Is it a shame, a crime or a sin not to cover oneself (not to wear hijab)?

 

Dear Brother / Sister,

Three concepts are confused with one another in the discussions on hijab: Shame, crime and sin. If a word, an action or a piece of clothing contradicts the values of society, it is considered shameful. If it is against the law, it is considered a crime. If it is contrary to the religion, it is considered a sin.

Some people think that something that is not against the law is not a sin, while others are under the delusion that “a deed committed by everyone will cease to be a sin”. Both of them are completely wrong thoughts.

Shame can never be the measure of truth. People who organize their ideas, thoughts and actions only according to the understanding of the “shame” of others sacrifice their personalities to society and become slaves to the crowds.

In fact, is it possible to accept everything that society condemns as “wrong” or everything that it embraces as “right”? If it were the case, would it not be necessary for a person to take on a different personality in every community, to change color frequently like a chameleon?

The following statement of a Western thinker, which reveals the “weakness of the human mind”, explain the issue very well:

“There is nothing so horrible to imagine as eating one’s father. The nations which had this custom in ancient times, however, regarded it as testimony of piety and good affection, trying thereby to give their progenitors the most worthy and honorable sepulture, lodging in themselves and as it were in their marrow the bodies of their fathers and their remains, bringing them to life in a way and regenerating them by transmutation into their living flesh by means of digestion and nourishment. It is easy to imagine what a cruelty and abomination it would have been, to men saturated and imbued with this superstition, to abandon the mortal remains of their parents to the corruption of the earth and to let it become the food of beasts and worms.”

Now let us think: If the majority of the people around us were to adopt such an idea through intense propaganda, would we eat our father’s flesh so that society would not condemn us? So, “shame” is purely subjective; it is not a factor that affects reality. The claims of the ladies who avoid hijab because they consider it a shame fall into two categories: One: “Why is it a sin not to wear hijab?” The other is: “There is no hijab in Islam.”

On the surface, there does not seem to be much difference between them. However, in reality, they are two different issues. If you search for the people who say things like, “What is the point of covering oneself? A woman can do what she wants to do even under a veil”, you will always find someone who does not know Islam properly, or someone who knows it but cannot fulfill its commands.

In order to get rid of the psychology of guilt that they feel in the depths of their conscience, those people make such objections; and instead of repenting, they try to justify their sins. They feel as if they will get rid of that responsibility by convincing other people. However, if an act is sinful, it is sinful, and if it is not sinful, it is not. It cannot be determined by “crowds”. If hijab exists in the religion, no one can say that it does not exist. However, no one should force others to do so.

As for the issue of whether hijab exists in Islam, there are many fatwas regarding the issue. However, since some of today’s Muslims do not know the place of fatwa in religion, I will present verses directly from the Holy Quran and quote some parts of their commentaries word for word.

God Almighty addresses our Prophet as follows in the chapter of an-Nur:

“And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; 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, their fathers, their husband’s fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers or their brothers’ sons, or their sisters’ sons, or their women, or the slaves whom their right hands possess, or male servants free of physical needs, or small children who have no sense of the shame of sex; and that they should not strike their feet in order to draw attention to their hidden ornaments...” (an-Nur, 24/31)

When the verse is read carefully, the following points can be determined:

First: It addresses the believing women. That is, hjab is a sign of belief for women and is fard only for believing women. An unbeliever is not responsible for the commands and prohibitions of Islam. In other words, a person must first accept the existence of Allah, recognize the Holy Quran as His word and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) as His last messenger in order to be addressed by Divine commands and prohibitions.

Second: Not looking at the haram is not only for men, but also for women.

Third: Not showing the ornaments.

I will summarize one of the interpretations on the word “(ziynah) ornament” in this verse:

“Although ziynah means ornaments, it means the places where ornaments are worn, such as the ears, neck, and neckline since it is not haram for anyone to look at ornaments. Since the main purpose of the verse is hijab (being covered up) and it addresses all believers, rich and poor, if adornment were meant by the word ziynah, the verse would address only the rich. However, the address is general: ‘Say to the believing women’. Another important point is this: The real ornament for a woman is not the ornaments, but those organs themselves. In other words, the parts that are forbidden to be shown, such as the neck and neckline, are also ornaments for women.” (see Hak Dini Kur’an Dili, the interpretation of the verse in question)

Fourth: Believing women covering their heads and putting their headscarves over their collars, instead of tying them around their necks and letting them hang down behind their backs, like the women of Jahiliyya.

The following is stated in another verse of the Quran:

“O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters, and the believing women, that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad): that is most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And Allah is Oft- Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (al-Ahzab, 33/59)

In the verse above, hijab is explicitly ordered and the wisdom behind this order is stated as “the prevention of believing women from being disturbed by being confused with other vulgar women, from being subjected to molestation and the prevention of their spirits from being subjected to torment”.

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