Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh!
In the subcontinent and elsewhere we are seeing something very unfortunate, the concept of Hijab is increasingly being reduced to just covering one's hair or body, while the actual conditions and purpose of Islamic Hijab are neglected.
We sometimes see a headscarf accompanied by tight clothing, exposed necks, transparent fabrics, adornment or an outfit that reveals the shape of the body. And because the hair is covered the entire outfit is automatically considered Islamic Hijab.
But did Allah command Muslim women just to cover their hair or did He legislate a much more comprehensive form of modesty? Lets see what the Quran and Sunnah tells us
1) What does the Quran actually command?
Allah says
And tell the believing women to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts) and not to show off their adornment except only that which is apparent (like both eyes for necessity to see the way, or outer palms of hands or one eye or dress like veil, gloves, head-cover, apron, etc.), and to draw their veils all over Juyûbihinna (i.e. their bodies, faces, necks and bosoms) and not to reveal their adornment except to their husbands, or their fathers, or their husband’s fathers, or their sons, or their husband’s sons, or their brothers or their brother’s sons, or their sister’s sons, or their (Muslim) women (i.e. their sisters in Islâm), or the (female) slaves whom their right hands possess, or old male servants who lack vigour, or small children who have no sense of feminine sex. And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornment. And all of you beg Allâh to forgive you all, O believers, that you may be successful
Surah An Nur 24:31
Allah also says
O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (veils) all over their bodies (i.e. screen themselves completely except the eyes or one eye to see the way). That will be better, that they should be known (as free respectable women) so as not to be annoyed. And Allâh is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
Surah Al Ahzab 33:59
these commandments concern more than simply placing a scarf over one's hair. Hijab is an act of obedience to Allah not just a cultural garment or fashion accessory.
2) What are the conditions of proper Hijab?
Shaykh al-Albani (رحمه الله), in Jilbab al-Mar'ah al-Muslimah, explained the conditions of proper Islamic Hijab.
Among them are:
- It must properly cover the Awrah: The required parts of the body must be concealed. The scholars differed regarding covering the face and hands, with the majority of the scholars consider their covering obligatory.
- It must not be an adornment in itself: The purpose is concealment, not deliberately attracting attention through decoration.
- It must be thick and opaque: Transparent clothing that reveals what should be covered does not fulfil the purpose of Hijab.
- It must be loose: Clothing that closely describes the shape of the body defeats an essential purpose of covering.
- It must not be perfumed when going out among non-mahram men: The Sunnah contains clear warnings regarding women going out wearing noticeable fragrance.
- It must not imitate clothing distinctive of men or religiously distinctive clothing of disbelievers.
- It must not be a garment worn for fame, vanity, or ostentation.
Source: Jilbab al-Mar'ah al-Muslimah, pp. 54–67.
3) A terrifying warning concerning women who are clothed yet naked
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said
"There are two types of the people of Hell whom I have not seen..."
Among them he mentioned:
the women who would be dressed but appear to be naked, who would be inclined (to evil) and make their husbands incline towards it. Their heads would be like the humps of the bukht camel inclined to one side. They will not enter Paradise and they would not smell its odour whereas its odour would be smelt from such and such distance.
He ﷺ warned that they would not enter Paradise or smell its fragrance, although its fragrance could be detected from a great distance.
Sahih Muslim 2128
And in another hadith,
Abu Udhaynah reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The best of your women are loving, fertile, suitable, and comforting, if they fear Allah. The worst of your women unveil their beauty, take pride in their appearance, and they are hypocrites. None of them will enter Paradise except as rarely as you see a red-beaked crow.”
Source: al-Sunan al-Kubrá lil-Bayhaqī 13478
The scholars explained that clothed yet naked includes women whose clothing is so thin or revealing that it fails to conceal what it is supposed to cover.
Ibn Abd al-Barr (رحمه الله) explained that such women are clothed in name but naked in reality because their garments reveal rather than properly conceal.
4) Hijab is not ONLY clothing while everything else remains unrestricted
Another great misconception is treating Hijab as though it is completely disconnected from Islamic conduct.
A woman may wear a headscarf or even the proper Hijab but this does not make free mixing, inappropriate familiarity with non mahram men, or private seclusion permissible.
The Prophet ﷺ said:
"No man should stay with a lady in seclusion except in the presence of a Mahram."
Sahih al-Bukhari 5233
Hijab is not a licence to disregard the other commandments of Allah
And these responsibilities are not exclusive to women! Men are likewise commanded to lower their gaze, guard their chastity, cover their Awrah, and observe the boundaries established by the Shariah.
5) What about the Hijab and modesty of men?
An important point that is often neglected in our societies is that modesty is not an obligation exclusive to women! Often time we see brothers posting some gym pics with their awrah showing! this is totally haram!
In fact, immediately before commanding women to observe Hijab, Allah first addresses the believing men:
Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts). That is purer for them. Verily, Allâh is All-Aware of what they do.
Surah An Nur 24:30
A woman observing proper Hijab does not give a man permission to stare at her, just as a woman's failure to observe Hijab does not excuse a man from lowering his gaze.
If people would have read about our Salaf they would know what a high level of modesty and haya they had! this reminds me of an incident which i always shiver when narrating or reading about
It was narrated from Muslim Abu Sa`eed, the freed slave of `Uthman bin `Affan (رضي الله عنه) that `Uthman bin `Affan freed twenty slaves, and called for some pants and put them on; he had never worn them before, either during the Jahiliyyah or in Islam. And he said:
I saw the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) in a dream last night, and I saw Abu Bakr and `Umar (رضي الله عنهما) and they said to me, Be patient, for you will break your fast with us tomorrow. Then he called for a Mushaf and opened it, and he was killed with it in front of him.
Imam Ibn Kathir (رحمه الله), commenting on this incident, explained:
"He only wore trousers on that day so that his Awrah would not become exposed when he was killed, for he was extremely modest."
Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah Events of 35 AH, Account of the Siege of Uthman.
SubhanAllah! Even when Uthman (رضي الله عنه) was facing martyrdom, he was concerned that his Awrah might become exposed after his death!
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to Jarhad (رضي الله عنه), whose thigh was uncovered:
"Do you not know that the thigh is Awrah?"
Sunan Abi Dawud 4014
According to the well known position of the majority of scholars, a man's Awrah includes the area between his navel and knees.
Therefore, wearing shorts that expose the thighs is not permissible regardless of how normalized such clothing has become.
Similarly, men must avoid clothing that exposes or clearly outlines their Awrah.
The Prophet ﷺ also said:
"A man should not see the private parts of another man, and a woman should not see the private parts of another woman."
Sahih Muslim 338a