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A Death Knell to Hijab Proponents
Ibrahim B. Syed
President, IRFI (Islamic Research Foundation International, Inc.)
7102 W. Shefford Lane, Louisville, KY 40242 USA
On the Dress Code for children of Adam, the Qur’an says:
“O children of Adam, We have bestowed upon you clothing to conceal
your private parts and as adornment. But the clothing of
righteousness - that is best. That is from the signs of Allah that
perhaps they will remember.”7:26
The word 'hijab' in the Quran
Hijab is the term used by many Muslim women to describe their head
cover. This may or may not include covering their face. The Arabic
word 'hijab' can be translated into veil or yashmak. Other meanings
for the word 'hijab' include, screen, cover(ing), mantle, curtain,
drapes, partition, division, divider.
Can we find the word 'hijab' in the Quran?
The word 'hijab' appears seven times in the Quran. Five of them as
'hijab' and two times as 'hijaban', these are verses: 7:46, 33:53,
38:32, 41:5, 42:51, 17:45 & 19:17.
None of these 'hijab' words are used in the Quran in reference to
what the traditional Muslims call today 'hijab', that being the head
cover for Muslim woman!
The word 'hijab' in the Quran has nothing to do with the Muslim
women's dress code.
Historical Background:
While many Muslims call 'hijab' an Islamic dress code, they are in
fact oblivious of the fact that the concept of 'hijab' has nothing
to do with Islam nor with the Quran.
Some Muslims quote verse 31 of sura 24 as containing the 'hijab', or
head cover, by pointing to the word, khomoorihinna, (their khimars),
forgetting that God already used the word 'hijab', several times in
the Quran.
Those who are not shackled by pre-conceptions will easily see that
there is no command in 24:31 for women to cover their heads. The
word 'khimar' does not mean 'hijab' nor head cover. Those who quote
this verse usually add the words (head cover) and (veil) after the
word 'khomoorihinna' and usually between brackets. These additions
are their own words not the words of God and they are clearly added
to the text to imply a meaning not found in God's words. The words
of 24:31 are:
"And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and to guard their
private parts and not to show their adornments except that of it
which normally shows. They shall cover their cleavage with their
‘khimar’. They shall not show their adornments except in the
presence of their husbands, their fathers, the fathers of their
husbands, their sons, the sons of their husbands, their brothers,
the sons of their brothers, the sons of their sisters, other women,
their slaves, the male attendants who have no sexual desire and the
children who are yet to attain awareness of women’s nakedness. They
shall not strike their feet so as to reveal details of their hidden
ornaments. You shall repent to God all you believers, so that you
may succeed." 24:31
The Arabic word khimar means cover. Any cover can be called a
khimar, such as a curtain, a dress. A table cloth that covers the
top of a table is a khimar. A blanket can be called a khimar and so
on. The word khamr, which is used in the Quran for intoxicants, has
the same root as khimar. Both words mean that which covers. The
khimar covers a window, a body, a table and so on, while khamr is
that which covers the mind. Traditional translators, obviously
influenced by Hadith and culture, claim that khimar in 24:31 has
only one meaning, and that is veil or hijab. Thus, they mislead
women into believing that 24:31 commands them to cover their hair!
The correct meaning of the word khimar can easily be verified by
consulting any Arabic dictionary.
In 24:31 God is telling women to use their khimar (cover/garment),
which could be a dress, a coat, a shawl, a shirt, a blouse, a scarf
and so on, to cover their cleavage/bosoms.
Another Dress Code: Not
to reveal any of their adornments
This rule
can also be found in 24:31. Here God commands women not to reveal
their adornments (beauty spots) except what is normally apparent
(face, hair, lower arms and lower legs .. etc).
" .... not to show their adornments except that of it which normally
shows."
The word 'zeenatahunna' (adornments) in this verse refers to the
woman's beauty spots which carry a sexual connotation, examples are
"thighs, breasts, back side ... etc). At the end of the verse, God
tells the women not to strike with their feet to show their
'zeenatahunna'. The way a woman strikes her feet while walking can
expose the details of certain parts of the body.
The fact that God says in 24:31 to specifically cover the bossom
indicates clearly that there are other parts of the woman’s body
that do not have to be covered.
What is the correct meaning of the word khimar?
The Arabic word khimar means cover. Any cover can be called a khimar
such as a curtain, a dress, also a table cloth that covers the top
of a table is a khimar, also a blanket can be called a khimar and so
on. The word khamr, which is used in the Quran for intoxicants, has
the same root as khimar. Both words mean that which covers. The
khimar covers a window, our body, a table and so on, while khamr is
that which covers the mind. Traditional translators, being
influenced by Hadith and culture, claim that khimar in 24:31 has
only one meaning, and that is veil or hijab, and thus they mislead
women into believing that 24:31 commands them to cover their hair!
The fact that the word khimar can mean any cover, and not just head
cover, is a matter which can be verified by consulting any Arabic
dictionary.
In 24:31 God is telling women to use their khimar (cover/garment),
which could be a dress, a coat, a shawl, a shirt, a blouse, a scarf
and so on to cover their cleavage/bosoms.
Is there a command in 24:31 for women to cover their hair?
For a start, we note that the words ‘head’ and ‘hair’ are not found
in 24:31.
In addition, we must differentiate between two components in the
wording of 24:31.
God says to women to draw their khimar (garment) over their
cleavage/bossom. Here we have:
1- The subject of the command, which is the cleavage/bossom
2- The tool, which is the khimar.
The command is only obligatory in relation to the subject and not
the tool.
If the obligation was for the tool as well God would have said:
“cover your hair and cleavage with your khimar”
God is not short of words, nor is God vague in the commands He
decrees for us.
In his article ‘History of Veil: Veil in Pre-Islamic Arabia’,
Alexandra Kinias describes Arabia during this era:“Surrounded
by the hostile terrains of the Arabian Desert and under its blazing
sun, Arabs dwelled in diverse nomadic tribal communities. Each had
its own laws, language and lifestyles. As the traditions, customs,
and culture varied from one tribe to the other, so did their women’s
status. Because of such variable conditions and laws, the status and
rights of women ranged widely. And even though scholars did not
quite agree on the social construction of such societies, they
concluded though that they
neither secluded the women nor enforced the veil on them.
Costumes always reflect environmental needs and in the harsh deserts
of Arabia, the Arab nomads lived in tents or huts with no doors and
with roofs made out of palm trees. They
were exposed to all kinds of severe weather conditions: from the
burning sun in the summers, to sand storms, cold, and often rain in
the winters. Before proper houses were built, people sought the
shelter of their own clothes to protect them.
Due to that, both men and women often covered their heads and wore
long garments. Covering
the heads was neither a religious nor social obligation. The
nature of their nomadic life in Arabia made segregation impractical
and women’s seclusion impossible. Contrary to their rivals in the
neighbouring civilizations, and even though a large number of them
lived in oppressive and deplorable conditions, women in Arabia were
widely active in their tribe’s public life. And because there were
no social restrictions on their dress or mobility,women
in pre-Islamic Arabia worked side by side with men and were
productive in their communities. They traded in the markets, tended
cattle and weaved baskets from palm trees, they received male guests
and socialized with them and even participated in the tribal battles
as nurses and often as warriors.”
From the foregoing it is clear that both men and women covered their
head with a piece of cloth called Khimar. It was
a necessity and not religious or social obligation.
Therefore during the early periods of Islamic history, women had
considerable freedom to roam unveiled. Some were required by custom
to cover and Bedouin men and women were also accustomed to covering
their hair and face to guard themselves from environmental elements. There
is no indication that the veiling or seclusion of women was done for
any religious reasons and was primarily a cultural phenomenon.
It is also worthwhile noting that men during this era also used the
veil as per the cultural and environmental needs of Arabia at that
time. Fadwa El Guindi Professor of Anthropology at the University
of Qatar states:
“There is enough evidence that the Prophet himself covered his face
... when warriors were on horses and camels they covered their faces
... so we were missing a half of the story here when we focused too
much on women, and by doing so we may have misunderstood even the
meaning of women veiling.”
The portrayal of khimar as a cover used on the head and thrown at
the back is also the same as stated in the tafsirs by Iman Abu
Abdullah Qurtubi and Iman Abu’l-Fida ibn Kathir. Most orthodox
scholars simply state the meaning of khimar as head cover laying
emphasis on covering hair without taking into account the way it was
used historically (there are no records showing specific requirement
of the khimar to cover hair, if there is any emphasis then it is
worn as an adornment on the head) and the fact that men also used
the cover on their heads due to cultural and environmental needs.
Therefore the use of the khimar may be taken to as a head cover, but
it cannot be specified that the command is to hide hair, neck or
ears. The
only body part mentioned in the verse that has be concealed is the
bosom, which was an apt instruction for that time given the above
description of how the khimar was worn at that time and as history
shows that when the pre-Islamic Arabs went to battle, Arab women
seeing the men off to war would bare their breasts to encourage them
to fight; or they would do so at the battle itself, as in the case
of the Meccan women led by Hind at the Battle of Uhud.
Moiz Amjad writes in Understanding Islam website:
“A close examination of the related verse of Surah Al-Nur shows that
the directive entailed in it is for women to cover their bosoms.
‘Khimar’ is only 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 further substantiated by the fact that in verse 60 of Surah
Al-Nur, where the Qur'an has allowed older women to be less careful
in covering their bosoms, it has used the word "Thiyaab" - implying
any piece of cloth that 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 his book ‘Arab
Dress: A Short History - from the Dawn of Islam to Modern Times’,
Yedidia Kalfon has
extensely provided a description of the dress worn by Arabs before
and during the life of the Prophet PBUH and has used sources
including the ahadith to validate his understanding. He explains
that although some wraps and mantles at this time seem to have been
associated with one sex or the other, the jilbab, khimar and mirt,
on the other hand were primarily for women. A common head veil was
the mandil or mindil while the three most common face veils were the
qina, litham and burqu. Although a detailed description of each type
of veil is provided, the description of the khimar is missing and it
has been included as a mantle or wrap rather than listed as a common
head veil worn by the women during the era. Therefore
the description of the khimar as a veil used only to cover the head
feels incorrect and the description from other historical sources as
a cloth that was loosely thrown at the back seems more appropriate.
The present day understanding of ‘khimar’ is purely as a head cover
and it is interesting to keep in mind that all the material we have
on the pre-Islamic period dates from at least a century after the
Prophet’s PBUH death and was written down by Muslim men. The
history and true description of the khimar is uncertain and it would
be safe to assume the true meaning of the word as a simple cover
used as a adornment rather than as a head cover. This would imply
that the directive of Surah Nur to simply cover the bosom with any
cover and does not oblige women to also cover their hair.
Juyūbihinna (جُيُوبهِنَّ): The Arabic word ‘Juyubihinna’ means
bosoms as derived by ‘juyub’ that is plural noun for genitive
masculine and ‘bihinna’ that is the 3rd person feminine plural
possessive pronoun. Therefore
clearly the directive here is to use ‘Khimar’ to cover the bosoms
and it would be incorrect to add bodies, faces and necks to the
meaning of this.
Covering Hair & Face: There
is no mention of hair and covering of head, hair or face in this
verse or anywhere else in the Quran.
Although some orthodox scholars believe that head hair are a sign of
beauty and therefore must be hidden to that effect but the logic of
hair showing from a women’s scarf do not go against the ruling of
the Quran.Similarly
the use of the word ‘khumar’ to imply that hair is automatically
included when covering ones bosom cannot be substantiated from
historical fact and the use of khimar during the life of the Prophet
PBUH. This
is further supported by the fact that Muslim women other than
Prophet’s PBUH wives did not veil during the life of the Prophet
PBUH.
The famed Quran translator, Mohammad Marmaduke Pickthall, sums the
history of veiling in his 1925 lecture The
Relation of the Sexes: (http://www.studying-islam.org/articletext.aspx?id=1348
“..the Purdah system is neither of Islamic nor Arabian origin. It is
of Zoroastrian Persian, and Christian Byzantine origin. It has
nothing to do with the religion of Islam, and, for practical
reasons, it has never been adopted by the great majority of Muslim
women....The Purdah system is not a part of the Islamic law. It is a
custom of the court introduced after the Khilafat had degenerated
from the true Islamic standard and, under Persian and Byzantine
influences had become mere Oriental despotism. It comes from the
source of weakness to Islam not from the source of strength."
(Mohammad
Marmaduke Pickthall, 1925 lecture on the "Pitiful condition of
Muslim womanhood", available online at:http://www.islamfortoday.com/pickthallsexes.htm
There are many Ayah or verses in the Qur’an that are specific to a
context and event and may not apply to us today.
For example Surah 49: 2 reads:
O ye who believe! Lift not up your voices above the voice of
the Prophet, nor shout when speaking to him as ye shout one to
another, lest your works be rendered vain while ye perceive not.
[Pickthal 49:2]
People ask the question “ The Prophet isn't among us today
physically so what is the use of this verse?”
There are many other verses like these , that don't seem to be
applicable to us today, like other verses that apply only to the
prophet , the prophets wives etc ..
And (as for the Prophet’s wives) when you ask for anything you want
(or need), ask them from behind a hijab (screen), that makes for
greater purity of your hearts. (33:53)
O wives of the Prophet! You are not like any of the (other) women:
If you do fear (God) be not too complaisant of speech, lest one in
whose heart is a disease should be moved with desire: but speak with
a speech (that is) just. (33:32)
The Quran was revealed piecemeal over a period of time and different
verses were intended for to different events and different people.
While those verses may be not directly applicable to us, they do
give us historical insight and perspective into past events.
One example is:
And slay them wherever ye find them, and drive them out of the
places whence they drove you out, for persecution is worse than
slaughter... and fight them until fitnah is no more, and religion is
for Allah. Quran 2:191
Quran scholars claim that the textual context of this particular
passage is defensive war, even if the historical context was not.
In the verse 31 in Surah 24 (Nur) the command is to take their
Khimar and cover their Bosoms (Breasts) because at that time the
women were exposing their Juyub or breasts. The question is how
should the bosoms be covered? The answer is given in the Quran, to
take the Khimar and cover the bosoms, because the women were already
having their Khimar on their heads and hence they do not need to
look around to find a piece of cloth.
This command is valid for that time and place. It is not applicable
now because no woman in the world no matter in which country she
lives, Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, or Hindu country is
exposing her breasts. Almost every woman wears a Bra, a blouse or
Choli or Shirt and in addition she will wear a
coat or vest.
Muslim ladies in south Asia wear Salwar, Kameez and in addition they
cover their bosoms with a Dupatta which is not needed because they
already have a Bra and Kameez. If
one reads National Geographic Magazine, one notices that women in
primitive tribes located in Africa, Ethiopia and Amazon jungles
still go bare breasted.
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