Muslims: Can a female follow Islam and NOT wear Hajab?

Question

Serious question, I want to learn: What would happen if a Muslim women wanted to attend the mosque not wearing hajab (in North America)? Would she be removed? Can Muslim women claim to be Muslim if they do not practice Hajab? Anyone here who does this? How do people react? Is it true that Christianity also once promoted covering? Is it possible that although God/Allah wants us all to dress modestly, it was MAN who misunderstood and manipulated that passage to mean that women must be covered from head to toe?

I'd prefer *REAL* answers from actual Muslims, please!

Dolph...that would be "khimār"....is that not mentioned? Perhaps I am using the wrong terminology...

Please note that I find Islam fascinating and am Christian. This is a respectful question from someone who is truly curious.

Answer 1

The Muslim woman is obliged to wear hijab in front of non-mahram men, because of a great deal of well-known evidence, such as the verses (interpretation of the meaning):

“O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (veils) all over their bodies (i.e. screen themselves completely except the eyes or one eye to see the way). That will be better, that they should be known (as free respectable women) so as not to be annoyed. And Allaah is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful”

[al-Ahzaab 33:59]

“And tell the believing women to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts) and not to show off their adornment except only that which is apparent (like both eyes for necessity to see the way, or outer palms of hands or one eye or dress like veil, gloves, headcover, apron), and to draw their veils all over Juyoobihinna (i.e. their bodies, faces, necks and bosoms) and not to reveal their adornment except to their husbands, or their fathers, or their husband’s fathers, or their sons, or their husband’s sons, or their brothers or their brother’s sons, or their sister’s sons, or their (Muslim) women (i.e. their sisters in Islam), or the (female) slaves whom their right hands possess, or old male servants who lack vigour, or small children who have no sense of feminine sex. And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornment. And all of you beg Allaah to forgive you all, O believers, that you may be successful”

[al-Noor 24:31]

Ruling on preventing women with improper hijab from entering the mosque

Question:
Is it permissible to prohibit women who are not covered in the proper islaamic covering from entering the masjid ? (after they have been given the proper naseeha) Please advise the daleel.
Jazzakallahu khayrun

Answer:

Praise be to Allaah Alone, and peace and blessings be upon him after whom there is no Prophet.

If a woman comes to the mosque wearing improper hijab, then according to Islam she should be advised and have explained to her – with the daleel or proof – the fact that hijab is obligatory, and the seriousness of neglecting it. If she then complies, then praise be to Allah. If she does not comply, then do not let her enter, because of the fitnah (temptation) and evil involved in her actions. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Any woman who has put on bukhoor (incense, fragrance) should not attend this ‘Isha’ prayer with us.” (Reported by Muslim, 675). And he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said concerning women’s going out to the mosque: “Let them go out unperfumed” (reported by Abu Dawood, 478), i.e., not wearing any perfume. Women have to go out wearing complete Islamic hijab, and not wearing adornment or perfume. And Allaah knows best.


Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid

please read this also
http://www.islamqa.com/index.php?ref=3313&ln=eng&txt=learn%20islam

Answer 2

I'm Muslim and I don't wear Hijab. I think all Muslim women wear hijab inside the mosque out of respect, same as Christian Women in Church (most Churches, at least the ones that follow the Bible) but I'm not sure because I don't go to the Mosque here. OH and yeah the Bible actually specifically talks about head covers, while the Quran doesn't!

and YES women DO NOT have to cover from head to toe, that's ridiculous. It's mostly Culture; if you go to these countries you'll find that even women who are not Muslim there, like Christians or people of other religions, still Cover their Hair! it's mostly about culture, and I can assure that islam is about much more than just a head cover. I am not saying that there is something wrong with wearing a veil (hijab), i respect women who choose to wear it.

For more information you can ask for a free copy of the Quran :

http://www.freekoran.com/

Answer 3

Depends on the mosque. For Eid there were a ton who wore it and ripped it off the second they were done praying. I don't have a problem personally with the fact that they don't wear it but it looked horrible the way they acted afterwards...and on EID we all celebrate at the mosque together. Women would wear a big Abaya and then rip it off to basically prance around and show off their stuff after the prayer. This is not just my judgment, it is what many of them will admit too. So many people show up...and ...well...they think it's a possible way to meet somebody for marriage.

A couple of times on EID I saw women not wear hijab at all and depending on the mosque community they could very well be harassed.

PPL can claim to be anything they want. Many Muslim women I have known have not worn hijab at one time or another. When I first converted I didn't wear it all the time.

I'm a convert so the way ppl react is kinda weird. If I say salaam they are suspicious...but if an Arab did this and didn't wear hijab they are usually quite warm with her.

Yes, hijab is in Christianity as well -- just look at the nuns, the Amish etc...Jews too...

"Anything is possible"as they say but I think you are just trying to look for a way out of a practice of Islam. I could be wrong though.

Best of luck to you. :)

Answer 4

Well, whenever a Muslim woman goes to the mosque, she MUST wear the hijab. If she doesn't wear it, she'll not be removed, but someone else might ask her politely to put one on, or leave the mosque out of respect. But I've never seen this happen. Most Muslim women know that when they go to the mosque, they have to wear the hijab, or any other sort of head covering.

Anyway, there's LOTS of Muslim women out there that do not wear the hijab. In North America, there are more Muslim women that do not wear the hijab as opposed to those who do wear it. Most people don't really care, most of my female relatives do not wear it, so only the really religious Muslims will have a problem with it.

And I don't see the big deal over the Muslim head covering. Nuns in Christianity cover their hair, so what's the big deal? Anyway, yes, God wants us to dress modestly, and you are correct, that man has misunderstood and interpreted God's words that women must be covered from head to toe. Not true. In Islam, women are allowed to show their face, hands, and feet. That face covering is an example of extremism btw.

And if you want to follow Islam and not wear the hijab, that's entirely up to you. Most Muslims don't really care, but as I said before, just make sure you wear it when you go to the mosque.

And that's very nice that you're considering Islam =) Don't listen to any other crap by other ppl on here

EDIT: You don't HAVE to wear the hijab, you can just wear any type of head covering if you like. And, as the guy below me said, you're not any less of a believer if you don't wear the hijab or cover your hair.

Answer 5

First of all respect the religion in which you born. I am a non religious person but I am born in some religion and despite of being non religous and not following any of the traditions , I still proudly say that I was born in XYZ religion. Changing religion - that would be an insult to the decision what you called a GOD made for you. and trust you are not getting any closer to GOD by doing it. you only get closer to a particular belief system.

By the way when GOD created Adam and Eve did he sent them with any hijab or coverings... no they were bare naked.
what does this means, that GOD forget to put some clothes on them or he hasnt invented clothes at that time. and If you dont wear hijab/cover your self in a GOD's place call it a mosque / church/ temple whatever will GOD feel shame of you ? you can only understand GOD if you dare to see the truth bare naked... not with coverings of religion or any belief system.

Stop chasing the religions of the world as they are all created by man and even manipulated later on... the human kind will suffer the pain for creating religions until they find a way out of it.

Answer 6

Sister, I'm assuming you have never visited any of the following Muslim-majority countries: Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunis, Turkey, Syria, Malaysia, or Indonesia...amongst others.

There are many practicing Muslim women in the world who don't wear the hijab. Are they any less "mu'mineen" (believers) than those who wear them? I would hate to be the judge of that, even though I seen muhajabat who wear inappropriate tight clothes or reveal parts of their body that don't match their hijab-wearing intentions, but once again, who am I to judge them? I need to concentrate my time and effort on improving my beliefs instead of judging women who may be far better than me.

Furthermore, I do know that Iman (Belief) is in the heart and not in what you wear. Practicing Muslim women who pray will always wear the hijab during prayer or when they visit the mosque, regardless of whether or not they wear it all the time.

So, my advice to Muslim women who are going to hajjib is that you must be totally convinced about what you are doing before you put on the hijab. Contrary to what the west thinks, the hijab is NOT a symbol of oppression, but of respect and humbleness to God.

Answer 7

Since the height of the feminist movement in the late 70's there has been a magnifying glass placed over the status of muslim
women. Unfortunately, the magnifying glass that has been used is an unusual one. Unusual in the sense that it is very selective
about which items it will magnify; other items itwill distort to such a degree that they will no longer look familiar. I remember
once reading in an "in depth" article about the lives of muslim women. This article "explained" that at any time a man can
divorce his wife by simply stating "I divorce you, I divorce you, I divorce you". This article can lead anyone ignorant of the
Islamic ruling regarding divorce to believe that in less than five seconds the woman is left with no husband and is left to care
for herself (and possibly children) by any means necessary. The question that immediately popped up in my mind was, "Did
the author innocently write that out of sincere ignorance or was it another of the many attempts to degrade the religion of Islam
and its followers (muslims)?" It may be my own paranoia, but I tend to believe it was the latter of the two.

The truth of the matter is that Islam has the most humane and most just system of divorce that exists. Firstly, many options are
taken and tried before coming to the decision of the divorce. If the man and woman decide that they can no longer live
together successfully as a husband and wife, the husband (in most cases, not always) pronounces the divorce by saying "I
divorce you". At this point the waiting period begins. The waiting period lasts for three menstrual cycles to assure the woman
is not pregnant. This period allows the couple time to think about what they are doing and if this is what they really want to do.
There are no lawyers involved to antagonise an already delicate situation. In the case that it is realised, that the woman is
pregnant, the waiting period lasts the entire time she is pregnant. During the waiting period (whether the woman is pregnant or
not) the man is obligated to provide food, clothing and shelter to the woman as he did before the divorce pronouncement. If
the couple carries the divorce through to the birth of the child and the woman suckles the baby, the man is obligated to feed
and clothe both his ex-wife for the time the woman suckles (the maximum being two years). After this weaning, the child will
be provided for by the father until he/she is no longer in need of support.

It is quite ironic that in such an "advanced society" as America, there are divorce cases in which women are being forced to pay alimony to their ex-husbands. Can this and many other things we know about the American system of divorce compare to the Islamic system of divorce?

I have also read stories wherein it is stated that women are forced to marry men without their consent. This in no way
resembles the marriage system in Islam. In Islaam the woman marries the man of her choice. She may even marry someone that her mother and/or father objects to. The point is that it is the woman who makes the final decision as to whom she will marry. Once the man and the woman decide that they are interested in one another for marriage, a dowry is decided upon. A dowry is not a brides price but, it is a gift from the groom to the bride. They agree upon a gift that is affordable by the groom. In the time of the Prophet (sas), often things such as livestock and money were given. This is a wise decision in the event that a woman becomes divorced or widowed, she has some financial security to fall back on even if it is for a limited amount of time. Once the man and woman are married, the man is required to clothe, feed, shelter and educate her (or allow her to be aducated) in the same manner as he does himself.

The last distorted image that I will cover is that of the muslim women's dress. The western influenced media portrays our dress to be outdated and oppressive. Needless to say however, I differ with these adjectives. Our dress code does not hinder us from doing anything productive in our lives. Muslim women maintain a variety of jobs [under necessity], non of which are devalued nor hampered due to their dress code. And as for the timing of muslims women's dress during these contemporary times, it seems most appropriate due to decreasing morals in the world today.

For those who say that Islamic dress is outdated, they speak from great ignorance. The decreasing molarity and trials of this time makes Hijaab even more in need. More than ever before sex crimes are rampant. Although this society tells women they can wear what they want to wear, anytime a rape occurs the woman is the one put on trial an one of the first questions is, "What were you wearing?" This concept seems as though it is a set up directed against the so called contemporary woman. Also there is a direct correlation between the respect a man has for a woman and the amount of her body her body she displays flauntigly.

In conclusion, I hope this article helped to clear up some distorted/misunderstood aspects of Islam and women. Women in
Islam are respected and held in high regard. We will never find success and/or solutions to our problems until we realise that
Allaah knows best and that this disbelieving society will ruin itself.

Taken from Hudaa magazine, Jamaica, New York.

Answer 8

I dont know if she can still follow islam but I know many muslim women who dont wear hijab. Instead, they just wear a big coat and a scarf. In a mosque she does not to wear hijab but must cover. Men should cover too. It would be VERY pleasing to Allah if they did cover.

Answer 9

http://www.islaam.ca/index.php?searchword=hijab&option=com_search&Itemid=5

This is what Muslim Sisters who wear Hijab and Niqab say about it. One article in particular answers the debate about Niqab.

http://www.islaam.ca/forum/view-44.html

Answer 10

To my understanding, yes. We had to learn all about the Muslim religion in school so we didn't mistake all Muslims for terrorists.