Do Muslim women have to wear hijab?
The classical scholars were unanimous that the khimār — covering of the head and chest — is a Qurʾanic requirement. The debate at the edges is about the face, the hands, and the cultural forms. Here is the classical textual basis.
10 passages from 6 books in the library
The classical approach.
These passages are drawn from 6 books by Ibn al-Qayyim, Ibn Battuta, and Imam al-Ghazali — part of the classical Sunni tradition that carries over a thousand years of reflection on the Qurʾān, the authentic Sunnah, and the consensus of the early community. Nothing below is a paraphrase. The words are the scholars' own, translated from the original Arabic manuscripts.
14th century · Damascus, Syria
Madārij al-Sālikīn — the classical map of the spiritual journey — and a vast body of work on the soul, love, the traps of the ego, and the nature of the heart.
More on Ibn al-Qayyim →
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"yet He feels shy." And in a narration: "Whoever feels shy before اللّٰه, اللّٰه will feel shy before him." [Categories of Modesty] Modesty is divided into ten categories: modesty due to sin, modesty due to shortcomings, modesty out of reverence, modesty of generosity, modesty of decency, modesty from belittling oneself, modesty of love, modesty of servitude, modesty of honor and dignity, and modesty of being shy with oneself."
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"modesty from belittling oneself, modesty of love, modesty of servitude, modesty of honor and dignity, and modesty of being shy with oneself. The modesty of transgression is illustrated by آدَم, peace be upon him, when he fled in the Garden. اللّٰه the Almighty said: "Are you fleeing from Me, O آدَم?" He replied, "No, my Lord, but out of modesty before You.""
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"along with the realization that one's servitude is inadequate for the worshipped, whose worth is far greater. Thus, one's servitude leads to modesty before the worshipped. The modesty of honor and dignity is the modesty of a great soul when performing acts of generosity or kindness that are beneath its stature. It feels modesty alongside its generosity, a modesty of noble self-respect."
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"generosity or kindness that are beneath its stature. It feels modesty alongside its generosity, a modesty of noble self-respect. This has two reasons: the aforementioned, and the modesty felt towards the recipient, as if the giver is the one receiving. Some generous individuals cannot face those they give to out of modesty, feeling modesty from the recipient's embarrassment."
14th century · Damascus, Syria
Madārij al-Sālikīn — the classical map of the spiritual journey — and a vast body of work on the soul, love, the traps of the ego, and the nature of the heart.
More on Ibn al-Qayyim →
· Provenance →
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"Then He informed us that the covering of heedlessness and forgetfulness is lifted from him on that Day, just as the covering of sleep is lifted from the heart so that it awakens, and from the eye so that it opens. So the lifting of this covering from the servant at the moment he beholds the truth is like the lifting of the covering of sleep from him at the moment of waking."
14th century · Tangier, Morocco
The Riḥlah — a 30-year, 75,000-mile journey across three continents, and the most important travel account of the pre-modern world.
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"would punish any of them found drunk. These Turks were people of valor and bravery, frequently launching raids into Indian lands where they would seize and kill, occasionally capturing some Muslim women from Indian lands amid the infidels. Upon bringing them to Khorasan, Nizamuddin would free the Muslim women from Turk captors. Muslim women in India customarily did not pierce their ears, unlike non-Muslims whose ears were pierced. Once, a Turkish prince named Timur Aladi captured a woman he strongly desired, claiming she was Muslim. The jurists took her from him. This enraged the Turk so much that he mounted an"
14th century · Damascus, Syria
Madārij al-Sālikīn — the classical map of the spiritual journey — and a vast body of work on the soul, love, the traps of the ego, and the nature of the heart.
More on Ibn al-Qayyim →
· Provenance →
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"The more complete these qualities are in a person, the stronger and more complete their life is. This is why the trait of modesty is derived from life itself, both in name and reality. The most complete in life are those most complete in modesty, and a person's lack of modesty reflects a deficiency in their life. When the soul dies, it no longer feels the pain of disgraceful acts and thus does not shy away from them."
14th century · Damascus, Syria
Madārij al-Sālikīn — the classical map of the spiritual journey — and a vast body of work on the soul, love, the traps of the ego, and the nature of the heart.
More on Ibn al-Qayyim →
· Provenance →
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"As it is said, when Iblis sees the radiance of his face, he greets him saying, I sacrifice for one who will never succeed. Modesty is derived from life and rain is called hayyan because it brings life to the earth, plants, and animals. Similarly, modesty brings life to both this world and the hereafter. Whoever lacks modesty is dead in this world and wretched in the hereafter."
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"Similarly, modesty brings life to both this world and the hereafter. Whoever lacks modesty is dead in this world and wretched in the hereafter. Sins and the lack of modesty and protective jealousy are interlinked from both sides, each calling eagerly for the other. One who feels shy of God when committing a sin prompts God to withhold his punishment on the day he meets him."
11th–12th century · Ṭūs, Khurāsān
Reviving the inner life of Islam through the Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn — one of the most influential works ever written in any religious tradition.
More on Imam al-Ghazali →
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"His father replied, "Religion. Ibn Luqman continued, "And if there are two? His father answered, "Religion and wealth. "Three? he asked. "Religion, wealth, and modesty," came the reply. "Four? he inquired. "Religion, wealth, modesty, and good character," his father said. "Five? he asked again. His father concluded, "Religion, wealth, modesty, good character, and generosity."
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Every stop of the thirty-year journey, on one map — with the passage from the Riḥla for each: Ibn Baṭṭūṭa's route, mapped →