Justifying Hijab Is Rank Nonsense!
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
14 June
2023
One reader,
Shaheen is of the view that "Hijab is Farz mandated by the Quran and
anyone who calls it not mandatory, is not a Muslim". The reader must read
Tavleen Singh's latest column in The Indian Express (Sunday, June 11). In her
article, " Fifth column by Tavleen Singh: No More Dog Whistles, Please," she trenchantly writes,
" A Saudi woman astronaut has just returned from a trip to the
International Space Station. In a country in which till just the other day
women were not allowed to drive a car the changes that are taking place are
miraculous.
In India,
Muslim women are marching firmly backwards. In Srinagar last week there were
problems at a girls’ school because the principal said girls should not be
covered in Arab style robes and headgear when they came to school. There was so
much resistance over this that the poor principal backed down and requested his
students to at least wear burqas and hijabs that were in the colours of the
school uniform. For this to be happening in a state where women were allowed to
pray in mosques and where a burqa was almost never seen before jihadism
arrived, this is truly sad. "
It's a
matter of pity that in India, the Muslim women themselves are in favour of
covering their faces and the irony is that they call it an expression of
freedom! Sorry, this is a reverse expression of freedom. Their plight is
aggravated by chauvinistic men who will say that, "not wearing a hijab is
not always an expression of freedom."
I'm afraid,
subcontinental Muslims are the most fanatic and backward on many counts. Their
understanding of Islam comes via Deobandi and Barelvi factions of Sunni Islam
in South Asia. Because of abiding differences between them, these two sub-sects
have built up walls of hatred and mistrust between them over time. As we say in
Swahili, "Kef Betwe Rim Ze'no' Tona Empute" (When two
elephants fight, grass suffers). The majority of bovine-brained Muslims of the
sub-continent suffer because the clerics of these two sub-sects fight and issue
prehistoric edicts that are mandatory.
Is a
woman's existence limited to wearing a hijab or Abaya? You're subjugated when
you're willing to be subjugated. These women must realize that nowhere in their
Quran, wearing a hijab has been mandated. It's not a Farz. Quran is the
most ambiguous and interpretative book, written and compiled by many an
amanuensis. That's why there're so many sects, sub-sects and a battery of
armchair interpreters and exegetes, explaining its 6, 234 mostly obscure verses
in their own way. There's no unanimity and uniformity. Here comes your own
prudence and contemporary thinking that can enable you to think rationally. You
cannot lead your life as per the diktats of a 7th-century desert book meant for
the yokels of that era.
The
reader's name is Shaheen, which's a gender-neutral name. Yet, I assume that the
reader is a female. Anyway, whether a male or a female, remember what Allama
Iqbal said, "Nahin Tera Nasheman Qasr-e-Sultani Ke Gunbad Par/ Tu
SHAHEEN Hai, Basera Kar Paharon Ki Chattanon Mein" (Your abode is not
on the dome of a royal palace / You're a FALCON, live in the rocks of the
mountains).
Fly high,
don't crawl and die wearing a hideous black mask throughout your life. This is
not your destiny. Nor should you justify this idiocy, because to justify is to
falsify.
----
A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul
is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He
has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several
languages including Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/justifying-hijab-nonsense/d/129991