Concept of Veil

                       The Concept of Veil

THE VEIL IN ISLAM

By Dr. Gibril F. Haddad

as appeared in The Muslim Magazine Fall 1999 issue.

"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 Allah’s signs, that they may take heed." [7:26]

Today we find the Muslim community most divided on one subject: the veil or hijab. Despite the clear rulings ofSharia on this subject, many people claim that the order for women to cover all but their faces and hands is not found in Islam.

In this brief treatment, we will cite proofs from the source texts of Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh)                                                                                              from which the obligation of veiling is derived.

The Arabic word for "veiling" is hijab. Lexically it means "cover", and in Islam it means two things:

Woman's clothing such as the head-to-toe garment specifically called jilbab and khimar.

Separation of the places where men and women respectively congregate.

Obligation of Hijab as Stated in Qur'an

"O Prophet! Tell your wives and daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (jalabib) close round them (when they go abroad)..." (33:59)

Ibn Rushd in Bidaya al-Mujtahid (1:83) said that this verse has been adduced as proof that no part of a woman's body should be evident to those who are not among the prohibited degrees of relationship (mahram) or her husband. Al-Qurtubi in his commentary on the verse said that the jilbab is the cloak that conceals all of the body including the head.

"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 veils over their bosoms..."(24:31) "…only that which is apparent" applies to women’s face and hands.

"... And when you ask of them (the wives of the Prophet) anything, ask it of them from behind a veil. . ." (33:53) Al-Qurtubi said in commentary of this verse: "The consensus of Muslims is that the genitals and backside constitute nakedness for men and women, as well as all of woman except her face and hands, but some disagreed about the latter two." This means the consensus of Muslims included them in the definition of her nakedness based on verse 33:59 and the hadith cited below.

in regular life

Obligation of Hijab as Stated in Hadith

Among proofs for the veil in the Sunna are the following authentic hadiths (traditional reports) of the Prophet – (s):

"Ayesha (r) reported that Asma’ the daughter of Abu Bakr (r) came to the Messenger of Allah (s) while wearing thin clothing. He approached her and said: 'O Asma’! When a girl reaches the menstrual age, it is not proper that anything should remain exposed except this and this. He pointed to the face and hands." [Abu Dawud]

Ibn Qudama in al-Mughni (1:349) explained that showing the face and hands are a specific dispensation within the general meaning of the hadith "All of the woman’s body is considered her nakedness [to those outside the mahram relationship or her husband]." (al-mar'atu `awra)

`Ayesha (r) said: "I used to enter the room where the Messenger of Allah (s) and my father (Abu Bakr) were later buried in without having my garment on me, saying it is only my husband and my father. But when 'Umar ibn Al-Khattab (r) was later buried in (the same place), I did not enter the room except that I had my garment on being shy from 'Umar."

The Prophet's specification to Umm Salama that women should also cover their feet in prayer, narrated in the Sunan. This included the feet into the definition of her legal nakedness. "Women who are clothed but (at the same time) naked , turning their heads sideways this way and that like the humps of the camel, shall never enter Paradise nor even smell its fragrance."

The jurists have divided woman's nakedness into two categories:

• Lesser nakedness (`awra mukhaffafa): the face, hands, head, neck, forearms, feet, torso and back.
• Greater nakedness (`awra mughallaza): all of her body except the above parts.

`Ayesha’s (ra) strictness on the question is a well known saying, "When a woman reaches puberty she must cover whatever her mother and grandmother must cover." A woman's covering (al-khimar) is defined by `Ayesha as "nothing short of what covers both the hair and skin." (innama al-khimaru ma wara al-sha`r wa al-bashar).