Date : 05-02-2012

Question :

What is the Islamic ruling on a married man having emotional affairs via internet or phone?


The Answer :

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds, and may His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all of his family and companions.


Making emotional affairs outside the marriage bond is prohibited, because, at the end, it will lead to committing adultery. In this regard, Allah, The most Exalted, Said (What means): "O ye who believe! Follow not the footsteps of the devil. Unto whomsoever followeth the footsteps of the devil, lo! hecommandeth filthiness and wrong. Had it not been for the grace of Allah and His mercy unto you, not one of you would ever have grown pure. But Allah causeth whom He will to grow. And Allah is Hearer, Knower. [An-Nur/21] and He Says (What means): "Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and be modest. That is purer for them. Lo! Allah is aware of what they do.


And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and be modest." [An-Nur 30/31].


Moreover, browsing porn sites is one of the greatest vices because it will cause a person to have a prohibited online affair. Besides, Allah The Exalted Has Prohibited such promiscuous acts because they lead to committing adultery. Further, the level of prohibition is higher for the married compared to others since such promiscuity will ruin their lives and their families, in addition to widening the gap of mistrust between them.


In conclusion, whosoever committed the aforementioned acts or affairs should quit and repent to Allah. On her part, a wife should be keen on guiding her husband with wisdom and fair exhortation as much as she can and avoid falsely accusing chaste people with immoral acts. And Allah the Almighty Knows Best.