Salam Alaykum. I hope you are all doing well. Currently I am in a dilema as I am currently engaged to a righteous Muslima and she has stipulated that she wants someone that has never commited Zina (sexual intercourse) as she herself is chaste. Alhamduilah, I have never commited Zina nor have I ever been in a haram relationship. However, in the past, I received an erotic massage from an immoral woman. There was no emotional attachement whatsoever. I felt extremely guilty and anxious even during the act and afterwards I had repented over and over again. I have since changed as a person and while my fiance values transparency and wants me to be open with her and we are compatible in almost every aspect, I fear that if I were to tell her about this past event, she would get extremely upset/devasted. Can you please advice me? JazakhAllahu Khairan
Answer:
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
You have done well by repenting from what happened with that woman. It is incumbent upon you to be cautious in the future to avoid laxity in dealing with foreign women, such as being alone with them and the like, as that can lead to immorality. We ask Allah, the Exalted, to preserve your religion and facilitate marriage for you.
Sharee’ah does not obligate you to inform your fiancée of this sin. In fact, it is not permissible for you to disclose it to her. The one who repents from a sin must conceal it. Ibn ‘Umar, may Allaah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Avoid these filthy practices which Allah, the Almighty, has forbidden. He who commits any of these should conceal with Allah’s Most High Veil (i.e. should not speak about it), and should turn to Allah, the Almighty, in repentance.”
Allah knows best.