2006-07-14T00:42:00.000-07:00

Moslem Women's Dress Code

Probably the most distinguished part of a Muslim women's dress code is the Veil or 'Hijab' (covering of the head and the body). The media have played a major role in leading people to a lot of misguided interpretations on the reasons muslim women wear the Hijab, and usually referring that to the male dominance in the Islamic religion, ignoring the truth which is so far from being that and ignoring the fact that Islam clearly states muslim men and women as having similar rights and obligations.

From a Muslim woman's viewpoint I can surely say that the primary reason one of us wears the hijab is in obedience to the words of the Almighty God in the Noble Quran:

"O Prophet, tell your wives and daughters and the believing women to draw their outer garments around them (when they go out or are among men). That is better in order that they may be known (to be Muslims) and not annoyed ..." (Qur'an 33:59)

and:

"Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for them; and Allah is well acquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; and that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what must ordinarily appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands ..." (Qur'an 24:30-31)

Like a precious pearl that is kept safe Almighty God tell the believing women to cover their beauty from the preying eyes in the outside world. Protecting them from the evil that this world would never be void of and screening them from any harm that can come their way.

Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him said: "... If the woman reaches the age of puberty, no part of her body should be seen but this --- and he pointed to his face and hands."

Modesty is Beautiful

Secondary to that, Modesty is Beautiful. Having the freedom to wearing your most comfortable clothes, not tight , not revealing, not short nor see-through, a muslim woman makes a loud statement in a time when the exploiters of flesh has made the lives of women across the globe a living hell with their constantly changing trends.

A Muslim woman who covers her head and her body is infact making a statement about her identity. She comes out as a feminine women with dignity and self-esteem. Concealing her sexuality from strange men not compromising with her chastity and purity to the smallest degree. Hijab therefore is not merely a covering dress but more importantly, it is behavior, manners, speech and appearance in public. Dress is only one facet of the total being.

Ms Naheed Mustafa a Canadian-born Muslim woman who has taken to wearing the hijab says "In the Western world, the hijab has come to symbolize either forced silence or radical, unconscionable militancy. Actually, it's neither. It is simply a woman's assertion that judgment of her physical person is to play no role whatsoever in social interaction. Wearing the hijab has given me freedom from constant attention to my physical self. Because my appearance is not subjected to public scrutiny, my beauty, or perhaps lack of it, has been removed from the realm of what can legitimately be discussed."

Speaking of Hijab brings back the memory of March 15th, 2004 when the secular French government has made an amendment to the French Code of Education prohibiting conspicuous religious symbols and clothing being worn by students in public primary and secondary schools, calling it a stance to support freedom of opinion. This law came like a shock on the growing Muslim community in France and for the Muslims everywhere in the world. And the heaviness of this law was especially felt by the muslim women who cannot imagine parting the Hijab that God has ordained on them.

With slogans like "My Veil, My Choice," "Beloved France, Where is My Liberation?", thousands of Muslim French women protested on the streets of France. Parades against the ban swept the world from Holland to Germany to the United States to Lebanon and tens of other cities in the world. In solidarity with their Muslim brothers and sisters thousands of non-Muslims walked in these parades protesting for this basic human right.

Yet another statement made by the women of Islam coming out loud and clear. In the same headlines that people around the world used to read about the Hijab being an Islamic tradition that oppresses women, came the pictures of thousand of Muslim women declaring they will not leave their Hijab even they are forced to do so. Is there more proof the world needs to know how misleading the media was all this time? To many the real truth was finally revealed. ((And say: "Truth has (now) arrived, and Falsehood perished: for Falsehood is (by its nature) bound to perish.")) Quran 17:81.

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