What is Hijab?
In Islam, women and men are required to dress modestly. Hijab encourages modesty, both physically and spiritually.
When a woman covers her head as per Allah’s command, it is her way of showing her belief in Allah and accepting all his commands. It makes the connection between the Almighty and that woman stronger.
It is not just a order but the sagacity behind it. The Law of Islam (Shari’ah) forbids the gathering of men and women together, their mixing, intermingling, and crowding together, as well as the revealing and exposure of women to men. Because they contribute to the arousal of desires and the commission of indecency and wrongdoing, these actions are prohibited.
“O Prophet ! When traveling, instruct your daughters and wives, as well as the believing women, to cover their bodies with clothing: that is most convenient, that they ought to be known (as such) and that they should not be abused. And Allah is the Most Merciful and Forgiving.” [Quran 33:59]
So, Hijab is for their Protection from hex.
Which body parts should a women cover in pardah?
As Allah mentioned in Quran “Bring your outer garments up to your chest”. This verse makes it abundantly clear that a woman must cover all of her beauty and adornments, and she must not show any of them to non-mahram men (strangers) unless it appears unintentionally, in which case they will not be guilty of a sin if they rush to cover it up.
So, face of a women also includes in her beauty. And from this verse it’s clear that its mandatory to cover her face.
Is Hijab compulsory?
Because it is explicitly mentioned in the Quran and hadith, all scholars are in agreement that wearing the hijab is obligatory and a sin. Nevertheless, like everything else in Islam, it is a choice.
Everything in Islam, including being a Muslim, is a choice, including drinking alcohol and praying. However, just because something is a choice does not mean that you should make it:
“The truth is from your Lord.” Then whosoever wills, let him believe; and whosoever wills, let him disbelieve. Verily, We have prepared for the wrongdoers, a Fire whose walls will be surrounding them. And if they ask for drink, they will be granted water like Al-Muhl, that will scald their faces. [Quran Al-kahf-Ayat 29]
We are guided to follow a set of instructions, but we are free to decide whether or not we want to. We will be rewarded in the dunya and beyond if we choose to follow it; otherwise, we will be punished. In any case, because they exercised their free will, everyone will be held accountable for their actions in this life.
You see the same pattern applied to other things such as free-mixings, physical interaction between the genders, drinking, and so on. For further exploration, check out this article about Imp of Hijab.
The “belief is in the heart, not in our actions, so Allah should judge us by that” mentality causes this kind of behavior to have a huge impact on society and lead to a very steep slope where things only get worse.
And we should not even pray because Imman is in our Hearts?