Thigh contact (mufakhadha)

Mufakhadha, in the lexical sense, is a man sitting between a woman's thighs or above them, as in intercourse; the technical sense does not differ. ¹

A husband may touch his wife's thighs outside ihram and outside menstruation or postpartum bleeding, with or without a barrier. Thigh contact with a woman who is not his wife is forbidden. ¹

The Shafi'is forbid it in the pilgrimage under conditions: the act is intentional, done with knowledge of the ruling, done with desire and without a barrier. A fidya is owed if it occurs before the first release, and the rite is not voided. Most jurists require the pilgrim to avoid the preliminaries of intercourse without naming thigh contact separately. ²

In the daytime of Ramadan, thigh contact breaks the fast if the faster ejaculates, and the fast must be made up; it does not break the fast otherwise. Most jurists impose no expiation for contact short of the genitals, while the Malikis require it. ^{2 3}

The Shafi'is hold two views on whether sexual thigh contact creates affinity and forbids the stepdaughter; the sounder view holds that it has no effect without desire. The Shafi'is also hold that there is no hadd penalty for it, only discretionary punishment. ^{2 3}