The Problem of Social Intercourse !Social intercourse is one of the behavioral and social patterns that were introduced by the West. It became common in the aftermath of the industrial revolution that changed many practices and values. For the new situation that required the exploitation of all the working forces to run the industry and the public service sectors including women who were employed in all sectors of industrial production. This led to the mixing of both sexes in the fields of work, education and even politics, and brought along a lot of negative aspects in all faces of social, educational and family life.Then, with the invasion of colonialism and its intellectual patterns of the Muslim world, this strange phenomenon found its way to the social life of those countries, and began to characterize their societies with their mark of indifference and moral decline. This pattern had to be imposed by force in many Islamic countries, since the big majority of its people refused to accept anything that does not agree with the basis of Islam as it was revealed through the Holy Quran and the Prophetic Traditions. Our youth had to accept this foreign western practices, with all its underlying values and concepts, to the extent that they lost, in the midst of the new coup and in the heat of the transformation to a new civilization , the ability to differentiate between what is good and what is evil in the western civilization. The Views of the Supporters of Social Intercourse. Voices from here and there began under the pretense of progress to call for social intercourse and even provide the theoretical basis that calls the new generations to practice it. The argument of the propagators is based on the proposition that mixing eases the sexual instinct. When both sexes mix with one another in public places sex becomes a familiar thing that does not arise the same passions it would have stimulated if one was isolated. They refuse to accept the fact that a young man who accompanies a beautiful girl in the university or at work would be sexually stimulated, and say that no man can behave in such a manner unless he lives in an environment that separates between men and women. But a single objective look to the realities in western countries that flew the banner of social intercourse and equality among both sexes, is enough to prove the opposite of what these people claim. Statistics show that one sixth of British women who got married were pregnant before marriage. They also show that one out of every twenty children born in the same country is illegitimate. In America there are about 400 thousand illegitimate born each year. Before the First World War prostitution in France reached an unprecedented level to the extent that half a million women were professional whores. Furthermore, about a quarter of newborn children in France are illegitimate. And there are about 250 thousand cases of divorces that occur each year and more than two million French women are “fille – mere” / Girl mother. (A French expression meaning an unmarried mother). Also in France police records register 22 thousand rape incidents each year, and these are only the cases of those who file a complaint, God alone knows the number of those who fail for one reason or another to inform the authorities. All this is plainly the result of the aggravation of social intercourse. The Disadvantages of Social Intercourse. Moreover, the yielding of both sexes to their sexual desires is an additional proof of the falsehood of their argument. No where could the negative aspect of mixing be demonstrated more clearly than the universities and at work. Mixed education has its negative repercussions on the psychological, emotional and moral levels of both children and teenagers. Putting adolescents together in school leads to the stimulation of sexual emotions that might hurt love and marriage in adult life. This is true in particular in America where mixed education had negative results; The girls and boys were engaged in art of flirting and practicing sexual relations, and that made the educational experts decide that they should separate between boys and girls in pre-university education. As for mixing in work and public life, it could be said that if such social intercourse was practiced without any restrictions whatsoever, it will increase the ratio of sexual harassment, and the potential for catching some serious sexual illness. It would also transform the sexual desire into an emotional longing and a need that cannot be satisfied. The Jurists Opinion. Muslim jurists too have discussed the issue of social intercourse. They have not banned the women’s presence in public places; On the contrary they allowed them to engage in business deals, and taking part in certain public activities such as going to the Mosque and the like. They also believe that it is lawful for women to learn and work, provided that the women’s presence in public is conducted in a decent manner that does not seduce men. And the Holy Quran has drawn a clear course for social intercourse and dealing among the two sexes: “Say to the believing men and women to turn away their eyes (from what is unlawful) and to restrain their sexual desires. This will make their lives purer. Allah has knowledge of all their actions. Say to the believing women to turn their eyes away (from temptation) and to preserve their chastity; to cover their adornments except such as are normally displayed; to draw their veils over their bosoms and not to reveal their finery except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons , their step sons, their brothers, their brothers sons, their sisters sons” {Surah Al Nour: 30-31} These Ayats state the rules of the relations between men and women. They commit every Muslim male or female to turn their eyes away from the other, and they demand that they should preserve their chastity. These Ayats also demand that the women should wear the veil and not show their finery to others, ant not to sexually seduce the males. The Women and the Social Activities. Islam has attached great importance to good manners and to the adherence to chastity and virtue. It concentrated on the necessity of the legal relations between men and women in all stages. On the other hand, Islam has taken a centrist stand regarding the issue of social intercourse; It did not ban the participation of women in social activities provided that such a participation remains within the boundaries of adhering to the straight moral path. Furthermore, it even called upon them to participate as a duty in certain activities such as Pilgrimage and Jihad. On the other hand, Jihad is not considered a duty women ought to perform except in the case of an invasion. It was reported that the Prophet (SAW) had taken the women along to war to take care of the wounded. Women are not duty bound to participate in the Jumma’ (Friday) prayer or any other kind of collective praying or even the Eid (feast) prayers. But they are allowed to participate in these occasions within the rules detailed by the Shariah. Women too are not allowed to shake hands with strangers except from behind their clothes, and provided no ill – intentions were nurtured. The Prophet (SAW) had accepted the women’s pledge of loyalty without having to shake their hands. He brought a pot a water and put his hands in it. Then he told the women to put their hands too. Women were not prevented from participating in funerals, although the Prophet had urged them not to.It is said that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) ordered to allocate a particular gate of the Mosque for women and another for men. He also ordered the women to leave the Mosque at the end of the evening prayer before the men leave to avoid their mingling. In short, Islam wants to avid social intercourse between sexes as much as possible for it might create dangerous risks. Islam is against social intercourse but not against the women’s participation in a social life as long as it does not contradict with the necessity of preserving the chastity and the Shariah restrictions regarding the women’s dress. Source : Noor Al Islam By: Dr Muhammad Mahdi Al Sadr
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