How should a responsible individual (especially a single person in need of marriage) living in the West balance the prohibition of looking at a foreign woman's face with the societal disapproval of those who do not look at the face of the person they are speaking to? In other words, how can someone who cannot guarantee that they won't fall into temptation or doubt when looking at a foreign woman's face coexist in the West, especially with the many foreign women they must interact with in their daily life?
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1 Answer
Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.
Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Khamenei and Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Sistani (may God protect them):
The situation described is not a justification for falling into what is forbidden, unless it reaches a level of extreme hardship that cannot be borne.
The successful solution to the problem of falling into forbidden acts such as looking and masturbation, which a single person may encounter in the West or elsewhere, is marriage. In fact, it may be easier for a single person living abroad to marry than for someone who does not live abroad, due to several factors, including financial issues that expatriates may not face as severely as others.
May you be successful in all good.
Source:
Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Khamenei (may God protect him): Special Inquiry + Tahrir al-Wasilah, Marriage, on Some of Its Etiquettes and Rules, M 22
Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Sistani (may God protect him): Official Website