Taking off the Hijab
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There are right and wrong times for modesty. In day to day life when you don't need to attract attention, modesty is good, it stops one from been bothered by people. On the other hand, if you're trying to get a job or find a partner, modest is the opposite of the way you need to be. When you need attention from other people, you need to stand out, you need to attract, to be like a peacock, not a timid mouse.
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There are right and wrong times for modesty. In day to day life when you don't need to attract attention, modesty is good, it stops one from been bothered by people. On the other hand, if you're trying to get a job or find a partner, modest is the opposite of the way you need to be. When you need attention from other people, you need to stand out, you need to attract, to be like a peacock, not a timid mouse.
What nonsense. Modesty doesn't make one timid. People can stand out in numerous ways not just body image.
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It is interesting though that for many people "modesty" seems to be somehow connected to "timidity".
http//img52.imageshack.us/img52/2631/confused6.gif
I think that goes for many Muslim men who propagate the veil too. Their ideal is indeed a timid woman. Ever noted how they love mentioning "modesty" and "shyness" together and praising them? I always found this offputting, shyness is not a positive thing. And neither is timidity, for that matter.I think that's also why they often get aggressive when a woman does not cover and is not apolegetic about it. They simply don't like the idea of a self-assertive woman who does not feel the need to hide, be silent, stay in her house, who does not buy into the notion that this is what God intended for us.
In short, they don't like women who make their presence known; it does not go along with their patriarchal ideas of obedient, timid, women, trying to appear invisible and un-feminine whenever they go out, never drawing any sort of attention to themselves, not making their voice heard in front of men and so on.
For them, submission to the veil means all those things, so rejecting it means that you are rejecting all those "values" they claim a woman has to try to achieve. They are abhorred by the idea of non-veiled, non-timid women who are not afraid of making their voices heard and being noticed. Thus the constant emotional blackmail, the endless talks about women's dress, the lectures about "modesty" being THE most important thing for a woman.
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Thoughts On Modesty
by Ruqaiyyah Waris Maqsood
'Every religion has its characteristic, and the characteristic of Islam is modesty.'
This statement made some 1400 years ago by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is just as relevant today as it was then. The Prophet (pbuh) lived in turbulent times, when slavery, debauchery, drunkenness and sexual abuse was rife; when poor women could be maltreated without redress and wealthy women could live totally without morals if they wished, without much criticism. When the Prophet (pbuh) was a teenage boy he was one of the founder members of a society of Knights of Justice created by his uncle, determined to bring protection and fair dealing to the weak and insecure. He, and those of like mind, were loved and admired for their nobility, years before the revelation of Islam. The revelations, when they came, encouraged and exhorted them to show others that compassion, generosity, courage, modesty and patient faith were the right way to live.
Modesty is such a 'quiet' characteristic, that perhaps nobody thinks about it very much. What are modest people like? They are self-effacing, and humble; they do not wish to draw too much attention to themselves. They feel embarrassed when they are given praise, and genuinely do not really feel they have done all that much to deserve it, for everything they do is their no more than their duty and their delight, in serving God. They would hate to be picked out for praise above their fellows, or pushed forward into the limelight, shown off, or made to perform 'party pieces' for the applause of others. Modesty also implies a personal and physical shyness and reticence, as opposed to a wish to flaunt themselves for their physical charms. In this day and age, when it seems to be taken for granted that young women wish to walk down the streets of town wearing garments that cover little more than their underwear does, and when everything seems geared up to a lifestyle that encourages females to make themselves as sexually attractive as possible, and to feel failures if they are not turning heads, women who are not like that, and do not wish to be, are regarded by some as being rather odd.
It is an unfortunate sort of discrimination, for in actual fact very large numbers of girls and women are naturally modest, and do not wish to flaunt themselves at all, and feel no sense of distress or loss if they are not arousing male desires or interested glances. Wearing hijab, or becoming a 'covered lady', is one of the odd problems facing girls and women who convert to Islam and who then decide to alter their style of clothing, and/or wear a head-veil. Ironically, genuinely shy and modest women can feel really uneasy and 'forced into the arena of public scrutiny' when they change old habits; putting on hijab can cause people who know you to stare, or wonder why you suddenly think yourself to be 'better' or 'more holy' than them, or to bring out remarks about how well they know what you are really like; or to wonder why you are seeking to 'dress up in fancy dress', or pretending to be an Arab or a Pakistani or whatever. Muslim women who take the further step of covering their faces often face a similar reaction from Muslim women who don't.
This is not something that male Muslims know very much about. There is no equivalent requirement for a man as regards his clothing, or head-covering, or face-covering. I suppose something similar would be for a convert man to feel it was a good thing required by Allah to turn up at the office or go to the garage or factory in an Arab long white dress, and put a bag over his head. Yet there are rules in Islam for male modesty. I have winced in horror on a plane coming home from Damascus in which all the male passengers were Muslims except a couple of western tourists who wore shirts open to the waist (sweat, chest-hair and all), and shorts, and were quite oblivious to (or not bothered by) the reaction of distaste from those all around them. In fact, male Muslims are also expected to dress modestly, in clean clothing that covers them and does not emphasize their sexuality.
Needless to say, it is not only modest clothing that is required, but also modest behavior - not the Dickensian Uriah-Heepish sort of crawling humility, but the genuine desire to do good for no reason other than to please Allah, seeking no reward, or thanks, or public notice. The cover-up clothing of Muslim women is not intended as a punishment or an endurance test, but as a wish to appear graceful and feminine without encouraging any sexual advances. 'Covered ladies' are not necessarily innocent youngsters, virgins about to be sacrificed in marriage, but may be mothers of half a dozen children, perhaps married several times. There is no false modesty intended. But they are giving certain specific messages firstly, that their faith is Islam and they have chosen to submit to the will of God in every aspect of their lives; and secondly, that they wish to be appreciated for their characters and good deeds, and not for whether or not they happen to be pretty or slim or sexy.
Modesty also implies simplicity, and lack of desire for ostentation. A woman could be completely covered, but in some gaudy material, shrieking color, and also dripping with jewellery, gold and pearls. That's one sort of ostentation. Or she might be the only woman in her community who chooses to be head to toe in black - that might well be genuine piety, but it could also be a form of ostentation too. Allah will judge the lady not on her clothes at all, but on her motives, her niyyah, and the quality of her life and what she does with it. Of course, the covered clothing can be quite a sacrifice - notably when the temperature soars and one must find garments in pure cotton, and not wear short sleeves, and if wearing the veil one must remember that a large amount of body-heat escapes through the head, and one can end up feeling quite faint and uncomfortable. There is always a lot of controversy about the extent of a woman's hijab in Islam. Some women cover absolutely everything, others interpret it to mean 'modest dress according to the society in which one lives' and even dispense with the head-veil. Hijab certainly means that a woman should not be showing her cleavage, or wearing a garment that is transparent and reveals her underwear, or one that is tight and clinging. My husband, coming from Pakistan, was horrified to note that old ladies in the UK brazenly went round showing their legs to all and sundry - to him, any skirt above the ankle was a mini-skirt.
The compulsory aspect of hijab to a Muslim woman is modesty - how this is interpreted in clothing styles is not compulsory at all, and is left to the piety and taste of the individual. Modesty and simplicity, and trust in Allah go hand in hand. I had a friend in Jordan a few years ago, a straightforward Muslim man who had asked me to bring him the present of a pair of denim jeans from the UK. When I also gave him a shirt to go with it, he was almost offended. What did I bring him a shirt for? He already had two. He promptly gave one shirt away to someone less fortunate than himself. I will never forget the lesson of his attitude. It was one of my key experiences in bringing me into Islam. I learned another lesson from him, too. A button came off, and I volunteered to sew it on for him. This earned a small rebuke, for it would deprive of employment the poor man down the street who earned his living by such things as sewing on buttons. One cannot help but compare the practice of Islam on that very simple and modest level to the fanaticism and squabbles and outright corruption that has marred the beauty of Islam in more comfortable and affluent surroundings.
Modesty goes hand in hand with value. When men and women are modest, they are in fact valuable people, and without any thought of self-aggrandizement, realize their value. The values of modesty and genuine humility are God-given, and those who possess those characteristics are blessed indeed. Moreover, they are lights shining in the darkness, giving an example of hope and goodness to others. A truly modest person makes the raucous pomposity and arrogance of others show up; a truly simple-living person makes nonsense of the ephemeral wealth-and-status-seeking ambitions of those who do not realize there is more to life than just this level of existence. A truly pure person reveals the tawdriness of lust and lasciviousness and the selfish dangers of unbridled sexuality. May God bless us, and fill our hearts with love and compassion, and direct our lives along a path that will enable us to bring help, hope, serenity, shelter and peace to others, and a means of rescue and healing to those already hurt and damaged by callousness, cruelty and abuse. Amen.
http//www.islamfortoday.com/ruqaiyyah05.htm
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What nonsense. Modesty doesn't make one timid. People can stand out in numerous ways not just body image.
Modesty isn't just about body image, its about not showing off. Trying to prove you are more educated, or more intelligent, more more pious than other people is also immodest. Humility means not saying you are better than other people.
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Of course not. It's just a symbol of humility, which makes it inappropriate when one is trying to get noticed.
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Of course not. It's just a symbol of humility, which makes it inappropriate when one is trying to get noticed.
Like 'look at me im pious because I wear a symbol of humilty'?
Here the men wear the zebeeba (sp) to show they bang thier heads on the ground too hard pray a lot -\
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Like 'look at me im pious because I wear a symbol of humilty'?
Here the men wear the zebeeba (sp) to show they bang thier heads on the ground too hard pray a lot -\
A woman in a headscarf is less eye catching than one without. It's because the headscarf breaks up the visual structure of the head so your mind doesn't focus in as quickly.
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Why are you arguing this? Whether you like or hate them, it's obviously the purpose of the garment!
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Why are you arguing this?
Because I believe your statement that a woman with a headscarf attracts less attention than one without is simply wrong.
Not sure where you live, or how many women with headscarves you encounter in your daily life. Maybe our observations are simply different because of our living circumstances. But your statement simply contradicts my personal observations.
peaceWhether you like or hate them, it's obviously the purpose of the garment!
I don't think the purpose of a headscarf is to show humility. And I am not aware of any verses stating this.
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Obviously since the headscarf is not mentioned in Quran, you're not going to find explicit explanations of its purpose there! But if you look at the sources where it is mentioned, like the Bible where St Paul tells Christian women they must cover their heads in the Church, it is explicitly stated the purpose is to show humility.
Where the headscarf attracts attention, that's just politics at work. It's not the nature of the garment but just cultural baggage. The nature of the garment is very much about hiding oneself from attention.
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Obviously since the headscarf is not mentioned in Quran, you're not going to find explicit explanations of its purpose there!
Exactly. And the few verses in the Qur'an that speak about women's clothing mention that the purpose of covering is to be recognized as believing women and not getting harassed. There is nothing about humility or wearing a headscarf as a symbol for anything.
The whole hijab issue has been so overloaded with symbolism and meanings, that's why I think we have to be very careful to not assign magical qualities or symbolism to that piece of fabric.
But if you look at the sources where it is mentioned, like the Bible where St Paul tells Christian women they must cover their heads in the Church, it is explicitly stated the purpose is to show humility.
But why should we care what Paul says about covering the head in church? That's entirely irrelevant for Muslim women. If God wanted us to cover our heads in the mosque, he would have told us so.
Where the headscarf attracts attention, that's just politics at work. It's not the nature of the garment but just cultural baggage. The nature of the garment is very much about hiding oneself from attention.
Mh ... not sure I understand this statement. What do you mean by "politics at work"?
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I have worn a headscaft I find that I like to wear one for pray as I sign of respect for god I would be intersted on your opnion am I doing wrong.?peace Ros
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It is not wrong to wear a headscarf if one wishes to, however if one says it is God's law, then one must be sure they are right, as to say such a thing if false is not a good thing. However, if one says it after doing research to the best of one's ability and with sincerity, then there is less of an issue, if it is right or wrong.
For background information
http//misconceptions-about-islam.com/dress-code-women-veil.htm -
This whole 'women should cover their hair to not get attention from men' thing is so stupid. Women are attracted to men too. Women like men's hair too. So if women should cover their hair then so should men. Some guys are stuck a few centuries back and don't realise this.
