Sister Ardo responds to "Blog Niqaab"

The beard is the physical reminder of Islamic behaviour.

Asalaamu alaikum.

Thank you for posting on this. I loved Sister Ardo's response but hadn't had time to get back to her on it yet.

As to your question about how a physical reminder of Islamic behavior could apply to men: My Shaykh teaches that men should dress in the sunnah, including the turban in part for this reason. For example, he emphasizes that we (men & women) should dress fully for Fajr salat... not just throw on a kufi or khimar over our pj's and make the prayer while half-asleep then stumble back to bed. We should prepare ourselves fully to be in the presence of Allah, being fully cognizant of what we are saying and doing. So, in general, I would say it is the same for men: dress in the sunnah as a reminder of who you are and striving to live up to that.

As a woman, I would be ashamed to be "caught" behaving badly while dressed in a way that I know means I am being watched as an example Muslim behavior. Perhaps if men had half as much pressure upon them to dress more noticeably as a Muslim as well, they would feel the same way. Unfortunately, most men are able to "blend" better and therefore may not notice the same restraint put upon themselves subconsciously to live up to the character they are representing.

Sorry, I did not see brother Omar's comment when I commented. Most certainly, the beard is also a good reminder. :)

As William Shakespeare, Johannes Brahms, W. G. Grace, Charles Darwin and I- among others- can attest, a beard is not necessarily the physical reminder of islamic behaviour.

Whilst I admire and respect the Muslim sisters who are making a stand for the Hijab, and the Muslim brothers who are donning the beard, amongst other outwardly signs of ones commitment to Islam, there is something I find worrying.

I have seen many young girls with the Hijab in European cities behaving undesirably. Equally I have seen many Muslim men with beards behaving undesirably, rudely and without compassion.

The worry I have is that the core beliefs of Islam are being overtaken by symbology and signs intended to show that one is a Muslim to other people.

At the end of the day, one's belief is the strongest and most important in one's heart and of that only my Lord and Protector, Allah (SWT) is the judge. And to Him I show my physical signs of following His Will.

So whilst the symbols are ok, I am beginning to think that there maybe a small hint of applicability of the verses on the Golden Calf from Sura Al Baqra to what we are seeing right now with physical signs.

For those not familiar with these verses, it is about man's desire to prioritize, substitute and add details to the divine laws, when the laws of Allah (SWT) are in reality simple to apply.

My own physical reminder is in the act of prostration 5 times a day and worship of Allah (SWT) through other ways during the day (eg. quiet recitation). Sometimes however, it is not easy to find a place to pray when one is away from one's abode.

One of the things that I would call and hope for is a change in current society to enable believers to pray more easily at the right times through changes and acceptance of those changes in employment laws - more so than pushing for other physical reminders which can nevertheless still be important ways of pursuing the path of Islam.

Also to put thing in context I absolutely endorse the right of Muslims to don the Hijab, niqab or other such signs. Mine is however a general worry.

Asalaamu alaikum. Whatever, your points are EXACTLY what both myself and sister Ardo were discussing. Perhaps if you had read my blog entry and sister Ardo's response you would have realized that we are both absolutely advocating that our behavior and attitude must match those outer signs of our faith, and that we can utilize these outer trappings as a physical reminder to others of our Islam, but as a reminder to OURSELVES about the Islamic character we must strive to live to match the outer. :)

Assalamu Alaikum Aaminah,

I was actually responding with my personal opinion to Yusuf's question at the end of the posting on how it worked for us men; and threw in my worry which is a real one, with regard to outward signs of Muslim men and women. I have not actually come across your site but will take the time to check the references in Yusuf's posting. My intention was not to disagree or agree with your postings, although you have now stated that there is exact agreement.
Peace.:-)