'covered' muslim women and sunlight?

Question

Hello,

I really don't mean to offend by asking this question, so please don't anybody be offensive in their answer.

I just wondered about when muslim women are covered up all the time they are outside, how do they make enough vitamin D? How do they experience periferal vision and wind in their hair and rain on their skin ?

I am very focused on my connection with nature and I love to go to wild places by myself and feel wild/free/peaceful. I also dress pretty modestly all the time,(ie I dont show off anything except my arms and lower legs - which I don't think of as sexual).

What I want to know (honestly, without judgement) is why in some cultures women feel they must cover themselves completely?

Answer 1

Hijab is optional. Its only required in countries like Iran. Vitamin D can be from other sources, taking multivitamins can help.

Answer 2

Do you notice how people who live in the dessert dress.
There are blends of cottons and other breathable fabrics that makes people rather cool in the hot sun .

I wear a head scarf and long sleeves and I must say it is not uncomfortable, its just the same as if a nakes person came to you and ask "why do you wear clothes, you won't be able to feel the sun and rain hit you, do you feel free?"

I am very much in love with nature, and go on long walks, wearing clothes doesn't hender me in anyway. I didn't always wear hijab, and really there is no difference. Its as comfortable to me as wearing clothes is to others.



To your last questions, in cultural as far as dress and speech there is no right and wrong. There are some cultures that are nuded, some are covered, and others are inbetween or switch between the two. People are different. And many cultures hold beliefs very dear, Muslims men and women hold dressing modest very dear, we Love God and want to obey him. Remember and noticed how Nuns and Mary (Peace and blessing be upon her) dressed?



Artist :) Peace Be Upon You

PS: Covering the face is not in The Quran, I cover my hair.

Answer 3

I live near the beach so every summer i'm down there with my son and every year there is a family of these women and their kids and husbands and they go swimming with everything on even their headscarves,it's quite sad to see but they alway's look like they are having a good time,it's just a shame that they have to come out of the sea dripping wetxx

Answer 4

There is a wisdom behind muslim women covering up. If u have a priceless jewel, would u flaunt it to da whole world for them to 'want/steal' it or would u hide it and keep it safe? Muslim women are jewels so the men cover them up so that other men do not look at them. Why is it that affairs r so common in western countries? Its cos men and women are free to lust after each other openly.

Answer 5

It is part of the religon. Muslim women are required to cover up. There are other ways to stay cool and get vitamins. In the Arab world, many houses are airconditioned. Also there garments are made of cotton so they dont feel the heat. Also, they are used to wearing the long dresses.

Answer 6

It's backed up in the Qur'an and in a Hadith that all believing Muslim women must cover everything except the eyes. Those who don't aren't reading the Hadiths at all. We get Vitamin D by drinking milk. Also since it never rains in the Gulf countries there's no reason to uncover. Plus you can be arrested in most Gulf countries if you uncover anyway. Plus we don't have to worry about getting sunburned or skin cancer. Plus women can't go outside without their husband or other mahram.

Answer 7

i wear my hijab when i'm out in public around men who are not related to me such as my bro, father, nephew and husband. otherwise if i'm at home and there are no men i'm not wearing it. i go to ladies only clubs were i don't wear it and i get more than enough sun and vitamin d.
plus there are other ways to get vit d.

i don't have a prob wearing the hijab. God asked me to do it and so i do it. yeah it's an everyday struggle but it's for Him and i feel incomplete with out it.
and no it doesn't affect my vision cuz i don't cover my face. that's only optional. and like i said i only wear it when there are non-related men around so it's not like i'm in it 24/7 and forgot what the wind feels like?

Answer 8

Hello,

Some of my information on here was copy and pasted from different websites...

How can I get enough vitamin D?
Vitamin D has been referred to as "the sunshine vitamin." Your body can make vitamin D from casual sun exposure of short duration (as little as 5 to 15 minutes of sunshine per day, two to three times per week on the face and hands).

i got the above statement from this website: http://lesann.tripod.com/vitamin%20d.htm

So that cover the vitamin d question. Because when you wear the scarf your face, hands, feet show.
There are people who wear the scarf and cover everything except the eyes. This is optional and is by NO MEANS stated in the Quran or hadith. It is a cultural dress that dates back to the prophet's time (pbuh). This was because both men and women lived in the dessert and windy places where sand would usually get in there eyes and may cause infections. That is why men wore turbans (that went over there mouths) and women (Muslim or not) wore head and face coverings so the sand would not bother them.

I to love nature, and am a very natural person. My family and i own hybrid cars and drink organic milk etc...and have a strong desire to help our planet and keep it in its best condition. But your clothing does not have to interfere with your "connecting with nature". My family and i go to palm springs all the time and we take hikes and everything. At that time , when i would take hike ( we haven’t been lately), i didn’t wear the scarf. But my mom did and she was the one who was in front of me, my brothers and my dad. So the clothes don’t bother unless you wear like an oscar dress..but who would do that while hiking?

To answer your last Q.....in some cultures women must cover them selves completley. This is very sad and is again by NO MEANS in the Quran. It is actually a sin to force myou daughter, wife, sister etc.. to wear the scarf. I wear the scarf half the time and it is my decession to. My parents support me in whatever my choice is and they are and always will support me. In our religion (not culture..differance) women who reach the age of pubert are obliged to wear the hijab.
But there is about 2 or 3 verses in the Quran that talk about the hijab..anbd yest many people and obses over it.

"O Prophet, tell ..... 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..."(Quran 33:59)
there was also another verse about the scarf but i couldnt find it.

Weather people take this as wearing the hijob or not...one thing is for sure modesty and chastity must be practiced.

even men must be modest.
"Say to the believing man 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..."(Quran 24:30-31)

Misconception: The veil eliminates its wearer's identity

Veils do not take away identity, but rather can be markers of identity. They are not only symbolic of faith, but are also a form of visual expression. The veil can reveal many things about its wearer as an individual including:

-where they are from
-tribal association
-status/rank
-the event they are attending such as a wedding or funeral
-marital status
-a woman's skill as a textile maker

Veiling is not foreign to Western society. Veiling was practiced in Ancient Greece and throughout the Mediterranean before Islam was founded, and is still practiced today in Western societies. For example, brides wear veils, nuns wear veils, and widows often wear veils. Why are Western women who wear veils not considered oppressed? Perhaps because Western women are familiar with their traditions and unfamiliar with Muslim traditions, they view Muslim veiling as completely different. When something is different people choose to see it the way they want to. Westerners have chosen to understand the veil as an oppressive tradition, when in fact, the veil is only oppressive when it is enforced.

Quotes from women in North America who choose to veil:

"We want to stop men from treating us like sex objects, as they have always done. We want them to ignore our appearance and to be attentive to our personalities and mind. We want them to take us seriously and treat us as equals and not just chase us around for our bodies and physical looks."

"When a woman is covered, men cannot judge her by her appearance but are forced to evaluate her by her personality, character, and morals. 'The hijab is not a responsibility, it's a right given to me by my Creator who knows us best. It's a benefit to me, so why not? It's something every woman should strive to get and should want."

some of my information also came from this website: http://www.skidmore.edu/academics/arthistory/ah369/finalveil.htm

i highly recommend you take a look at it. it will clear up many of your questions.
I hope my answer helped.


God Bless

Answer 9

its the religon and the men in certain countrys.i no what you mean not feeling wind in your hair or even a nice tan in the summer must be awful for them.

Answer 10

because their men are too horny.

the burqa is there to 'prevent the lustful gaze of men'

which is pretty nasty, considering that girls start wereing it at around 3-4 yrs of age. (eeewww!)