The Arabic term “Mehram” is derived from the word “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.

List of Mehram of the woman:

  1. Husband
  2. Father (includes grandfather, great grandfather, great great grandfather, etc.)
  3. Sons (includes son’s and daughters sons, grandsons, and so on)
  4. Brother ( includes brothers sons, their sons, and so on)
  5. Sisters sons (includes sisters 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 grandmother, and so on)
  3. Daughter (includes sons and daughters granddaughters, and so on)
  4. Brothers daughters (includes their daughters, granddaughters, and so on)
  5. Sister (includes their daughters, granddaughters, 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 been feed by the same woman he suckled with in his infancy.

 

Having Non-Mehrams’ company is forbidden in Islam due to the reasons below:

  1. Prophet Muhammad (Sallahu Alaehi Wasallam) said:

“Whenever a man is with any non-Mehram woman in seclusion, then surely, the third one with them is Satan.”(Sunan-ut-Tirmizi, vol. 4, pp. 67, Hadees 2172)

  1. We are not to look at women, and are to lower our gaze and the same direction is for women:

“Tell the believing men to lower their gaze” (Surah Al-Noor, verse # 30)

According to the tradition of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam):

I asked the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) about (the Islamic ruling on) accidental glance (i.e., at a woman one is not Islamically allowed to look at) and he ordered me to turn my eyes away.

We are also not to touch the women that we are not allowed for us to touch, for every limb has its own zina, and the zina of the Hand is touching:

And the hands commit adultery; their adultery is touching (In a narration in Muslim it is Lustful touch);

Unless touching is needed like in an emergency, do not do it.

As for being alone with a women it is haram. When a man and women meet, they should be as professional as possible, there is no need to touch, kiss, hold each other’s hands or look at each other. Unless you intend to marry it is haram to look. Also if you are to be in a company of a women not of your family, make sure that she has a Mahram with her, or you bring someone along yourself. This is the way to try to keep yourself as well as the women safe, keep the respect, as well as stay away from Zina, because Shaytaan does whisper to anyone, no matter how religious that person is.