**Muslims Only**Dear Muslims, I have a question.

[IsmailaGodHasHeard]

Why do some women cover their face? I can understand covering the head and dressing modestly, but the face? I do not understand this.

 

[Cordoba]

Covering the face for Muslim women is one of the issues where scholars have more than one opinion

The mainstream opinion is that it is not a requirement

And what confirms this opinion is that in Makkah, while a women is performing Hajj or Umrah in a state of Ihram, she is prohibited from covering her face

But there is a second opinion which says that if a woman is very beautiful and that her beauty which is apparent in her face would cause fitnah, then she would be advised to cover her face in the presence of "foreign" men

A third opinion is that she should cover her face in all cases in the presence of "foreign" men

The first mainstream opinion is the one which most Muslims follow

 

[Bringing Truth]

The Qur'aan states, "Do not go close to Zina."

The emphasis is on closing the doors and avenues leading to Zina. The face is the foremost part of a woman's beauty. A man is first attracted to the beauty of a woman and then endervours to have her. Once he is caught up with the sight of a woman's beauty, his heart and mind is consumed with that all the time. He now endervours to catch any glimpse at her. Shari'ah understands the nature of man and issues guidance according to his nature and instincts. The days of morality are gone when it was common for a man to lower his gaze in front of a woman. There is no or very little resistance nowadays. Therefore, the latter Fuqahaa have ruled that a woman should cover her face to close the doors of any evil subsequent to seeing the face of a woman.

 

[Onkara]

The days of morality are gone when it was common for a man to lower his gaze in front of a woman. There is no or very little resistance nowadays. Therefore, the latter Fuqahaa have ruled that a woman should cover her face to close the doors of any evil subsequent to seeing the face of a woman.

May I add a question based on your reply please, do Muslims, or your good self, have an explanation why morality has changed from a theological perspective?

 

[Bringing Truth]

May I add a question based on your reply please, do Muslims, or your good self, have an explanation why morality has changed from a theological perspective?

Good question,

Morality hasn't been changed by theological ways, but we have changed alot in our times. In past (in islam), this sex before marriage was not common like nowdays but really really rare. Men did not even dare to raise their glance over women, if men did they would mourn at themselves for days and it was a loss for them in their mind.

People lived with life fully according to the prophet (saw), today its the opposite and thats why I always say "if you want to look at the example of a muslim, look at the example of prophet (saw) and his companions (ra)" those are the people we muslims try to follow, tho as the time changed, technology has changed which made women public with nakedness and bikinis, every "ad" on the T.V consists women.

From this men have made a habit of themself to look upon women with lustfully, even a face of a women for them is enough, and this brings not only zina (fornication) but rape cases.

You will find few muslims who are true muslims, follow the life of prophet (saw). Most are careless, many things have influenced them, and I feel ashamed myself how muslims are making a loss for themselves.

You see for yourself, when a pretty women passes by, atleast someone would say "oh shes hot " e.t.c or something like that. You've seen for yourself how zina (fornication) is common nowdays, you see for yourself how men look at lustfully at the women. Once he is caught up with the sight of a woman's beauty, his heart and mind is consumed with that all the time.He now endervours to catch any glimpse at her.

So to protect women from these wrong things which leads to fornication and rape, thats why the latter fuqqaha ruled women to cover their face aswell.


I hope you understood, or maybe I did not understand your question, if I didn't please help me out by making the question more clear for me.

 

[Onkara]

Thank you for your answer, Binging Truth

 

[Bringing Truth]

Thank you for your answer, Binging Truth

Did you atleast understood what I wrote? lol.

also did I actually answer your question, or missed out anything?

 

[Pegg]

The Qur'aan states, "Do not go close to Zina."

The emphasis is on closing the doors and avenues leading to Zina. The face is the foremost part of a woman's beauty. A man is first attracted to the beauty of a woman and then endervours to have her. Once he is caught up with the sight of a woman's beauty, his heart and mind is consumed with that all the time. He now endervours to catch any glimpse at her. Shari'ah understands the nature of man and issues guidance according to his nature and instincts. The days of morality are gone when it was common for a man to lower his gaze in front of a woman. There is no or very little resistance nowadays. Therefore, the latter Fuqahaa have ruled that a woman should cover her face to close the doors of any evil subsequent to seeing the face of a woman.

do you think there will ever come a time when Allah will help men to overcome this absurd weakness/uncontrollable desire they have???

 

[Onkara]

Did you atleast understood what I wrote? lol.

also did I actually answer your question, or missed out anything?

Yes, I understood
My question was whether Islam could explain moral change through theology e.g. perhaps Allah or the Quran predict a moral decline? My understanding of your answer is that society has changed and created the change is morals and it has little to do with Allah/Quran/Islam in that respect but Islam has changed to adapt to it.

 

[GabrielWithoutWings]

The Qur'aan states, "Do not go close to Zina."

The emphasis is on closing the doors and avenues leading to Zina. The face is the foremost part of a woman's beauty. A man is first attracted to the beauty of a woman and then endervours to have her. Once he is caught up with the sight of a woman's beauty, his heart and mind is consumed with that all the time. He now endervours to catch any glimpse at her. Shari'ah understands the nature of man and issues guidance according to his nature and instincts. The days of morality are gone when it was common for a man to lower his gaze in front of a woman. There is no or very little resistance nowadays. Therefore, the latter Fuqahaa have ruled that a woman should cover her face to close the doors of any evil subsequent to seeing the face of a woman.

Hmm.

What about women who are lustfully attracted to very handsome men? Are the men required to cover their face as well?

 

[Madhuri]

Hmm.

What about women who are lustfully attracted to very handsome men? Are the men required to cover their face as well?

This is something I am also curious about because women can be very lustful, and a handsome face will also take up our thoughts and influence our behaviour.

To Muslim members, is the difference only because it is generally men who are strong and rape women but even if the woman is lustful, she has no power to overcome the man?

 

[IsmailaGodHasHeard]

Oh, okay. I think I get it now.

 

[Bringing Truth]

Yes, I understood
My question was whether Islam could explain moral change through theology e.g. perhaps Allah or the Quran predict a moral decline? My understanding of your answer is that society has changed and created the change is morals and it has little to do with Allah/Quran/Islam in that respect but Islam has changed to adapt to it.

Islam has not changed, its the same. The view of covering the face is the opnions of learned scholars (fuqquha) and some scholars disagree with this. Islam is same from the start (time of the prophet muhammad (PBUH)) till now. Its only an opinion.

 

[Bringing Truth]

This is something I am also curious about because women can be very lustful, and a handsome face will also take up our thoughts and influence our behaviour.

To Muslim members, is the difference only because it is generally men who are strong and rape women but even if the woman is lustful, she has no power to overcome the man?

can you tell me, where in any report a women raped a man? or is it always the other way round male doing it to women?

 

[GabrielWithoutWings]

can you tell me, where in any report a women raped a man? or is it always the other way round male doing it to women?

Women don't usually rape men but they can sure seduce them.

 

[Reverend Rick]

Women don't usually rape men but they can sure seduce them.

Let's face it, we guys are weak.

 

[Bringing Truth]

Women don't usually rape men but they can sure seduce them.

you answered the question yourself, thats why women are commanded to cover themself. And males are commanded to protect their gaze.

 

[Pegg]

So its not the type of clothing that women wear which causes them to be raped... ie a muslim woman who is raped would have been wearing her full muslim attire

 

[beenie]

you answered the question yourself, thats why women are commanded to cover themself. And males are commanded to protect their gaze.

Rape is rarely about sex, Bringing Truth. It's about control. If covering women really prevented rape, Muslim-populated countries would have no rape. Please don't tell me how few rapes happen in Muslim countries, because we all know how underreported rape is in general, and even more so in Muslim-populated countries.

Reading this article (and many like it) I don't blame women for not reporting rape in these societies:

http://www.wisemuslimwomen.org/currentissues/stigmitizationofrape/

I found this interesting:

slam takes a firm stance, which states that rape is haram, or forbidden, and carries a strong and deterring punishment. Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, senior lecturer scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada states: “A raped woman is a victim that must be treated with honor and kindness. She is not required to produce four witnesses to prove the crime done against her, nor is she punished for the crime done against her.

in the same article, however:

In many Muslim societies, women are often held responsible and stigmatized for the violence against them. Rape continues to remain a taboo subject and in some cases women will face discrimination instead of the recognition and vital assistance they need after being abused. Some rape victims are murdered by relatives because the violation of a woman’s chastity is viewed as an attack to their family’s honor. Almost 50 percent of women in a study of female deaths in Alexandria, Egypt were killed by a relative after being raped.4 In a number of countries a rapist can go free under the penal code if he proposes to marry the victim.

It's so sad that these people still treat rape like a sex act, and blame the WOMAN for violent acts against them. Now tell me again, Bringing Truth, how does wearing a burqa protect these women? Looks like it's just more material to rip off.

 

[beenie]

The Qur'aan states, "Do not go close to Zina."

The emphasis is on closing the doors and avenues leading to Zina. The face is the foremost part of a woman's beauty. A man is first attracted to the beauty of a woman and then endervours to have her. Once he is caught up with the sight of a woman's beauty, his heart and mind is consumed with that all the time. He now endervours to catch any glimpse at her. Shari'ah understands the nature of man and issues guidance according to his nature and instincts. The days of morality are gone when it was common for a man to lower his gaze in front of a woman. There is no or very little resistance nowadays. Therefore, the latter Fuqahaa have ruled that a woman should cover her face to close the doors of any evil subsequent to seeing the face of a woman.

Ah, so the scholars have decided to punish the women for man's weakness. Got it. The Qur'an says nothing about covering one's face, so isn't it bidda' for "some" scholars to require it?