) the Prophet (s.a.w.) said, "A man should not look at the Awrah of another man, and the woman should not look at the Awrah of another woman." (Muslim).

Thus, our Prophet (s.a.w.) even instructed us to lower our gaze when looking at members of the same gender in some cases.

LOWERING FOR THE OTHERS' NAKEDNESS

One common mistake is to think that lowering our gaze is only required upon encountering nakedness and indecency "in the flesh" or in person. Lowering our gaze must also be practiced when watching a film or television program replete with nakedness and intimate scenes of couples (actually, we should try to avoid watching such types of programs, period).

BEWARE OF THE BEACHES

Beware of the beaches, rivers, pools or anywhere else you'll find a plethora of bikini and swimming-trunk clad men and women.

Lowering your gaze there is virtually impossible. You may turn in one direction, thinking you're home-free, but soon enough you can't even look there.

The same holds true for parks and recreational facilities. While this doesn't mean never taking the kids out to enjoy the slides and seesaws or having barbecues there, it does mean perhaps having activities on days that are cooler, or at times when the sun is not as hot and intense (i.e. some time in the earlier morning or before Maghrib).

This way, the prime time for sunbathing has passed, and most people either leave or feel cool enough to put some more clothes on.

MAKE DUA

"Never underestimate the power of Dua." This holds true in all trying situations.

Sometimes, despite avoiding certain places where you are more likely to encounter an improperly dressed person, you may find someone walking on the street going to the beach or the park who decided to get ready for suntanning or swimming beforehand.

In these cases, lowering the gaze may be even harder. You weren't expecting it, so you didn't mentally prepare yourself.

If you feel overwhelmed, one suggested Dua to read is:"Aouzo billahis Sami 'il Aleem minash Shaytan ir Rajeem" (see Quran 41:36 for more information). A translation of this is: "I seek the refuge of Allah who is the Hearer and Who is the Knower from the Shaytan the accursed."

In general, seek refuge in Allah. It has also been suggested to say "La hawla wa la Quwwata illa billah"(there is no power except with Allah). If we sincerely make Dua, Insha Allah, we can succeed in turning our eyes away.

LOWERING THE GAZE DOESN'T MEAN BEING ANTISOCIAL

But lowering our gaze does not mean being rude or antisocial. The Prophet used to present the message of Islam to people that had come for the yearly "Ukaz" festival, which did include unIslamic activities like drinking and gambling.

However, this requires faith, self-control and discipline. This must never be used as an opportunity to indulge in these sins.

THE GAZE IS A PART OF A MUSLIM'S CHARACTER

A Muslim is decent and pure. This means all of his or her body must be decent and pure. A natural consequence of this is lowering the gaze.

Allah tells us: "O you who believe! Do not follow Satan's footsteps: if any will follow the footsteps of Satan, he will command what is shameful and wrong..." (Quran: 24:21).

Looking at another man or woman in an indecent manner is following in Satan's footsteps. It all begins with a lustful glance. Such a glance leads to lustful talk and flirting, then meeting and we are all aware of what comes next.

Let us stop Satan in his tracks and lower our gaze.

Let us start today. Yes, it is very difficult and it takes discipline and faith.

Yet, whenever we struggle to please Allah, He will reward us several times over in this life and the next. It is truly a Jihad. But, it is a Jihad worth undertaking, and we will be all the better for it.