Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Dear Brother in Islam,

Assalam alaikum. I would like to know if the sons and daughters of paternal aunts and uncles are mehram or non mehram?

Also, is husband's brother and sister in law's husband mehram to a woman?

Is wife's sister and brother's wife mehram to a man?

Are maternal aunts and paternal aunts husbands mehram or non mehram to a woman and wives of maternal uncles and paternal uncles mehram to a man?

 And are all the cousins, uncles and aunts of husband are mehram to woman and wife's uncles, aunts, cousins are mehram to husband?  Jazakallah khair.

Your sister in islam.

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

List of mehrams

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verses 22-23:

And do not marry at all those women whom your father had married, though what has happened in the past is excepted. This is an indecent and abominable thing and an evil practice.

Forbidden to you are your mothers, daughters, sisters, paternal aunts, maternal aunts, brother’s daughters, sister’s daughters, your foster mothers who have given suckle to you, your foster sisters who have taken suckle with you, the mothers of your wives, the daughters of your wives whom you have brought up, the daughters of your wives with whom you have conjugal relations, and it is not sinful for you to marry their daughters (after having divorced them). Also forbidden to you are the wives of your sons who are from your loins, and it is unlawful for you to keep two real sisters as wives at one and the same time, though what has happened in the past is excepted, for Allah is indeed Forgiving, Merciful.

The Arabic term ‘mehram’ is derived from ‘haraam’ which literally means something which is sacred, or sacrosanct, or prohibited. In the terminology of Islamic Jurisprudence a ‘mehram’ relative is generally one to whom marriage is absolutely and permanently prohibited; and a ‘non-mehram’ is generally one to whom marriage is permissible.

Beloved sister, for the moment we will provide you with only a general list where ‘almost’ all the mehrams are included. There are some technicalities when a foster or suckle relationship is concerned, thus for the moment we will not get into the details and technicalities of foster-relationships. If you have a question regarding whether a particular suckle-relation is mehram or not, it would be easier if you asked us specifically.

List of Mehram of the woman:

1. Husband
2. Father (includes grand father, great grand father, great great grand father, etc.)
3. Sons (includes sons’s and daughter’s sons, grand sons, and so on)
4. Brother ( includes brother’s sons, their sons, and so on)
5. Sister’s sons (includes sister’s son’s sons, their sons, and so on)
6. Paternal and Maternal uncles
7. Son in law
8. Father in law
9. step father (from the day the step father conjugates with one’s real mother)
10. step sons (from the day the wife conjugates with the real father of the step sons)
11. All the men who (in their infancy) have shared the suckle of the woman she suckled with in her infancy.

List of Mehram of the man:

1. Wife
2. Mother (includes grand mother, and so on)
3. Daugther (includes son’s and daughter’s grand daughters, and so on)
4. Brother’s daughters (includes their daughters, grand daughters, and so on)
5. Sister (includes their daughters, grand daughters, and so on)
6. Paternal and Maternal aunties
7. Daughter in law
8. Mother in law
9. Step mother (from the day the step mother conjugates with one’s real father)
10. Step daughter (from the day the husband conjugates with the real mother of the step daughters)
11. All the women who (in their infancy) have shared the suckle of the woman he suckled with in his infancy.

Q: if the sons and daughters of paternal aunts and uncles are mehram or non mehram?

All cousins are non-mehrams.

Q: Also, is husband's brother and sister in law's husband mehram to a woman?

Husband’s brother: non-mehram.

Sister-in-law’s husband: non-mehram.

Q: Is wife's sister and brother's wife mehram to a man?

Both wife’s sister and brother’s wife would be non-mehrams to the man.

Q: Are maternal aunts and paternal aunts husbands mehram or non mehram to a woman and wives of maternal uncles and paternal uncles mehram to a man?

Although both paternal and maternal aunts and uncles will themselves be mehrams, their spouses will be non-mehrams.

Q: And are all the cousins, uncles and aunts of husband are mehram to woman

Husband’s male cousins and uncles will all be non-mehrams to the wife. The aunts are obviously women and thus mehram/non-mehram relationships do not apply between the same gender.

Q: wife's uncles, aunts, cousins are mehram to husband?  

Wife’s aunts and female cousins will be non-mehrams to the husband. The wife’s uncles are obviously male and again mehram/non-mehram relationships do not apply between same gender.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan