What Does "Don'T Go Near Adultery" Mean?
That verse is not telling us to completely cut off interaction between men and women. If that were the case, normal life wouldn’t even function — education, work, family life, all of it involves interaction. Islam is not designed to isolate people like that. What the verse is actually warning against is the process that leads toward zina — meaning behaviors and situations that gradually pull a person in that direction. That’s also what the hadith you mentioned is explaining. It’s not saying every interaction is zina, but showing how things can escalate step by step if a person is careless. So the real issue is not interaction itself, but how that interaction is carried out. Talking to the opposite gender, studying together, working together — none of this is inherently wrong. In fact, these are normal and necessary parts of life, and Islam never said to avoid them completely. The focus is on maintaining: respect, clarity and boundaries. Allah has given every human being control over their impulses and desires. We are not forced into wrongdoing just because interaction exists. Our actions are within our control. So the principle becomes: Interaction is allowed but l osing control within that interaction is the problem If things are kept: respectful, non-sexualized, within clear limits then it does not fall under “going near zina.” But if interaction turns into: flirtation, suggestive behavior, emotional or physical intimacy that keeps escalating then that’s where it enters the zone of “approaching zina.” Even things like friendship or meeting before marriage depend on how they are handled. If they remain within halal boundaries and self-control, they are not automatically wrong. If they cross into something that leads further, then that’s the issue. So Islam is not asking us to avoid people — it’s asking us to be responsible with ourselves. Allah did not forbid interaction — He forbade losing control within interaction.