Question
People often say, “There is no shyness in religion.” What does this mean?
Answer
Shaykh ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbd Allah ibn Bāz (d. 1420 AH/1999 CE) ؒ replied:
This statement is correct in meaning and correct in general, when understood properly. It resembles what Umm Sulaym bint Milḥān ؓ said to the Prophet Muḥammad :
إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَسْتَحْيِي مِنَ الْحَقِّ فَهَلْ عَلَى الْمَرْأَةِ مِنْ غُسْلٍ إِذَا احْتَلَمَتْ
“Verily, Allah is not shy of the truth. Must a woman perform ghusl if she has a wet dream?” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 130; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 313a; excerpt.)
The intended meaning is that shyness should not prevent someone from asking questions, learning and gaining an understanding of the religion. Shyness must not stop a person from enquiring about matters of dīn and striving to understand them. If, however, the statement means that there is no shyness in religion in an absolute and unrestricted sense, it is incorrect.
The Prophet said:
الْحَيَاءُ مِنَ الْإِيمَانِ
“Shyness is part of faith.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 24; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 36a; excerpt.)
He also said:
إِذَا لَمْ تَسْتَحِ فَاصْنَعْ مَا شِئْتَ
“If you feel no shyness, then do as you wish.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, no. 6120; excerpt.)
Shyness that restrains a person from committing sins is part of faith. This is praiseworthy and beloved to Allah . Thus, if the statement means that shyness should not prevent someone from asking questions to learn and understand the religion, its meaning is correct.
Shyness is of two types. The first prevents a person from learning and understanding the religion. This is prohibited and is not considered true shyness in Islam. The second prevents bad manners and sinful actions. This is required and encouraged; it is the shyness with which Islam came.
This is indicated by the narration cited in the answer:
الإيمان بضع وسبعون شعبة، فأفضلها قول لا إله إلا الله، وأدناها إماطة الأذى عن الطريق، والحياء شعبة من الإيمان.
“Faith has over seventy branches. The highest is the statement, ‘There is none worthy of worship except Allah.’ The lowest is removing harm from the road, and shyness is a branch of faith.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, no. 35b; wording as cited in Ibn Bāz’s transcription. Muslim’s report includes the alternative “or over sixty”.)
Shyness that prevents evil is a branch of faith. It is a great and noble characteristic that restrains sinful actions and encourages righteous deeds. If the statement means that Islam contains no shyness whatsoever, that understanding is incorrect.
References
Al-Bukhārī, Muḥammad ibn Ismāʿīl (d. 256 AH/870 CE). Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, nos. 24, 130 and 6120.
Ibn Bāz, ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbd Allah (d. 1420 AH/1999 CE). Nūr ʿalā ad-Darb, “Madā Ṣiḥḥat al-Maqūlah: Lā Ḥayāʾ fī ad-Dīn”, official transcription – 3:112–114 and 1:214–216.
Muslim ibn al-Ḥajjāj an-Naysābūrī (d. 261 AH/875 CE). Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim, nos. 35b, 36a and 313a.
