Is Hijab Mandatory in Islam

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m Brothah: Is Hijab Mandatory in Islam: Part I

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Muslim Brothah

MONDAY, 12 MARCH 2012

Is Hijab Mandatory in Islam: Part I

And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and be modest, and to

display of their adornment only that which is apparent, and to draw their

cover over their bosoms, and not to reveal their adornment except to

their own husbands ... (Quran 24:31).

MEANING OF KH I M AR

There are many who are led to

believe that khimar means

head cover, and not simply

cover. I find it very odd that

some translate k himar as head

cover, even when the word

head or hair is not present;

even though Allah, the All-

Knowing is explicitly telling

women to cover their bosoms

and body parts.

Furthermore, you will noticethat the word k himar is also used throughout the Qur'an in reference to

wine and alcohol. Try asking an imam if crystal meth is not haram because

it is not explicitly forbidden in the Quran, and he will most likely point you

towards the root word of khimar being used for alcohol:

The imam will tell you that Allah chose to use the word khimar for alcohol,

because it is anything that "covers" the intellect and leads one to other

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sins. If khimar truly meant head cover, can you imagine how odd these

verses would sound if they were telling the believers to abstain from head

covers? That wouldn't make much sense, would it? What's interesting is

that Allah uses this same word for covering of the bosom. Therefore, the

word khimar, even according to some mistaken scholars, does in fact

mean "to cover".

If one was to translate khimar as "veil", as other translators (or

niqabists) have done, one must ask the question, "What is a veil?" Is a veil

not a "cover", and its purpose being "to cover"? A face veil covers the face,and a bosom veil covers the bosom. Also, a further point is that in the

same chapter (24), and verse 60 of the Qur'an, Allah has allowed elderly

women to be less careful in covering. However, the word used here was

thiyaab, and not khimar. So why has the head cover become part of the 10

Muslim Commandments, taking its place as an Islamic norm?

MISINTERPRETING THE QUR'AN

What one may find rather frightening is

that the male-dominated scholars

who originally translated khimar as headcover are the same ones who translated

the "beat" your wife verse, the killing of

disbelievers to spread the word of Islam,

the polygamy verse, killing apostates,

stoning to death, and much more of what

has been labelled Islamic today. Although

some more modern scholars may not

agree with all of these fanatical teachings,

they still base their knowledge on these

same interpreters of the Qur'an.

Why do most of today's dogmatic imams and translators keep insisting

that ḍarabū in 4:34 means "to strike" your wife, when this same word is

used for travelling, departing, leaving, breaking apart, going forth,

presenting, etc. Why can't these translators simply teach Muslim men to

"leave" their harsh wives if all else failed. Why do so many Islamic sources

and so-called scholars keep insisting that the Qur'an states Jesus will be a

sign of the Hour (43:61), when the word ayah is not used. The

word knowledge (' ilm ) is used to suggest that "He [or it] is knowledge of

the Hour", yet this dogmatic belief of Christianity is still preached. The list

of misinterpretations and mistranslations can go on forever.

THE QUR'AN IS COMPLETE

"And We have revealed the Book to you which has clear explanation of

everything, and a guidance, mercy and good news for those who submit."

(Qur'an 16:89)

In the same khimar verse (24:31), after Allah lists in detail those kindred

who are allowed to see the woman not fully-covered, it even gives such

fine details as to tell women not to strike their feet as a means of

attracting men:

And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their

adornment (Qur'an 24:31)

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At the time of the Prophet, some women used to wear ankle bracelets and

bells. Women in India and Pakistan still do, and some would stamp their

feet in order to seduce men or to get their attention. Out of all the verses

in the Qur'an, He clearly tells us not to eat the flesh of swine, blood, and

even several different animals that are killed improperly. We are told to

avoid strong drink/gambling, avoid usury, abstain from backbiting, to cover

the bosom, to lower our gaze, when and how to pray, and steps in

performing wudu.

Allah even explicitly tells us towet our heads before we pray.

If the hijab was truly

mandatory, why wouldn't He

simply order women to cover

their heads, just as all the

other verses of Divine

Instruction? Why do we have to

dig out so much

ahadith interpretation in order

to prove the head cover, which

is still left unproven in the end?

If the hijab was such animportant practice, as are the many other teachings in the Qur'an, wouldn't

Allah have cared to explicitly order women to cover their heads. Instead,

they are told to cover their bosoms and body parts, as in 24:31.

THE WORD HI JAB IN THE QUR'AN

It is very interesting that the Qur'an does use the word hijab, but nowhere

is it used in reference to a women's head cover. The word hijab is used to

mean a barrier, veil, or screen:

Did Allah know in His infinite wisdom that Muslims

would later make hijab as part of the religion, and

deliberately chose to use this word in the Qur'an?

Some imams will point towards the

oral ahadith literature to prove the ordinance of the

hijab, even though these ahadith were not

authorized by the Prophet himself, and were put

into writing 300 years after him. Yet amongst the

countless poorly-compiled ahadith narrations, filled

with fabrications, one will still not find a direct order

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where the Prophet is reported (through so and so

...) to have ordered women to cover their hair.

WHAT ABOUT MOTHER MARY?

In being unable to provide tangible proof from the Qur'an to support the

notion of hijab, some may even resort to Christian teachings:

"But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered

dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. For if awoman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off" [1

Corinthians 11:5-6]

If it was up to the Saudi mullahs, this rulewould probably be made shariah! Eventhough Jesus did not direct his followers to

cover their heads, with all due respect, some

Christians do practice it. Some may even

equate Mary's head covering with being

righteous or chaste (modest), even though

Mary may not have covered her hair fully .However, the Qur'an refutes this claim,

teaching us that true chastity (modesty) isabstaining from lust:

She said: "How can I have a son when no

man has touched me, neither have I been

unchaste? (Qur'an 19:20)

And she who was chaste, therefore We

breathed into her of Our Spirit and made her

and her son a sign for (all) peoples. (Quran 21:91)

It is also interesting to note that many Jews and Christians who later

converted to Islam during the Prophet's time and onwards brought with

them much cultural/religious baggage. Some of these beliefs and teachingseven made their way into the ahadith literature, seeping their way intoIslamic beliefs and practices. Although they have no basis in the Qur'an,they were still adapted by later generations only to become today's Muslimor Islamic norm. The head covering is not the only Judeo-Christian teachingthat has made its way into our faith, but others such as the return of

Christ, the impure menstruating woman, original sin, intercession of sins,and various others have nothing to stand on when viewed in the Light of

the Qur'an.

FOLLOWING THE SHAR I AH LAW

The Qur'an tells believing men and women to lower their gaze (24:30-31),and so does the Gospel (Injeel). During the time of Jesus, many Jews

actually followed the commandments and outwardly teachings (or shariah)

just as we Muslims do. One such example was not committing adultery, or

the notion of "look but don't touch". Some hearts had become corrupt, and

Jesus taught them:

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already

committed adultery with her in his heart. (Matthew 5:28)

Many Jewish followers even believed that they could divorce their wives

anytime they liked, and all they needed was a certificate (a statement),

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since this Law (shariah) was given to them by their Messenger, Moses. But

Jesus tells them:

“Moses allowed you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard.

But it was not this way from the beginning. I tell you that anyone who

divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another

woman commits adultery.” (Matthew 19:8-9)

Some Muslim men think the same way of divorce (similar to the Jews), as

it is allowed in the Qur'an, yet it should really only be for valid reasons. You

can't simply throw away a woman when you're done with her. I have seensome instances in a community where an imam would actually encourage awoman who is having marital problems to divorce her husband, and quickly

marry her in order to get into her pants. One must ask the question, how is

this different from adultery? Is he really following the shariah? Yet this isthe kind of hypocrisy we deal with--the same hypocrisy and lawful shariahmisunderstood even during the time of Jesus (Isa).

CULTURE VS RELIGION

Many religious followers can

mistake cultural norms for

religious or spiritual practices.For example, it is a known fact

that most women during the

Prophet's time in the

Arabian Peninsula did cover

their head--but so did men!

And so did Mother Mary of

Jerusalem. If this is the basis

for our belief, how come men

aren't required to cover their

heads? The reality is, had they

not covered their heads in the

heat of the sun, they would be

asking for trouble (i.e. heat

stroke)! And who is to say that

these were not worn as a loose head cover rather than a

complete hair suffocation.

Also, men's and women's dress were very loose and open, in order to allow

air circulation. Although it is fair to say that women (and men) should not

wear tight bodily revealing clothes, the abayah should not be considered an

Islamic dress either! Can you imagine a Muslima Eskimo freezing and

tripping over the snow in her abayah, while trying to hunt a seal? Whilst

not following unnecessary trends, who is to say that we cannot wear

ordinary clothing, such as loose-fitted shirts and jeans? Allah reminds us in

the Qur'an the purpose of clothing:

O Children of Adam! We have revealed unto you garments to cover your

shame, and splendid vesture; but the garment of righteousness--that is

best. This is of the revelations of Allah, that they may remember. (7:26)

PURPOSE OF HI JAB ?

Many imams will tell us that the purpose of hijab is to hide a women's

precious beauty, while using many other sugar-coated sayings. Although

we can agree that hair is beautiful, but so are hands, nose, eyes, and

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mouth! In fact, the face is probably the most beautiful thing God has

created on a human being! (This would be a great time for the niqabist to

jump in). But let's ask ourselves the question of which is more attractive:

a) an image of a face with the hair covered or

b) an image of hair with the face covered

Almost anybody (especially the niqabist ) can

agree that the first option is the most-

attractive. Most men may probably agree that

they would rather see skin than filamentousbiomaterial (i.e. hair). With this same notion of

hiding her beauty , should the woman now

cover her face?

Women are told that their hair should only be

revealed to their husbands. They are told to hide their beauty (i.e.

hair), yet they are freely able to beatify their faces with petrochemical

makeup and lipstick, highlighting their eyes, brows, and lips. Also, does

highlighting one's eyes with mascara, eyeliner, and eye shadow help men

to "lower their gaze" (24:30) or raise their gaze to stare at those

beautifully noticeable eyes? Wouldn't this directly help two eyes to meet

and stare? We must be skeptical of the makeup imams and askourselves, why the double standards? Speaking of double standards, if hair

is such a private part , should men not cover their hair as well? Picture that

for a second.

While trying to sound equal, imams will also preach in the masjid that the

man's hijab is lowering his gaze, whereas the woman's hijab is covering her

hair . However, this doesn't agree with the Qur'an, since Allah orders both

man and woman to lower their gazes. So why simply stress on the man?

And it also creates a notion (which I have seen) that hijabis don't have to

lower their gaze, staring at men as they walk by. This is the kind of

hypocrisy we are dealing with when our imams preach fake

outwardly teachings, forget about guarding one's heart from evil thoughts.

H I JA B CAN ATTRACT MEN

Here is one story worth sharing, from my

non-hijab wearing aunt. She walked into a

restaurant with her two friends, one who wore a

hijab and one who let her hair out. Surprisingly,

they noticed that her friend who wore the

hijab got all the attention from the males. In

trying to be realistic, don't you think a hijab can

sometimes bring out a women's face, while

hiding big ear's, old age, or unwanted features.Some men may even admit (I deem them not!)

that a certain woman looks better with a hijab.

But I don't think that was the case, unless all

these men in the restaurant had

a hijab obsession.

My aunt exclaimed how her friend actually

looked far more beautiful than her

non-hijab friends, with her decked out

colorful hijab, cuffs, sleeves, and makeup! Worn

with the right style, a hijab can actually

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increase a woman's attractiveness, and with

men's curiosity, gain more stares than not-cares. Perhaps this is the reason

why some women dye their hair pink or blue, in order to stand out and get

more attention, yet this is not the

righteous Muslima's intention. Nowadays, it appears as though hijab has

become a fashion statement, and some non-Muslim women have even

chosen to wear it for that very reason.

CONCLUSION

Whoever works any act of righteousness and has faith,- His/her endeavour

will not be rejected: We shall record it in his/her favor. (21:94)

Not choosing to wear a hijab does not make a woman immodest nor

unrighteous, as Allah will reward us for all our acts of goodness as

mentioned in the verse above. I am not against wearing hijab, but nor am I

against not wearing one. I am not against the idea of a hijab just as much

as I am not against a baseball cap, a tuque, or a wig. A woman should

have the right to choose if she would like to wear one or not. But Muslim

women should not be discriminated against or judged for not wearing one.

I know a precious girl who was righteous and modest, yet she did not wear

hijab. Some of the hijab-wearing girls were out doing immodest things, andin the end, the modest non-hijabi was looked down upon by them for not

wearing the hijab. How twisted and backwards have we become to think

like this? Let's leave the judging to Al-Hakam, The Judge.

What has become of our Muslim

society and values, as we

preach outwardly things

over inwardly things? We think

we follow the shariah just as

the Jews did, but do we? I truly

have sympathy for these poor

women who are commanded bytheir imams to cover their itchy

scalps all day, suffocating their

heads that long to breathe the

fresh air. How sad is it for the

nature-loving Muslima who

cannot feel the breeze flow through her hair, since that would involve being

seen in public. How unfortunate for the bird-watching Muslima whose ears

are covered from hearing the distant chirps of the glorious meadowlarks. I

express my sympathy for the water-loving Muslima who is unable to dip

her bare head in the cool soothing sunlit waters, while running her fingers

through her scalp as a way of healing.

When thinking about hijab, let us not forget the Judeo-Christian cultural

influence that was rampant in Arabia. There surely was women who did not

cover their hair during the Prophet's time, so why would there be no

Qur'anic injunction ordering women to explicitly cover their hair? After all,

they are advised to cover their bosom. We need to re-observe hijab in the

Light of the Qur'an , and it should not be mandated as a fardh teaching

of Islam by our imams, equated to taking off one's clothes. It should not be

regarded as one of the ten commandments of Islam. Exposing one's hair

should not be considered a religious taboo, and women who choose to wear

it (or not) should be respected. Let's start preaching what it truly means to

be modest and righteous. True chastity, as we learned from Mary in the

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Qur'an, comes from guarding your chastity. And true modesty comes from:

And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and be modest, and to

display of their adornment only that which is apparent, and to draw their

covers over their bosoms, and not to reveal their adornment ... (Quran

24:31)

Below is a more scholarly answer that may be of interest, written by Moiz

Amjad:

It is true that "Khimar" is generally used for head covering. However, aclose examination of the related verse of Surah Al-Noor shows that thedirective entailed in it is for women to cover their bosoms. "Khimar" isonly referred in this verse as a possible 'tool' for covering their bosoms. A

woman who uses any other piece of cloth for this purpose would be said to

have carried out the directive of the Shari`ah. This point is furthersubstantiated by the fact that in verse 60 of Surah Al-Noor , where theQur'an has allowed older women to be less careful in covering their

bosoms, it has used the word " Th iy aa b " - implying any piece of cloththat may have been used for the stated purpose.|

It is clear that had the Qur'an required women to cover their heads, it

would then have given an express directive to the effect.

In view of the above, I am of the opinion that head-covering, even though

it has always remained a part of the noble Muslim social traditions, is not a

directive of the Shari`ah. [Source]

I hope this helps.

Regards,

Moiz Amjad

Related Articles:

Is Hijab Mandatory in Islam: Part IIHijab & Niqab in the Qur'an

http://www.understanding-islam.com/discussions/social-issues/regarding-head-covering-for-women-8591http://muslim-brothah.blogspot.ca/2012/11/hijab-is-not-islamic-part-ii.htmlhttp://www.quranicpath.com/misconceptions/hijab_niqab.htmlhttp://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6uG-oq5tWSU/T12e-LOFQVI/AAAAAAAAAGo/fbAr7_m2hSM/s1600/quran-2154.JPGhttp://www.quranicpath.com/misconceptions/hijab_niqab.htmlhttp://muslim-brothah.blogspot.ca/2012/11/hijab-is-not-islamic-part-ii.htmlhttp://muslim-brothah.blogspot.ca/2012/11/hijab-is-not-islamic-part-ii.htmlhttp://www.understanding-islam.com/discussions/social-issues/regarding-head-covering-for-women-8591


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Posted by Al-Mumin at 14:31

Labels: abayah, bosom, chastity, cover , dress, hadith, hair , head, hijab, is hijab mandatory,

Islam, islamic, jesus, khimar , mary, modesty, muhammad, Quran, sunnah, women

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10/16

m Brothah: Is Hijab Mandatory in Islam: Part II

muslim-brothah.blogspot.com/2012/11/hijab-is-not-islamic-part-ii.html[20.5.2015. 21:05:10]

Muslim Brothah

SUNDAY, 4 NOVEMBER 2012

Is Hijab Mandatory in Islam: Part II

Say [O Muhammad]: "Who forbids the nice things God has created for His

creatures, and the good provisions?" Say: "Such provisions are to be

enjoyed in this life by those who believe. Moreover, the good provisions will

be exclusively theirs on the Day of Resurrection." We thus explain the

revelations for people who know. [Quran 7:32]

INTRODUCTION

If you haven't read Part I, it can be read here. The above verse wasrevealed to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), with God ordering him to "say", in

response to something that he was facing at that time, as seen with the

context. It was most likely similar to things that Jews forbid when Jesus

came to them with clear signs. So why do many Muslims keep forbidding

hair , the filamentous biomaterial that grows from follicles found in the

dermis? Why do they treat the head like a private part, when really it isno different (in attractiveness) than their face, or many would say it doesn't

even come close to being more attractive than the face! And even if

h a i r was to be covered, why would this include ears?

OTHER SCHOLARLY INTERPRETATIONS

There are people who attest that khimar does not mean head-cover, and

they are definitely not alone in questioning this notion. Check out scholars

of Indonesia, Turkey, Libya, and Iraq; or see works by Khaled Abou El Fadl,

Amina Wadud, Fatima Mernissi, Leila Ahmed, Dr. Ibrahim B. Syed

(President of Islamic Research Foundation International, Inc). Majority of

salafi/wahhabi scholars and their translators insist that khimar means head-

cover, only because they resort to ahadith which possibly imply that the

women (culture and norms of that time) did cover their heads (but as did

men also). Perhaps it is orthodox vs un-orthodox? However, this is a poor

way to translate the Qur'an. We should not fall into this trap, because khā

mīm rā (LÅD) or khimar (in Quran, 24:31) is also mentioned in referenceto wine and intoxicants, describing them as "covering" the intellect.

Therefore, khimar or khā mīm rā (LÅD) should be properly translated ascover. If you have not read our previous blog post, please read it here.

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11/16



Sahih International (the Saudi Mullah version) translates khimar as head

cover; Muhsin Khan even goes to a further biased extreme, suggesting it

means face cover. These people have their own religious agenda and

interpretations. On the contrary, other scholars such as Yusuf Ali, Pickthall,

and Dr.Ghali have chosen to use the word "veil". Since a veil's purpose is

to c o v e r , khimar should simply be translated as "cover". Even if we were

to believe that it means head cover, which it does not, we can look at

some historical context. One respected scholar and translator, Muhammad

Asad (in reference to Quran, 24:31), states:

"The noun khimar (of which khumur is plural) denotes the head-

covering customarily used by Arabian women before and after theadvent of Islam. According to most of the classical commentators, it was

worn in pre-Islamic times more or less as an ornament and was letdown loosely over the wearer's back; and since, in accordance with

the fashion prevalent at the time, the upper part of a woman's tunic

had a wide opening in the front, her breasts were left bare. Hence,the injunction to cover the bosom by means of a khimar (a term so

familiar to the contemporaries of the Prophet) does not necessarily relate

to the use of a khimar as such but is, rather, meant to make it clear that a

woman's breasts are not included in the concept of "what may decently be

apparent" of her body and [bosoms] should not, therefore, be displayed."

So why are we stressing on covering hair when Allah is stressing on

covering bosoms in 24:31. The bosom, jayb (ب

,), is mentioned by nameج

but not the hair or face. Furthermore, the word 'hijab' is used several

times throughout the Qur'an, but there is no use of the word 'hijab' in

terms of women's dress code or head scarf. One may only begin to wonder

what other teachings have been made a part of our deen which have no

basis in Islam or that which was revealed unto Prophet Muhammad

(pbuh).

CULTURAL CONFUSIONHow many other cultural practices and

norms that were not originally a part of

Islam have now been made Islamic today?

The face veil is just one example. This is

noted by historians and scholars alike:

"If you think the difference between heaven and hell is 45 inches of material, boy will you be surprised..."

[Amina Wadud]

http://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=jyb#(24:31:18)http://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=Hjb#(42:51:12)http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9dRm2xgDco0/UJbFdjc-QjI/AAAAAAAAALE/xEuuePodKdU/s1600/hijab.gifhttp://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=Hjb#(42:51:12)http://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=jyb#(24:31:18)


12/16



"The veil was first introduced by the

Assyrian kings in the near east. The practice

of hiding ones face was also prevalent in

classical Greece, in Persia, and in

the byzantine Christian world. Later on,Islam embraced these regional practices of

covering ones face and in the second Islamic

century the veil became common. It was

considered as a status symbol as it signified

power and was first used among rich

women. Around the 10th century the veil

appeared as a common rule and in the

Middle Ages various laws were enacted regarding the wearing of the veil.

Some urged strictness in veiling and forced women to remain inside the

four walls of their homes. It became known as the attire of the oppression

among women."

ALLAH BRINGS YOU EASE

Let us not forget how hard it is for women to have their heads suffocated

all day, and with the head being a major source of heat loss, that's a lot of

trapped heat! Along with not being able to air out her tightly squeezed

head, her hair follicles (if she has bangs) are being pulled back with great

pressure. This kind of practice promotes headaches and itchy scalp

syndrome. But Allah reminds us:

He desires not hardship for you . . . you should magnify Allah for having

guided you, and that peradventure you may be thankful. [Quran, 2:185]

And strive for Allah with the endeavor which is His right. He has chosen

you and has not laid upon you in religion any hardship; the faith of

your father Abraham. He has named you Muslims of old time and in this

(Scripture) ... [Quran 22:78]

And again Allah reminds us that those who forbid what God has made

lawful invent a lie against Allah. This appears to be very common in our

communities, and should also include the forbidding of a women's head :

"And do not speak lies for what your tongues describe: "This is HALAL and

that is HARAM, to forge a lie against Allah." [Quran 16:116]

Is this not interesting? How many imams and conservatives do you hear

yelling haram and halal ? By telling people lawful things are haram, they

are stating that God says so, and since it is not true, this is

(unintentionally) forging a lie against Allah. Yusuf Ali similarly translates

the last part as "ascribe false things to Allah", because one is making

people believe God said something when He (in fact) did not. This is a

perfect example for those who forbid the h e a d of women, making their

exposed hair strands seem haram. It is as though Allah knew futureMuslims would fall into this very thinking that the "righteous" Jews of Jesus'

time did, when really it is they who were inventing what was haram and

Culture vs Religion

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what was halal (and not God). Furthermore, in response to our hijab

debates today, our Lord instructs us about dress code:

O ye Children of Adam! We have bestowed garment upon you to cover your

shame, as well as to be an adornment to you. But the garment of righteousness - that is the best. Such are among the Signs of Allah,

that they may receive admonition (7:26)

Another instance where Allah could have chose to mention the garment

covering of the head as a religious requirement, but He did not.

WHAT ABOUT THE H I JA B HADITH?

There is not one statement in the hadith literature where the Prophet

(pbuh) is reported to have directly instructed women to cover their heads.

The closest we can find that I am aware of is in Abu Dawud. Keep in mind

that this hadith I am about to show you is compiled by Abu Dawud, in

order to please his teacher Imam Ahmad. It was not written down by the

Prophet or his disciples (i.e. his sahaba). The hadith was not even written

down by Aisha. This hadith has only been ascribed to Aisha, passed downthrough the many narrators from generation to generation. So, even to say

that Aisha surely said this, can be doubtful:

Aisha said, "Asma (Aishia's sister), daughter of Abu Bakr, entered upon the

Apostle of God (pbuh) wearing thin clothes. The Apostle of God turned hisattention from her and said, "O Asma, when a woman reaches the age of

menstruation, it does not suit her except that she displays parts of her

body except this and this," and he pointed to her face and hands. (SunanAbu Dawud)

Keep in mind that Asma was wearing thin or

little clothes, depending on who translated

this. If the Prophet was telling her to cover

up and not display parts of her body, it

would make more sense that she was

wearing little coverage. Also keep in mind

that the o b s e r v e r (Aishia) said he is

pointing towards her facial area, which can

also include the head. If I pointed towards

your face, it can imply that part of the

body, meaning the head also, could it not?

If I pointed to the bosom, would that imply

center chest only, or back area and breasts

also? Should we really be so literal when

interpreting one's speech? In the end, it's

all merely interpretation. This hadith isfound only in the hadith collection of Abu

Dawud (no. 4095). According to Abu

Dawud, it is considered weak (da'if ) because the narrator who transmitted

it from Aisha is not known (mursal).This hadith, which may most likely be

untrue, has been the sole reason why Muslim female have to wear the

hijab (headscarves). Many Muslim scholars of Morocco have decreed that

hijab is NOT mandated by Islam.

HOW ACCURATE ARE HADITHS?

Now a little background information about the compiler of the above hadith

What do you know about Bukhari?

http://muslim-brothah.blogspot.ca/2012/01/quran-vs-hadith.htmlhttp://muslim-brothah.blogspot.ca/2012/01/sahih-al-bukhari-why-was-it-chosen.htmlhttp://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Xu3L9s8aYUU/UJbkNX8ujeI/AAAAAAAAALc/7fNzhAkGI-s/s1600/BukhariSum.jpghttp://muslim-brothah.blogspot.ca/2012/01/sahih-al-bukhari-why-was-it-chosen.htmlhttp://muslim-brothah.blogspot.ca/2012/01/quran-vs-hadith.html


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would be useful for the devout Muslim. That hadith which you read was

compiled by Abu Dawud, more than 200 years after the Prophet's

departure. Here is a short biography of him:

"Imam Abu Dawud heard hadith from 300 persons who were his teachers.

Some were: Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Ishaq ibn Rahawaiy, Abu Thaur,

Yahya ibn Ma'in. For one to grasp his elevated status, he narrated hadith to

the teachers of Imam Ahmad. He completed its compilation at Bagdad in

241 A.H. He presented the completed compilation to his beloved teacherImam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, who was greatly pleased at this collection."

It's interesting how many times you hear the mention of Imam Ahmad. Itsounds very similar to how the Gospels were written. Here is one example

from the writer of Luke, presenting his hadith work to his beloved leader:

"...it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some

time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent The-oph'ilus".

An example of how people can use ahadith to mislead the masses:

Abu Ya’la narrated in his Musnad from Ibn ‘Abbaas that the Prophet said:

“The bonds of Islam and the bases of religion are three, on which Islam

was founded. Whoever gives up one of them becomes a kaafir therebyand it is permissible to shed his blood: the testimony that there is nogod but Allah, the prescribed prayers and fasting Ramadan.”

This hadeeth was classed as Sahih (true) by al-Dhahabi, and as hasan

(sound) by al-Haythami in Majma’ al-Zawaa’id, 1/48, and by al-Mundhiri in

al-Targheeb wa’l-Tarheeb, no. 805, 1486. However, it was classed as

da’eef (weak) by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Da’eefah, no. 94. Shaikh

Muhammad Nasir-ud-deen Al-Albaani, the famous Muhaddith and Faqeeh

of our century, found over 5,000 "Weak, Spurious and Fabricated

Hadeeths" that "Islam absolves" today. You can read more about this here.

It is also fascinating that Allah has chosen to use the word

hadith throughout the Quran, and informs us:

And there are among men those who purchase ridiculous h a d i t h s , without

knowledge, misleading (men) from the Path of Allah and throw ridicule (on

the Path) (Quran, 31:6)

And one may wonder how many false hadiths have indeed mislead mankind

from the path of Allah, and these are merely only a handful in the ocean of

fabrications.

Let us not forget that the Jews also made their own laws (hadiths) and

went astray from the teachings of Moses. This happened when they created

their book of hadiths, the Talmud. Jesus told them, "You have a fine way of

setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own

traditions! Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have

handed down. And you do many things like that.” (Mark 7:9-13)

CONCLUSION

As a final proof of assurance, one may go to the Quran.com search engine

and search for the word "head". There are numerous results returned

which use or reference the word "head", yet none of these verses tell

women to cover their heads. The triliteral root rā hamza sīn (P "L) occurs18 times in the Quran as the noun ras (P "L), the word used for head. Outof these verses, Allah speaks about how we bow our heads (2:43), washour heads (in ablution or wudu, 5:6), shave our heads (2:196), hold ourheads (7:163), carry bread on one's head (12:36), birds eating off one'shead (12:41), raising one's head (14:43), nodding our heads (17:51),

http://www.mostmerciful.com/al-albaani.htmhttp://www.mostmerciful.com/hadithbook-sectionthree.htmhttp://quran.com/http://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=rAs#(2:196:26)http://corpus.quran.com/qurandictionary.jsp?q=rAs#(2:196:26)http://quran.com/http://www.mostmerciful.com/hadithbook-sectionthree.htmhttp://www.mostmerciful.com/al-albaani.htm


15/16



Posted by Al-Mumin at 14:06

Labels: 24:31, abayah, adultery, beauty, bosom, hadith, hair , halal, haram, hijab, hijab in

islam, Islam, islamic dress, khimar , modesty, muhammad, Quran, sunnah, women

and even the grey hair on our heads when we become old (19:4 and30:54). But none of these verses mention the covering of a woman's head.

If a head cover was so mandatory for a woman, why would Allah not have

mentioned covering her head? If our Lord could mention eating birds off one's head, why not simply for a woman to cover her head? It is simple

logic--simply because Allah does not require a headscarf for women. It is a

shame there are those who try to place words in God's mouth. If covering

a woman's head was mandatory, our Lord would have said so, just as He

instructs her to wash her head before prayer (5:6). Hair is not forbidden inthe Qur'an, and women need not be bashed for refusing to censor their

hair. A woman can still have faith and practice Islam without a head scarf.

Furthermore, Allah does speak about hair in the Qur'an, and there is no

mention of banning women's hair.

Related Articles:

Is Hijab Mandatory in Islam: Part I

Hijab & Niqab in the Qur'an

"Having faith without a headscarf"

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