Critical Analysis of the Phrase "Ṣaut al-Mar`ah 'Aurah" As a Hadith and Jurisprudential Principle

The conversation between men and women and listening to alien voices is one of the requirements of today's society. Different opinions have been stated by earlier and later Islamic jurists on the designation of its limits and rules. These opinions are based on narrations and sometimes phrases considered as tradition. Therefore, it seems necessary to examine the authenticity and validation of their documents and implication, because there are some baseless statements among the famous ones which are also called hadith-like phrases. Among these rulings is the issue of prohibition of a woman speaking in the presence of aliens, which has been extracted by jurists from the phrase " Ṣaut al-Mar`ah 'Aurah". This research, which has been organized with a library method and an analytical-critical approach, tries to criticize and evaluate the validity of the opinions of jurists. The absence of the phrase in the ancient narrative sources, its citation with the passive verb (ruvīa), and its rejection by a group of jurists are among evidences that make the authenticity of this narration a serious problem; The oldest available source in which this hadith-like narration is found is Allamah Hilli's Al-Masā`il Al-Muhannā`iyyah Al-ūlā. It is possible that Allamah brought this interpretation from the ruling of some jurists or his interpretation of the narration of "Al-Mar`ah 'Aurah" has been generalized to all aspects and dimensions of woman including her voice. The existence of some hadiths and verses that contradict this concept and the conduct of the Ahl al-Bayt also cast doubts about this prohibition.