Niqab - Page 3

[smeisnotapirate]

Originally Posted by tema

I just wanted to add that I dress this way because of what Islam teaches us through Qur'aan and the Sunnah (the way of the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him)...the covering is only a small part of Islam...but yet it tends to be the most visible one and one that most people ask about...in Islam women and men are different...they are equal but still different ...and thus the 'different' rules for men and women...

Covering is only a smart part of my belief and daily life...actually it was only in the 18th year of the Prophet saws conveying the message of Islam that the covering was commanded...so obviously there are more important things..

I try to live my life they way I believe the One who created me wants me to live...He knows us better than we know ourselves...in Islam our purpose is to worship Allah, and worshipping is not only the daily prayer but everything we do in our lives...everything can be worship if we do it for God's sake...including getting dressed/wearing certain clothing...

So to outsiders it might be hard to understand why we cover and dress a certain way, but to me in boils down to my faith in Allah and wanting to live the way He prescribed it in his Book, the Qur'aan.

...........and as a Jew, that makes lots of sense. In traditional Judaism, men and women are equal but different, with different codes of conduct. While a Jewish man's head is covered with a teeny little kippah, I must cover all of my hair. You'll also hear lots of argument between those of us who dress "Modern Orthodox" (keeping to tznius standards but dressing with the times) or "ultra-Orthodox" (covering to the maximum at all times, which for us is to the ankles and wrists, as well as the hair, which is standard) whether or not there's a benefit to covering to the maximum. Many very wise rabbis have argued that there is NO benefit to "extra" covering (say, like a niqabi) and that it is detrimental, and other wise rabbis who say that if one feels moved to a more strict interpretation, there is a benefit for that individual.

It's also similar with what Liquesce said about men being visual - it's one of the great reasons for modesty in Judaism as well. We don't have to cover our forearms and below our knees like our Muslim sisters do, but the standards and the reasoning for those standards are very, very similar.

Anyways, just finding this thread really fascinating.

[UmmIbrahim]

I know this thread is a bit old, but I wanted to jump in. I'm living in Saudi Arabia right now and the vast majority of Saudi women wear Niqab and many of the Muslim expat women (like myself) do so as well.

In the US and in Iran I always wore long modest clothing (overgarment usually or long shirt and pants)and a headscarf but never really niqab, mostly because my husband always thought that hijab is enough and that in the US wearing niqab is extremely difficult. I can say honestly that I had wanted to wear niqab in the US, when we first married I tried too but he was really against it.

but, here in KSA I do wear niqab mostly because here it is a protection for women and it's the societal norm. I think most women here wear niqab for these reasons because usually the women who wear niqab for strictly religious reasons tend to wear gloves and keep their eyes covered.
I normally just wear an abayaah, shaylah (tarha as it's called her) and any of the many diff. kinds of niqabaat worn here, sometimes I'll also just flip my shaylah up to cover my face in the "boushiyyah/gashwa/pooshiyeh" style and then see through the shaylah.

Here it's incredibly easy to wear it, the entire society is built around it, everywhere you go there are womens only sitting areas where you can flip up your niqab and eat without any men seeing, thats def. a perk to being a niqabi here, I find it extremely hard to do anything but sip a coffee under a niqab. I like just being able to flip it up.
Also, there are a lot of men here who r here for working, away from their wives and they really prowl around and look at the women and generally if you're totally covered they don't bother you as much (thought some still do) also there are mutawwa and they have been known to ask women to fully cover. So niqab just is the best option here.

I would like to wear niqab in the US, but even just wearing hijab in the manner I would do so (big, long and covering) got me enough hassles that I don't think i'd have the fortitude to wear niqab. I think because I feel that hijab is required (of me) that I have the strength to wear it but because I dont feel that niqab is as required, I dont think I could really do it.

Allahu alim.

[merpk]

Originally Posted by smeisnotapirate

While a Jewish man's head is covered with a teeny little kippah,

Not all men wear "a teeny little kippah." Actually, only the more "Modern Orthodox" wear them small, as well as the "liberal denominations" (when they wear them at all).


The more traditionally Orthodox (called "ultra-Orthodox" by the nontraditionally Orthodox) wear very large kippot. And many of the Modern Orthodox as well. And the Khassidish and some others often wear (large) hats.



(Don't mind the nitpickiness, smeis. Am just being neurotic today. LOL)