hijab
Hijab is a term used in Islam to refer to the practice of modesty and covering one’s body and head in public. The word “hijab” comes from the Arabic root “hajaba,” which means to conceal or cover.
The hijab can take many forms, including a headscarf, veil, or full-body covering. It is not only a physical garment, but also a state of mind and a way of conducting oneself with dignity and respect.
One clear thing that we all see and wonder about is the Hijab that is worn by Muslim women, what is the point of it? That’s what we will find out in this article.
Hijab definition.
A hijab is a scarf, or a head covering that Muslim women put on their heads to cover their hair, ears, neck, and the upper part of the chest as a symbol of modesty and faith in Allah.
What is a hijab?
Hijab is a head covering that women wear to cover their hair as a sign of faith and modesty.
Why do women wear hijab?
Muslim women wear hijab as part of their faith, to show Allah that they believe in him and to obey him. Because as we see in surah Surah Al-Ahzab, Allah says:
“O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be recognized and not be abused. And ever is Allah forgiving and merciful.”
In this verse, Allah orders women to wear the hijaab to protect them from being abused by men. In the past, before the revelation of Islam women were treated badly and were thought of as property, not as a person with rights or Equals. They were taken advantage of by men, taking them away from their families and forcing them to do bad things, and using them for money.
When Islam was revealed, Allah showed men that women are Equal to them not property to sell or use to fulfill their desires. Women started to have their rights, and men were forced to free women from slavery.
Islam forced men to treat women as human beings instead of objects and showed them that anyone who mistreats a woman or forces her to do something against her will, Allah will punish them.
Then Allah ordered women to cover their hair and bodies in order to protect them from being harassed by men. Not as a way of oppressing them as people say.
Islam instructed women to cover their bodies for their own sake, if you don’t believe that then look around, women who are wearing exposing closes get sexual harassment by men or hear bad words from them.
What Islam wants is to keep women safe, women should hide their beauty so that they won’t get hurt by men.
So, why do women wear hijab? To protect themselves from any harassment or bad words they might hear from men, and because Allah ordered them to wear hijab. It’s a way of showing their faith in Allah.
Is the hijab mandatory?
Some will say yes hijab is mandatory for Muslim women based on the two verses from Surah Al-Ahzab and surah al-Noor, which says:
“O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be recognized and not be abused. And ever is Allah forgiving and merciful.” [Surah Al-Ahzab]
Are Muslim women required to wear a hijab?
“And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision (i.e. lower the gaze) and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers (walyathdribna bikhumurihina alla juyoobihina) over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.” [al-Noor]
And yes, Muslim women should wear hijaab as part of their faith in Allah, however, there is no punishments mentioned after those two verses, while you will find punishment for committing any sin or bad thing.
So, in my opinion, if the hijaab is mandatory like people say, then we would have found a punishment for not wearing it. And not wearing a hijab doesn’t mean that woman or girl doesn’t love Allah or have faith in him. We don’t have the right to judge women based on the hijab.
Some women believe in Allah and follow all his orders, they love Allah, read Quran, pray the five daily prayers and the sunnah prayers and wear loose cloth that hides their bodies.
When did Muslim women start wearing hijabs?
After the revelation of Islam women started wearing Hijab that covers their hair and bodies to show their faith in Allah, and to protect themselves.
However, the Hijab itself was already worn by women before the revelation of Islam as a sign of social status.
The word Hijab came from the Arabic word “hajb” which means to hide something from sight, or make it invisible. Before Islam, it was a means to segregate women based on their status. Married women had to wear hijab in public and unmarried women wore it after they get married. While slaves and prostitutes were banned from wearing it.
So, as you can see hijab was even there before Islam, the difference here is in how it’s worn. Before Islam women wore hijab that expose their neck and ears. While in Islam women wear a hijab that covers their whole bodies and hair.
Why some Muslims don’t wear a hijab?
Because it is a matter of choice, some women choose to wear hijab to show their faith in Allah, while some see that hijab isn’t what makes them true Muslims.
Some face many challenges because of the hijab and they choose to not wear it. For example, in Muslim countries, the hijab is something that most women wear, while in non-Muslim countries hijab is seen as a weird thing and they pully Muslim women who wear hijab.
Imagine not being hired in a position that you are perfectly fit for because you are wearing a hijab and that only one thing that women face in their lives.
Actually, it’s funny how people keep judging one another instead of judging themselves. Women are being judged for everything they do or wear, they are even judged for being a girl or a woman in the first place. Even after all those years, nothing has changed and there is discrimination based on sex until now.
How to wear a hijab step by step?
There are many ways and styles to wear a hijab, and we will mention some of them here.
1- Simple Hijab.
Take your long scarf and put it over your head and make one side longer than the other, and then put a pin to pin both sides of the scarf under your chin. Flip one side over the opposite shoulder and then wrap it around your neck so that it goes back to the front of the other shoulder and spread it to cover your chest and pin it to your cloth.
2-Hijab Without a Pin.
Take the scarf and put it over your head and wrap it around your head then throw one of the ends over your shoulder, and that’s it.
3- Side-Pinned Hijab Style.
Wrap the scarf around your head and pin it with a pin on one side to secure it.
Is it ok to show a little hair with a hijab?
No, the right hijab is the one that covers all your hair and body, you can’t show a little of your hair.
Surahs refer to the hijab in Quran.
Here’s the hijab in Quran:
“O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be recognized and not be abused. And ever is Allah forgiving and merciful.” [Surah Al-Ahzab]
“And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision (i.e. lower the gaze) and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers (walyathdribna bikhumurihina alla juyoobihina) over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.” [al-Noor 24:31]
Punishment for not wearing hijab in Quran?
First, before we answer this question let’s see the two verses that mention the hijab, In the Quran, Allah says:
“O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be recognized and not be abused. And ever is Allah forgiving and merciful.” [Surah Al-Ahzab]
“And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision (i.e. lower the gaze) and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers (walyathdribna bikhumurihina alla juyoobihina) over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.” [al-Noor 24:31]
As you can see there is no punishment mentioned for not wearing a hijab. When you search for this question all the answers that you will find is women who don’t wear hijab will go to hell and other wired answers. And they take verses that don’t talk about hijab at all to clarify their opinion, like the following verse:
وَلَا تَبَرَّجْنَ تَبَرُّجَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ الْأُولَى
Do not show off your beauty like the girls of the age of ignorance. (Al-Ahzab – 33)
Do you see anything referring to the hijab in this verse? No, because it’s not about the hijab at all. Other verses they use are:
مَا كَانَ لِمُؤمِنٍ وَلاَ مُؤْمِنَةٍ إِذَا قَضَى اللهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَمْرًا أَنْ يَكُونَ لَهُمُ الخِيَرَةُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَعْصِ اللهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلاَلاً مُبِينًا
Translation: If Allah and His Messenger give a verdict, believing men and women will not be allowed to exercise their will. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Apostle, he is surely in error. (Surah An-Nisa ‘)
وَمَنْ يَعْصِ اللََهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَيَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَهُ يُدْخِلْهُ نَارً خَالِدًا فِيهَا وَلَهُ عَذَابٌ مُهِين
Translation: And whoever disobeys Allah and His Apostle and transgresses His limits, he shall enter the fire of eternity. For him is a painful punishment. (Surah An-Nisa ‘)
As you can see, none of them is about hijab, Allah warns us from committing sins, or disobeying Allah and his prophet. So, in my opinion, wearing a hijab or not is a personal choice and there is no punishment for it. NO one should force women to wear it. Because when a woman chooses to wear a hijab, they want to do it to show their faith in Allah. And if they don’t then it’s their choice.
What is the purpose of wearing the hijab?
Musli women wear hijab to show their faith in Allah and to obey his orders. Also, to protect themselves from sexual harassment.
Does the color of the hijab mean anything?
No, the color of the hijab doesn’t have any meaning. Women choose the color based on their outfits and what matches them. It’s something related to fashion and style, that’s all. There is no hidden meaning behind it.
At what age can a woman stop wearing a hijab?
When a woman reaches menopause, she can stop wearing a hijab, and it’s mentioned in the Quran. They are free to choose to keep wearing it or not, but Allah says that it is better for them to keep wearing it.
What happens if you don’t wear a hijab?
In the Quran there are no punishments for not wearing a hijab, the problem comes from the society you are living in. let me tell you what happens to women who don’t wear hijab in a Muslim and non-Muslim country.
In Muslim countries people expect women to wear a hijab, and if she doesn’t wear it people will keep judging her, and if she gets abused or sexually harassed people will say that it’s her fault for not wearing a hijab. In their opinion the man didn’t do anything wrong, he saw a woman without a hijab and got seduced by her. The blame will always be on the girl. Even if she is wearing a hijab and got sexually harassed do you know what will people say? That it’s her fault for not wearing a long hijab. And if she were wearing a hijab then it is her fault for not covering her face. And if she’s wearing a niqab and got sexually harassed then it’s her fault for leaving her house. You see where am going, right? In Muslim countries, anything that happens to a girl or woman who doesn’t wear a hijab is her fault.
In non-Muslim countries, it is completely the opposite if a woman is wearing a hijab then she will get sexually harassed for being modest. And society will say that it is her fault for wearing a hhijab.
They call women wearing hijab, hijab girl, or hijab women not a woman or girl, which is really annoying, why do they call women based on what they wear?
Do hijabis wear hijab to sleep?
No. women don’t wear hijab when they sleep. They wear it in public or if there are Muharram men in the house.
Can I pray without a hijab?
No, you can’t pray without a hijap, you must wear a hijaab and loose cloth.
What are the rules of wearing a hijab?
The right Muslim women’s hijab is the one that covers their hair and wears loose clothes that don’t show their bodies.
Do children have to wear hijabs?
No, children shouldn’t wear hijaab, Muslim girls mostly wear it when they reach the age of puberty.
How to do wudu with a hijab on?
A woman could take off the hijaab and do Wudu if she can or she could put her hands under the huijab and wipe her hair and ears if she can. But also, it is permissible to wipe over the hijap if it is difficult to take it off and wear it again.
What does hadith say about the hijab?
Sahih Bukhari Narrated that Aisha said: “While I was sitting in my resting place, I was overwhelmed by sleep and slept. Safwan bin Al-Muattal As-Sulami Adh-Dhakwani was behind the army. When he reached my place in the morning, he saw the figure of a sleeping person and he recognized me seeing me as he had seen me before the order of compulsory veiling (was prescribed). So I woke up when he recited Istirja’ (i.e. “Inna lillahi wa inna llaihi raji’un”) as soon as he recognized me. I veiled my face with my head covered at once, and by Allah, we did not speak a single word, and I did not hear him saying any word besides his Istirja’. He dismounted from his camel and made it kneel down, putting his leg on its front legs, and then I got up and rode on it.”
Is hijab Fard or sunnah?
People say that wearing a hijab is Fard based on the Quranic verses mentioned above.
What is the hijab concept in Islam?
Women wear Hijab because it is mentioned in the Quran. Hijab is a way of protecting women from what might happen to them. And women wear it as a sign of faith in Allah.
Can a man see a woman without a hijab before marriage?
No, it is forbidden for men to see a woman without a hijab before he marries her.
Sign up for Noor Academy’s Islamic studies course and let your children learn accurate Islamic studies online.
Quran teaching for children in Noor Academy is fun as well as structured, they’ll learn with Noor Kids;
Noor and Nora ( House of Quran ) will be their friends during this amazing journey.
You may also find online Quran classes for children if you want them to memorize Quran with you.
Our Quran teacher, Arabic teacher, Islamic Studies teacher, and tajweed teacher, will be their friends during this amazing journey.
Noor Academy learning can be challenging if you’re seeking it for your kids.
Noor Academy offers you a wide variety of topics to teach your children online.
Noor Academy’s experienced live tutor ( male teacher & female teacher ). They have many years of experience in Teaching Arabic online , islamic studies online and the Quran online to non-Arabic speakers.
