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The woman’s Hijab is no trivial matter to be left for fashion designers to misuse or divert from its essence and transform into a dress just like any other that is far from the Sharee‘ah approved Hijab. The Hijab is religion and identity, and through it the woman worships her Lord, draws near to Him and is known and distinguished. Does Hijab nowadays reflect these goals and their relevant behavioral and moral adherence to the Sharee‘ah? If not, what are the causes of this contradiction and how can we eliminate them? Some people consider veiled women who do not adhere to other Islamic teachings as evidence against Islam and judge Islam through them.
Shaykh Jamaal Qutb, a deputy of the Al-Azhar Fatwa Committee, answers these questions in the following dialogue about ‘Hijab and Adherence to Islamic Teachings’:
First of all, what are the rules and obligations that Hijab enjoins upon the manners and behavior of the Muslim woman?
Hijab is an obligation on every Muslim woman and at the same time it represents two types of requirements. First, in principle, it represents moral adherence to all the religious obligations whether pertaining to creed, legislation or ethics. Second, it represents a visible custom that the woman appears behind. Accordingly, her doctrinal, legislative and ethical belonging will be known. Consequently, wearing the Hijab does not absolve the woman of her adherence to Islamic teachings and performing obligations. Also the woman's adherence to other Islamic teachings does not absolve her from wearing Hijab.
What, then, is your interpretation of the contradictions and violations that are seen of some veiled women, such as intermixing between the two sexes, showing their beauty before non-Mahram [marriageable] men and befriending men, which are taken as evidence against Islam?
If the woman wears Hijab, her clothes should reflect her behavior and morals considering that this is a part of her identity as a Muslim woman. If she wears the Hijab without abiding by the morals and legislation of Islam, then her Hijab is futile. Also, for the woman who generally abides by the Sharee’ah and manners of Islam without wearing the Hijab, her abiding by these Sharee’ah rules is of no value. This is because the relationship between the Hijab and applying the obligations of Islam are like Wudhoo' (ablution) and prayer; performing Wudhoo' does not absolve the person from prayer and no prayer is valid without performing Wudhoo'.
Wearing the Hijab is part of the woman’s clothes before others which represent her, her chastity and her abidance by Islamic teachings. If a woman who wears the Hijab makes a mistake, then, she is like any human who makes mistakes. Therefore, people should ascribe the mistake to the person who makes it, not to the whole society or to Islam as a religion and comprehensive methodology. There are many government ministers who steal or err, are all ministers accused for this act? There are many kings who were corrupt, but were their slips considered the fault of all kings? Therefore, why do the followers of destructive thoughts pressure the Muslim woman by giving them two choices: either not to make a mistake, which is natural for all human beings, or to not wear the Hijab, which is the essence of the religion!
Some females believe that Hijab means they should frown, be stern and isolate themselves. How can you counter these claims?
Hijab should not be considered isolation from society; rather, it is self-respect and respecting others, because by covering her body, the Muslim woman considers the feelings of others and does not wish to arouse them without a lawful cause under the Sharee‘ah. Hijab does not mean isolation from society, abandoning life’s activities, having a depressed face and speaking in a harsh manner; rather, it is a virtue that declares the chastity of the woman and not her negativism. It reflects her abidance by religion in terms of her behavior and dealings without unlawful exposure of her beauty or immorality.
What is your comment on girls who wear the Hijab and then take it off, justifying it by saying that the important matter is the essence, not the appearance or the clothes?
The answer to this question is related to the answer to the first one. Whenever the Muslim woman adheres to Hijab, or the Islamic dress code, on the basis of creed and conviction, then it is not possible or expected to have her creed shaken or to have second thoughts about whether Hijab is an obligation like prayer, fasting and other acts of worship.
What should come first, upbringing or Hijab? How can a mother develop in her daughter love for the Hijab and prepare her to adhere to it so that it becomes an act of worship and not merely a custom?
I believe that there is no comparison between the priority of upbringing and Hijab, and that the Hijab is a part of the whole which is upbringing. Raising the girl to wear the Hijab starts when the child reaches the age of discretion through instruction, imitation, lifestyle, following up and instructing before the order takes the form of a serious command. When the girl reaches the age of puberty or is about to turn fifteen, her adherence to wearing the Hijab comes in its natural manner and development on the basis of the previous steps of upbringing. In such a case, the girl appreciates her value and the necessity of her distinction and protects herself by wearing the Hijab. Then, a suitable, well-mannered and religious candidate proposes marriage to her.
Fashion houses compete in showing dresses of Hijab in accordance with the latest fashion trends in a way that might not meet the requirements of the Sharee‘ah. How can the girl balance between being fashionable and her adherence to the Sharee‘ah approved Hijab?
There is no contradiction between being fashionable and adhering to the approved dress code under the Sharee‘ah. The first is considered an addition to the woman's financial ability and taste. It is permissible for her to do so as long as she does not use it in unlawful ways and it does not change the descriptions of the Sharee‘ah-approved dress code for women which should meet two conditions: it should not be see-through which shows anything that is under it, and it should not outline the shape of her body. Above all, it must cover all that which must be covered of the woman's body.
Finally, I remind every female who believes in Allah The Almighty and is keen to satisfy Him, of the verse in which He Almighty Says what means: "O you who have believed, upon you is [responsibility for] yourselves.Those who have gone astray will not harm you when you have been guided." [Quran 5:105]
