When do the rulings on an adolescent girl begin to apply to a little girl?

 

With regard to little girls, when should we not greet them with salaam, and start to lower our gaze and not look at them – from what age?.

Praise be to Allaah.

The scholars are
unanimously agreed that it is haraam to look at a little girl or shake hands
with her if that is accompanied by desire and pleasure. But if there is no
desire, then some of the fuqaha’ stated a guideline of when the girl reaches
an age at which she would normally become desirable. When she reaches this
age, it becomes haraam to look at her and shake hands with her. If she has
not reached an age at which she has become desirable, then there is nothing
wrong with shaking hands with her and looking at her. This is the view of
the Maalikis, and is the more correct view according to the Shaafa’is. 

The Hanafis and Hanbalis
set as a guideline the age of ten years. They said that when the little girl
reaches the age of ten, her ‘awrah becomes like that of a free adult woman,
so it is not permissible to look at her or touch her or shake hands with
her. 

It says in al-Mawsoo’ah
al-Fiqhiyyah al-Kuwaitiyyah (31/52): 

The Hanafis are of the view
that up to the age of ten, the ‘awrah of the young boy or young girl is that
which is regarded as the extreme ‘awrah of the adult, and after that age the
‘awrah is the same as an adult’s. 

The Maalikis narrated that
for a girl who is seen as desirable, her ‘awrah is the same as that of an
adult woman with regard to looking and washing. 

The more correct view
according to the Shaafa’is is that it is permissible to look at a little
girl who is not seen as desirable, apart from the private part, which it is
not permissible to look at. 

The Hanbalis said: if the
small child is female and ten years old, then her ‘awrah with regard to
non-mahram men is her entire body. End quote. 

See: Haashiyat Ibn
‘Aabideen (1/407, 408); al-Bahr al-Raa’iq by Ibn Nujaym al-Hanafi
(1/285); Mughni al-Muhtaaj (3/130); Haashiyat al-‘Adawi
(1/185, 336); Kashshaaf al-Qinaa’ (1/266); al-Mughni (7/462). 

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may
Allaah have mercy on him) favoured the view that she comes under the same
ruling as an adult woman when she reaches an age at which she becomes
desirable, even if she has not reached the age of ten. 

He (may Allaah have mercy
on him) said: There is no ruling on the ‘awrah of a little girl, and she
does not have to cover her face, neck, hands and feet, and the little girl
should not be obliged to do that, but when the girl reaches an age where men
may be attracted to her and desire her, then she should observe hijab so as
to ward off fitnah and evil. That varies from one woman to another; some of
them may develop quickly and look mature, and others may be the opposite.
End quote. 

See also the answer to
question no. 20475 and
43485. 

And Allaah knows best.