Is touching or kissing a wife, short of intercourse, prohibited after issuing a declaration of Zihar but before expiation?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Zihar
Primary text
There are two established positions regarding pre-intercourse intimacy such as kissing or touching below the waist after Zihar but before expiation. The first view holds that such acts are prohibited. This is the chosen position of Abu Bakr, and it is the view of al-Zuhri, Malik, al-Awza'i, Abu 'Ubayd, and the People of Opinion, as well as one position of al-Shafi'i. The rationale is that what is prohibited regarding the act of intercourse due to the oath also prohibits its preliminaries (du'aihi), similar to the rulings concerning divorce or entering the state of Ihram for Hajj or Umrah.
Supporting text
The second view states that these lesser acts are not prohibited. This is the position favored by Ahmad, who hoped there would be no sin in it, and it is the view of al-Thawri, Ishaq, and Abu Hanifa, as well as a second position attributed to Malik and al-Shafi'i. The reasoning here is that the prohibition concerns an act whose expiation relates to property (feeding), and thus the prohibition does not extend beyond the core act itself, similar to the ruling on intercourse with a menstruating woman.