Eavesdropping on Family Conversations while they Are Talking about Her

11-4-2022 | IslamWeb

Question:

Is it allowed to hear my family conversation?. If they are talking to someone regarding my marriage without my concern.? Sometimes i feel its ok what i can do hearing the talks? I believe almighty allah is best planner. And sometimes iam confused that its regarding my future so i should. .... please help me . I pray to allah may your answer guide me right path (inshallah)

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

If you know that your family hates that you should listen to these talks, then in this case, it is impermissible for you to eavesdrop on them, for eavesdropping is deemed forbidden by authentic Sunnah texts, like the hadith that highlights a stern warning to those who listen to people’s private talks while they dislike it. It was narrated by Ibn ‘Abbas that the Prophet, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Whoever listens to a people's (private) conversation, while they dislike it or have gone away from him (i.e., to have some privacy), molten lead will be poured into his ears on the Day of Judgement.” [Al-Bukhari]

The fact that such talks are about you does not mean that they automatically approve of your listening to them. It is also possible that it is better to keep these talks secret from you.

There is nothing wrong with asking for their permission to attend and participate in these talks. If they permit you, you may do so. Otherwise, you should respect their wish with good grace, for it may be better for you to miss these talks.

Allah knows best.