Hadithcore
Sahih Muslim, 1403 a
sahih

Jabir reported that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) saw a woman, and so he came to his wife, Zainab, as she was tanning a leather and had sexual intercourse with her. He then went to his Companions and told them:

The woman advances and retires in the shape of a devil, so when one of you sees a woman, he should come to his wife, for that will repel what he feels in his heart.

حَدَّثَنَا عَمْرُو بْنُ عَلِيٍّ، حَدَّثَنَا عَبْدُ الأَعْلَى، حَدَّثَنَا هِشَامُ بْنُ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، عَنْ أَبِي الزُّبَيْرِ، عَنْ جَابِرٍ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم رَأَى امْرَأَةً فَأَتَى امْرَأَتَهُ زَيْنَبَ وَهْىَ تَمْعَسُ مَنِيئَةً لَهَا فَقَضَى حَاجَتَهُ ثُمَّ خَرَجَ إِلَى أَصْحَابِهِ فَقَالَ ‏

‏ إِنَّ الْمَرْأَةَ تُقْبِلُ فِي صُورَةِ شَيْطَانٍ وَتُدْبِرُ فِي صُورَةِ شَيْطَانٍ فَإِذَا أَبْصَرَ أَحَدُكُمُ امْرَأَةً فَلْيَأْتِ أَهْلَهُ فَإِنَّ ذَلِكَ يَرُدُّ مَا فِي نَفْسِهِ ‏

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References2 variants
In-Book Reference
Book 16, Hadith 10
USC-MSA web (English) reference
Book 8, Hadith 3240 (deprecated numbering scheme)
Sharh · explanationclick to expand
Islam has protected women from all evil, and the Shariah has commanded women to avoid Tabarruj (impermissible exposure of adornment), so as not to arouse desires and become a cause of tempting others. In this Hadīth, Jābir ibn ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reports that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) saw a woman, as if he saw her all of a sudden. So, the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) went to his wife, Zaynab bint Jahsh, to satisfy his human lust and maintain his chastity. Zaynab (may Allah be pleased with her) was tanning a piece of leather, i.e., rubbing it. "Manī’ah": it is the leather once put in tannin. He did this only to clarify to people and guide them to what they should do, as he (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) taught them with his acts and words. As for what he felt in his heart, he is not to be blamed for it, and it does not negatively affect his status. It is a requirement of human nature and lust. It must not be thought that the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) did this out of a whim or for being overcome by lust, far be it from him. Rather, he did this by way of legislation and to set an example and to ward off what is expected to happen. Then, he (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The woman advances in the shape of a devil and retires in the shape of a devil" referring to personal desires and inviting others to be tempted by her, given the natural inclination for women that Allah Almighty has instilled in men and the pleasure they get by looking at women and at whatever is related to them. The woman is, thus like the devil who calls to evil through his whispering and through making evil appealing to them. This is because her advance calls men to look stealthily at her just like the devil that calls to evil and whispering. The same applies to her turning back because the gaze is the heart's guide, so when she turns back, she attracts a man's gaze and he tries to take backdoors to reach her, as seeing her from all directions is a cause of corruption. Then, he (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) said: "So, when any of you sees a woman," i.e., likes and admires her, because seeing something that arouses one's amazement, leads to admiring it. Another version by Muslim reads: "When any of you admires a woman and his heart is captivated by her, he should go to his wife and have sexual intercourse with her." Here he said: "He should come to his wife," i.e., and have sexual intercourse with her. "For that will repel what he feels in his heart," i.e., his sexual intercourse with his wife will repel what he feels in his heart and will satiate his lust and calm him down. The Hadīth indicates that there is nothing wrong with one asking his wife for sexual intercourse during daytime or at any other time, even if she is preoccupied with something that could be postponed because a man might be overcome by lust and the delay might cause him harm in his body, or in his heart and sight. It also denotes how the Prophet (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him) taught his Companions the way of ridding the devil's whispers by going for what is lawful instead of what is unlawful..
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