Assalamualaikum warahmatullah wabarakatuh
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Iman consists of more than seventy branches. And haya (modesty) is a part of faith.’” (al-Bukhari)
Allah tells us in the Qur'an, “O children of Adam, We have provided you with garments to cover your bodies, as well as for luxury. But the best garment is the garment of righteousness. These are some of God's signs, that they may take heed.” (Al-A`raf 7:26)
Modesty is a beautiful virtue in Islam. In a time when the Arabs would treat their women like worthless creatures, and at the same time some Christian scholars went to the extent of even debating on whether or not the women have souls or are they of the jin - it was during this time, the teachings of Islam came in and completely liberated people of all these false ideas and mistreatment of women. Islam gave women a special status to be treated with kindness, gentleness, and utmost respect.
Prophet Muhammad, Rasulullah ﺻﻟﻰﺍﷲﻋﻟﻳﻪ ﻮﺳﻟﻢ said: “The most perfect of the believers in faith is he who is the best of them in conduct, and the best of you in conduct are those who are best to their wives” (At-Tirmidzi)
And to elevate them in status, the teachings of Islam established a very important part in every single human being, with a great emphasis on the women - self respect.
"Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at the forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts). That is purer for them. Verily, Allah is All-Aware of what they do." (An-Nur 24:30)
Men have been created with the natural disposition of being attracted to women. And it is out of this 'instinct' that Allah has commanded the women to cover themselves up to close the doors of evil from the eyes of man. When you cover yourself up, concealing the adornments and attractions of your body to men, this shows you pay attention to your honour - you don't want to men to drool at you, or to talk to you just for the sake of getting in bed with you. You want people to interact with you as a person, and not an object of sexual desire.
Women who cover their adornments from the eyes of prying eyes of men obviously aren't worried that "men don't want to marry me" because of the recognition that, in fact, it is these qualities, of self-respect, dignity, honour and God-conciousness towards Allah - these are amongst the qualities of the "dream girl" to a Muslim man.
Prophet Muhammad said: “Men choose women for four reasons: for their money, for their rank, for their beauty and for their religion, but marry one who is religious and you will succeed” (Bukhari, Muslim).
The Prophet (saw) also said, “A heart that is grateful (to Allah), a tongue that remembers and mentions (Allah), and a righteous wife who would assist you in the affairs of your life and religion: those are the best treasures for the people.”
(Al Bayhaqi, Tirmidhi)
But here today, in the society we live in, self respect and honour are no longer virtues that are no longer highly looked upon anymore. Here we see in the media everywhere - television, newspapers, internet - women are prioritizing the public display of their beauty to others and the adherence to 'fashion' so highly to the point that the necessity of haya and modesty has all but been forgotten. People who cover themselves up are looked upon as 'backward' or 'not following current trends'.
Right here, right now?
Which is what triggered me to write this blog today. My lovely wife Dewi just informed me that in today's newspaper had an article regarding the niqab. As yet another test upon mankind, Allah has ordained that the disbelievers raise the issue of the niqab (also known as 'purdah', or 'burqa', or the face covering which the Muslimah wear) upon the Muslim ummah. Here we see a great deal of authorities, be it countries, universities, governments - all of them going to great extents to prohibit women from wearing it. (http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2010&dt=0131&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Bicara_Agama&pg=ba_01.htm
But the thing that ticked me off most, is the last statement of the article - "Oleh itu adalah sesuatu yang malang jika ada sesetengah umat Islam ingin membantah sesuatu yang dalam Islam sendiripun tidak mewajibkannya." (translated - Therefore it is unfortunate if there are some Muslims who are so adamant on wanting something which is not even obligatory in Islam)
Brothers and sisters in Islam! (i have no better way to express this, so excuse me) WHAT IN THE WORLD IS WRONG WITH YOU? These women want to cover themselves up from the eyes of men! These women may think their faces as being attractive and could be a fitnah for the eyes of other men, so they took the honourable move of covering themselves up. LET THEM DO SO!
Yes, whether or not it is obligatory has been a subject of great dispute and khliaf (differences) but the strongest opinion is that, indeed it is not obligatory - but that being said, it is still encouraged - the Prophet's wives wore it to prevent others from being attracted to them in any way.
If it is encouraged in Islam, let it BE! Help your Muslim sisters who pay attention to their honour - let them move towards the Haya which is so loved by Allah and His Messenger! What will you do when a trial like this happens? When foreign governments oppress our sisters' honour? You take their sides and go against Muslims? You too want to discourage your Muslim sisters from doing what is loved so dearly by Allah, for the sake of her modesty? Even one so-called Muslim SCHOLAR actually supports France's decision to ban the niqab?
Allahum-Musta'an.
And the irony is, on the next section of fashion, you have female artists showing off their bodies with very little clothing on their bodies. And you have MUSLIM writers promoting this fashion.
Allahum-Musta'an..
May Allah help us all in differentiating the good and the evil, and to loving our dignity, to being pleased with the beauty of His teachings to mankind. May Allah grant us the wisdom to sincerely become better people for the sake of earning His pleasure and the reward of Paradise, and to protect ourselves from the punishment of the Hellfire, for our ignorance and our arrogance.
"Alif Lam Mim. Do people think that they will be left alone because they say 'We believe', and that they will not be tested and tried? And We indeed tested those who were before them. And Allah will CERTAINLY make (it) known (the truth of) those who are true, and will certainly make (it) known (the falsehood of) those who are liars!" (Al-Ankabut 29:1-3)
