Answer
Short Answer:
- The answer is no. Your cousins are not your mahram (males whom you’re not permitted to marry). Your maharem are the ones you can shake hands and take hijab off with them.
- You can ask about them, help them and check on them, without having to hug or touch them or show your full adornments in front of them.
- This is meant for the purity of our hearts and conduct.
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Salam alaykum Dearest Sister,
Thank you so much for your question.
The answer is no. Your cousins are not your mahram (males whom you’re not permitted to marry). Your maharem are the ones you can shake hands and take hijab off with them.
This is clearly mentioned in Surat An-Nur:
“And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women.
And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.” (Quran 24: 31)
Allah Almighty is The Creator of all of us, and He is The All Knowing and The Source of Purity, so He instructs us to do what’s best and purest for us and our hearts and our lives.
A woman’s beauty is only meant to be exposed with her husband and maharem. But when you become too casual with males who’re not your maharem, then a lot of corruption can happen. We lose our bashfulness (hayaa), modesty and cross boundaries that are there to benefit us and maintain the light in our hearts.
It’s best to maintain the boundaries of Allah, maintain good relationship with your cousins without excessiveness and without crossing lines.
You can ask about them, help them and check on them, without having to hug or touch them or show your full adornments in front of them.
This is meant for the purity of our hearts and conduct.
And Allah knows best!
I hope this answers your question.
Salam and please keep in touch.
(From Ask About Islam archives)
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