Chapter 5 - On Shaking Hands and Kissing

Imam Sadiq (a.s) said: “God's Prophet never allowed a man to shake hands with a woman, even if she was an old woman.”

“Do not greet women.”

“Yes.” Then they asked: “Can they shake hands with him?” He said: “It is fine if their hands are covered with cloth. When the women were swearing their allegiance to God's Prophet, the Prophet had pulled his hands into his sleeves, and they touched his sleeves.”

Imam Javad (a.s) said: “When the women wanted to swear allegiance to the Prophet of God (a.s), he would put his hand in a pan of water and they would immerse their hands in the same pan of water. This is how they expressed their faith in God, and acknowledged His Prophet, and accepted the religious laws of Islam.:

In another tradition we read: “The Prophet of God (a.s) called the women, placed his hand in a pan of water and removed it, and then asked them to place their hands in the pan of water to swear allegiance to him.”