Modesty [Haya] in Islam and Manners of Dressing

Society Religion & Philosophy
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Friday Nasiha #116

Our Dress serves three functions:

  • to protect the body from the weather, from heat and cold, wind and rain;
  • to adorn and beautify the human personality;
  • to help to safeguard the modesty and decency of a person and safeguard the moral ideals of a society. Dress therefore has a moral function.

Appropriate dress both for men and women is naturally important for a society where sexual relations is confined to marriage.To make it easy for people to live within the bounds of morality, they are required to wear clothes that conceal and not reveal or accentuate their bodily charms and thus reduce or eliminate temptations.

Islam, being a universal religion, has not prescribed a particular form, fashion, or style of dress. However, it sets certain requirements of dress whatever the climate or region. These requirements apply to both men and women:

1)Dress should cover a person’s 'AWRAH:

  • A man’s 'Awrah extends from the navel to the knee;
  • A woman’s 'Awrah is the whole body with the exception of face, hands, and feet.

2)Dress should not be transparent.
3)Dress should be loose-fitting.
4)Dress outside the home should not be worn for the sake of showiness, whether it is glamorous garments that make for pride or excite admiration and lust among the members of opposite genders, or promote envy among the same gendered people.
5)On the other hand, our garments should not be torn and rough either, worn in order to draw attention to poverty or alleged piety.
6)Men are not allowed to wear silk or gold and women should not wear perfume outside the home.
Proper dress is one of the outer symbols of the civilizing mission and power of Islam.

[Taken from “ISLAM: The Natural Way”, by Abdul Wahid Hamid, p. 88]

contd…

“I put my trust in Allah, my Lord and your Lord! There is not a moving creature, but He has a grasp of its forelock. Verily, my Lord is on the straight path. (The truth)”
(11:55-56)

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good one!!

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/smile.gif

~Survival of the smartest~

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Thanks Sadiaa..its great.. i am glad to see that someone else here also reads Friday Nasiha..i love all of their subscriptions..it's alway positive and informative..simple and non-confusing..

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[quote]
Originally posted by Qrius:
Thanks Sadiaa..its great.. i am glad to see that someone else here also reads Friday Nasiha..i love all of their subscriptions..it's alway positive and informative..simple and non-confusing..
[/quote]

Ditto !!! they simple and non-confusing.... i also love tht trivia part n heart softeners (hadith)

5

Safeguards of Social System of Islam

In order for the Social System of Islam to be able to function with all its potentialities, Islam has provided three kinds of Safeguards:

1- Self-purification (Tazkiya): A process by which a person is so educated and trained that he or she automatically begins to follow and obey the social system of Islam, regardless of whether there is or is not an external force to compel the person for obedience. [For example, in the Western society, where there are no external or institutionalized Islamic laws, Tazkiya is the basis of our civilization, modesty, chastity, and our interpersonal relations.]

2- Punitive Laws (Shariah): in an Islamic state prevent the commission of all such crimes that may disintegrate the Islamic social system or destroy any of its bases.

3- Preventative Measures: help organize social life in such a manner that it is inherently safeguarded against all sorts of unnatural excitement and artificial stimulation, and thus the possibilities of sexual anarchy are reduced to the minimum. Those people in the society who are not reformed spiritually (Tazkiya) and are not scared of the penal laws can be cautioned only by these Preventative measures. It is these measures (such as wearing modest and loose clothes, Hijab....etc.) that raise such barriers in their way despite their inclination towards sexual lawlessness and give rise to healthy family systems.

Self-Purification- The Foundation of Islamic Society:

A sound faith in Islam is the basic factor which requires its followers to obey the laws of its system. For the sake of one's personal guidance it is enough for one to know that a certain command is a Command of Allah, the most Just and Merciful, and that a prohibition is a prohibition by Him. Therefore, when you as a believer come to know from the Book of Allah that He forbids indulgence in obscenity and pervert or extra-marital sexual relations, your faith requires that you should not only abstain from indulging in it practically, but also keep your heart pure of all inclinations towards it. Similarly, when a Muslim woman or Muslim man comes to know that Allah and His Prophet (peace be upon him) have advised him or her to observe certain rules of modesty and dressing in public, he or she is required by their faith to accept those rules willingly and remain satisfied with them. That is why you are first invited to believe in Islam convincingly and have a strong faith in it, purifying yourself of all sorts of evil inclinations, and then are you given the moral and social instructions for their guidance in life.

This scheme of spiritual reform is the basis of not only the moral theory but the whole system of Islam. In the moral sphere, Islam has adopted a highly practical and sound process of educating its followers, known as Haya (principle of Modesty) ......[More on Haya will be presented in the next week's issue.]

[Taken from "Al-Hijab and the Status of Woman in Islam", by S. Abul Ala Maududi (Rahimahullah) , pp. 162-165]

contd...

[This message has been edited by Sadiaa (edited June 01, 2001).]

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thanks Sadiaa..once again..

May God Bless you..

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thnx

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/smile.gif

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Before any religion....
man is born naked and never wore clothes to cover or to protect oneslef or to enhance his/her beauty. Evolution brought all that.
Unfortunately the more we evolve the more you see us going towards nudity..that is back in time. As all things will eventually

cogito ergo sum... "I think therefore I am..." & "I am therefore I think"

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~ "When you do not have Haya, you may do whatever you please" ~

All sorts of crimes and evils in the society, such as adultery, theft, lying, drugs, AIDS, to name a few, run counter to a person's human nature, because these evil acts are committed under the impulse of his or her animalistic desires. All such acts have been described by the Quran using a comprehensive word "Munkar", which literally means "that which is unknown or little known". These acts have been called Munkar because they are supposed to be unknown and repugnant to the human nature. **Obviously, when they are against human nature and man commits them under the impulse of his animality, there must be in the human nature itself some system or measure which prevents man from approaching these sins. **And the Divine Law-Giver, Allah, has also specified this thing, known as Haya.

Literally, Haya means shyness or modesty. As an Islamic term, Haya implies that shyness which a wrongdoer feels before his own nature and before his Lord and Creator, Allah. This shyness is the force which prevents a person from indulging in indecency and obscenity.If, however, the person commits a sin under his or her animalistic nature (Nafs), the same shyness (Haya) makes him or her feel the pangs of conscience. The moral teachings of Islam aim at awakening this dormant feeling of shyness in human nature and try to develop it as a part of human being's mental make-up. This exactly is the explanation of the following Hadith: *"Every religion has a morality, and the morality of Islam is Haya" *

Another Hadith touches on the same subject as follows: "When you do not have Haya, you may do whatever you please." That's because when you do not have the weapon of Haya in yourself, your desires, which spring from your animal instincts, will lay complete hold of you, and you will not hesitate to indulge in any sin.

**It is should be understood that the feeling of Haya is inherent in man's Fitrah (in-born nature), though in a crude form. **It abhors all sins by nature, but lacks knowledge. Therefore, it does not know exactly why it abhors a particular sin. This lack of sharpness and knowledge gradually weakens its feeling of guilt and abhorrence, with the result that man begins committing sin under the impulse of his animality, and the repeated acts of sins at last destroy his sense of modesty altogether. The moral teachings of Islam aim to educate and sharpen our Haya. It not only acquaints it with the manifest sins, but also lays bare before man all the evils of desire and intention hidden in the innermost heart of man.

The sphere of Haya in the Islamic morality is so vast that it encompasses all aspects of human life. Thus, the aspect of a person's social life which is related to sex has also been reformed by Islam by means of Haya.Islam detects even the slightest lapses of human self in sexual affairs and warns Haya of their presence and exhorts it to be vigilant.

[Taken from "Al-Hijab and the Status of Woman in Islam", by S. Abul Ala Maududi (Rahimahullah) , pp. 165-166]

contd...

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Saadia,

what we cannot do is HAYA,
what we are used to or born with and is a norm of our daily lives is not HAYA.

for instance there are people who are scared to speak infron of people, that is also HAYA.
But they do wish they were like others who can talk.(in psychlogy they are introverts and extroverts, respectively)

Every person who had sex outside marriage before or after(for the very first time) felt a surge of GULIT(haya)
every person who lied for the very first time felt the same guilt(haya)

We can call it HAya, guilt or say other new name say "TACO". what we feel is simply cos we are not used to it or cos it is forbidden or deemed as a sin.

When I first started wearing shorts i really felt naked, embarassed, and god knows what not. BUt the more I wore it in summer the more I found out how comfortable it felt especially in humid and hot areas.

Religion asks you to be PRACTICAL first and then FANATIC later.

PARDAH or HIJAB was imposed cos WOMEN were thrid class commodities of MEN. The more people got so called civilized the more they found out girls are more practical. more balanced and more ard working than a man. Hence when women started working in western culture they became more practical tat included from cutting their hair(supposed to be the biggest disgrace for women, and less hijab and less clothes(going too far in their practicality)).

Haya is your aura your beauty within not some physical aspect of your life. HAya is when 10 people are sitting in a rom and a person be it a guy or a girl is noticed by not their physical charm or beauty but the way they fill the room with happiness without speaking a word.

This may be too deep for soem folks or nonsensical for others. but deep down you know who you are what you are. Physical aspect of life is SUPERFICIALand SUPERIMPOSED

cogito ergo sum... "I think therefore I am..." & "I am therefore I think"

11

~ "When you do not have Haya, you may do whatever you please" ~

All sorts of crimes and evils in the society, such as adultery, theft, lying, drugs, AIDS, to name a few, run counter to a person's human nature, because these evil acts are committed under the impulse of his or her animalistic desires. All such acts have been described by the Quran using a comprehensive word "Munkar", which literally means "that which is unknown or little known". These acts have been called Munkar because they are supposed to be unknown and repugnant to the human nature. **Obviously, when they are against human nature and man commits them under the impulse of his animality, there must be in the human nature itself some system or measure which prevents man from approaching these sins. **And the Divine Law-Giver, Allah, has also specified this thing, known as Haya.

*Literally, Haya means shyness or modesty. As an Islamic term, Haya implies that shyness which a wrongdoer feels before his own nature and before his Lord and Creator, Allah. This shyness is the force which prevents a person from indulging in indecency and obscenity. **If, however, the person commits a sin under his or her animalistic nature (Nafs), the same shyness (Haya) makes him or her feel the pangs of conscience. The moral teachings of Islam aim at awakening this dormant feeling of shyness in human nature and try to develop it as a part of human being's mental make-up. This exactly is the explanation of the following Hadith: *"Every religion has a morality, and the morality of Islam is Haya" **

**Another Hadith touches on the same subject as follows: "When you do not have Haya, you may do whatever you please." That's because when you do not have the weapon of Haya in yourself, your desires, which spring from your animal instincts, will lay complete hold of you, and you will not hesitate to indulge in any sin.

It is should be understood that the feeling of Haya is inherent in man's Fitrah (in-born nature), though in a crude form. **It abhors all sins by nature, but lacks knowledge. Therefore, it does not know exactly why it abhors a particular sin. This lack of sharpness and knowledge gradually weakens its feeling of guilt and abhorrence, with the result that man begins committing sin under the impulse of his animality, and the repeated acts of sins at last destroy his sense of modesty altogether. The moral teachings of Islam aim to educate and sharpen our Haya. It not only acquaints it with the manifest sins, but also lays bare before man all the evils of desire and intention hidden in the innermost heart of man.

The sphere of Haya in the Islamic morality is so vast that it encompasses all aspects of human life. Thus, the aspect of a person's social life which is related to sex has also been reformed by Islam by means of Haya.Islam detects even the slightest lapses of human self in sexual affairs and warns Haya of their presence and exhorts it to be vigilant.

[Taken from "Al-Hijab and the Status of Woman in Islam", by S. Abul Ala Maududi (Rahimahullah) , pp. 165-166]