It doesn't end there...
25 April 2022 • 3.5K views
Some masaajid have a plasma screen on the sister's side. Aside from the reasons cited above, having a screen displaying the men's section to the sisters is problematic because:
1. Allah commanded women to lower their gaze and guard their chastity the same way he commanded the men. Allah the Almighty said:
{ قُل لِّلۡمُؤۡمِنِینَ یَغُضُّوا۟ مِنۡ أَبۡصَـٰرِهِمۡ وَیَحۡفَظُوا۟ فُرُوجَهُمۡۚ ذَ ٰلِكَ أَزۡكَىٰ لَهُمۡۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ خَبِیرُۢ بِمَا یَصۡنَعُونَ * { وَقُل لِّلۡمُؤۡمِنَـٰتِ یَغۡضُضۡنَ مِنۡ أَبۡصَـٰرِهِنَّ وَیَحۡفَظۡنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ }
“˹O Prophet!˺ Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and guard their chastity. That is purer for them. Surely Allah is All-Aware of what they do. And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their chastity...”
[Surah An-Nûr: 30-31]
Placing a plasma screen for sisters to stare at brothers isn't exactly helping them lower their gaze is it now?
2. Allowing women to stare at brothers will slowly embolden them and remove their shyness, and if they become accustomed to looking at strange men in the most modest of places (the masaajid), what do you expect to happen when they are exposed to fitnah? Did you not notice how in the previous Aayah Allah -The All Wise- linked chastity to lowering the gaze?
The poet said:
كـل الحوادث مبدأها من النظر *** ومعظم النار من مستصغر الشرر
All evil occurrences begin from a glance *** and most blazes are kindled by those who deem sparks insignificant
Another famously wrote:
فابتسامة فسلام فـكـلام فـمـوعد فـلـقـاء
A glance, a smile then a greeting, a word, a promise then a meeting
3. Abu Hurairah radhiyallahu 'anhu reported: The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said,
((‏خير صفوف الرجال أولها، وشرها آخرها، وخير صفوف النساء آخرها، وشرها أولها‏))
“The best of the men's rows (in Salat) is the first row and the worst is the last; but the best of the woman's row is the last and the worst of their rows is the first.”
[Muslim].
Imam An-Nawawi rahimahullah commented:
فالمراد بالحديث: صفوف النساء اللواتي يصلين مع الرجال، وأما إذا صلين متميزات لا مع الرجال فهن كالرجال
What's intended from the hadeeth is if the women pray (directly) behind the men. But if they pray separate to the men, they are just like the men (i.e. the first row being the best row)
But when you add a plasma screen into the mix it changes the dynamics. That would mean, the further away they are from the plasma screen the better...only issue is the sister's section is cramped as it is.
4. When brothers realise sisters are watching them, it creates this urgency to try and appear on screen looking sharp and fresh. All of a sudden, more brothers now want to share reminders and make announcements. Allah knows best their intentions, but there's no hiding the fact that Allah has made the love of women appealing to man. So this is definitely opening the doors to Fitnah to say the least.
To conclude, I would kindly suggest taking down the plasma screens, especially from the sister's side, or atleast keep them switched off during Salah.