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by Abdul'Ham8'ecl Al-BsJlali

·Tran-sJs'ted ,in :'0 Enigli~h ,trF,ee Tre;,n'slationU by

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Dearest Sister :

By Abdul Hameed Al-Balali

Translated into English 'UPlieeTranslation" by Wael F. Tsbba'.

Copy Riights Reserved Filrs·t EdiUan 1994 G~ ~ 1415 IH.

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Tr anslator ' s I ntrn ductiol1

Thanks are only due 1:0 Allah, the High and Alrnighry.and Peace Be Upon Him who no M:,essenger win be sent after.

Upon reading, the book of AI ... Balali ~ I was very impressed about the way it tackles the problems of the 'modem MusUrns, and the way it attacks dubiosities, and handle them one by one, Consequently I was hoping that our Muslim, Arabic Language should benefit of this book, That was the reason that compelledme to translate: it into the English language,

The translations of the meanings ofthe Holy Quran was based on the work of AbdullahYousef AlL

The translations of the meanings of the Hadeeths of the Messenger of Allah was based on, the nearest possible meaning that the modem English language can give to that

narradon. "

'This translation was done on a free basis hoping to! capture the true spirit with which itwas written. For an attempt to do it in other w,ay win casue it '~O lose a lot of its power.

Finally I hope that thiswork, will benefit our brothers and sisters in Islam" and I ask them to pray and make "Du'a'' for the writer" myself:" and all those 'who participated in making: it available for the public, '

Peace be upon each and everyone of you,.

A]- Khobar 8/41 ]13,14H Corresponding to 2419/1993G.

6

Introd!u~tjon :

Allah, -High is, He - says:

It B I 1Ih- Soul

) ~ e ._ au ~

And [he proportion and order Given to it ;

And its inspiration As to its 'wrong

And its right; n (Al-Shams 91: 7~8)

Allah - 'the High and Almighty - created the human soul, and gave it the ability to chose between treading 'the 'Good path or the Evil path. He also told usto exchange with our brethren good advice', and teaching of Truth. Allah ~ high is He - considers 'these acts to be specific characterisnes of those whom He excludes from, eternal loss.

This is 'what AUah declared in Sura Al-A'ssr, Our M,cssenger (Peace Be Upon Him) also taught us that giving, advice to each other ispart of our duty" so he said:

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"The believer is H mirror of other believers"! for he 110 oks into the flaws, of his, brothel', and reflects it like a mirror. 'This Mirror does not reflect the physical image, but rather reflects 'the character image, Islam encourages his followers to love each other, We are advised andencouraged to do so through many Hadeefhs .

. ~ Narrated by All-1:abbarani ia AI-Aws3U. and is considered by Al-Albani as one of the True HadeethS I.S. 6513 l)

7

Among the basics, of such ,3 love is to wish that your brother lor sister enters paradise land is spared hell. Things should not stop at 'wishing alone, but rather at 'person, should. do whatever' possible to keep his brother or si SEer away from harm intllis life was written. Its starting point is the love which we feel forthe daughters of our Muslim nation, Arab people, and Gulf societies, and our care to keep them away from, what may harm them in this life and the hereafter,

This bookis aimed at a specific group of our sisters who did not commit themselves to coveringtheir modesty. This lack of commitment is due to either their ignorance of its religious necessity" their weakness in face of the attractions of t.his life, or their' defeat in face of evil intheir souls. Their exists other reasons for this lack of commitment like a whispering devil, ,(I. bad companion who does nor love her peers" and others,

W1e ask Allah to make the words of this book as keys. for tbe good.We a1510 pray to Him to cause these words t10 open UPI closed hearts and stir dormant feelings, We: beg him in our supplicationsto make this book a reason to urge, our sisters who are not committed 'to hide 'their full modesty and revert back to 'the pauern which Allah has ordained on mankind.

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'Deares t Sis ter ,: _, ;;;;;;;. • '.iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

* Dubioslties t and desires :

"The devil can only penetrate the soul of a human being through two major ports of entry : Dubiosities and desires. The motives behinds any person's disobedience do nor deviate from one of these two" which seriously hinder the Muslim from performing acts which please: Allah, These

. two reasons alone are among the major causes that preven t a Muslim from being, accepted into Paradise. We will try our best to cover the most. important dubiosities and desires

in this. book: '

* First Du biosit,v : Repression of the Sexual ,Energy :

This Dubiosity states that it is, dangerous to repress sexual energy 'I since it is a major and powerful drive in Man,

This, concept is based on the principle that increasing presure leads to explosion. The theory states that by covering 'the, modesty of ,I woman you 'will be covering her beauty, and that will subject young men to cri tical sexual repression. This repression explodes, in the form of rape and other sex crimes. The proposed solution for this problem is to liberate women from this cover :&0 that young men couldrelieve their repression" and the end result ( according: In this theory) is that by satisfying the , 'repressed I , needs of young

men society 'minimizes the danger of such explosions! -

* 'T···b: A" , .. _' ., _. •

._ e __ ··ns\ver io

This dubiosi t.y hides, behind 8. facade. of logic, The person who promotes. 'this dubiosity appears, on the face value, to be looking after the better interest of his society; he seems. to want to prevent it from decadence, Actually the person

The dubioLlS~Y p:~,anted UlDcertaintis (either by Man orJinn),

9

who is promoting thi s Dubiosity is threatening, his society with a great danger w hieh might 'lead to. its disintegration. The danger is so great tbat it might break up the very fabric

of society ~ - -

If 'this fallacy were true" then America, Europe. and all other countrie with similarmoral'fabric would have been. the least countries to suffer from rape, sexual harassment and other sex related crimes. Amenca and Europe have given sexual freedom great impotence under the pretense of "personal freedom". This concept is taken to. such an extreme that one could find obscene magazines sold everywhere" In those countries Tv programs after midnight are full of dissolute shows that are sexuallyexplicit, Moreover, during the summer, women take off their clothes: and wear a "bathing suit" on, the beaches. They even walk, around in those "bathing suites" in coastal townscand they are allowed to go topless on some beaches.

Throughout America video 'tape shops for adults. only ere widely spread. In these shops you find all kinds of perversionand items that substantially 'trigger' sexual excitements! A'DY adult can watch these films - inside the shop or lien t them to watch at borne. Whorehouses are spread to such an extent that some countries exhibits prostitutes in a display cw, rindow for th ie c 1 ients 11

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So what was the resul t of such wantonness and obscenity? Did rape incidents decline? Did those societies achieve the "sarlsfactlon'' that they are talking aboout? were women saved from the dangers of this obscenity'?

* Amerlcan Statistic ~ :

The Federal Government of U .. S .. A. conducted research and published their statistics in a book entitled Crime' in U ~ S~ A,. on page 6 it states, that during 198,,8, one rape crime

101

'was committed every 6minu~es in that country, In the same

book the following statistics are listed: "

Rape crim ·~·s, ]"iOI tlh- e,::" U S- A' .'

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i Crimes

Year

No,

of

Rape

-1978,.

-147",389

I 168,, __ l34

198:3~

1"-- 211 ,~91

22],764

No. of Rape Crime

26[').000

i 50.DOQI

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* A verse of the Holy Quran that explains the above statistics :

Th " ',' d 'b fl d - '. di h

ese stansnes anc ot ter connrmei reports mcicate t-at

the above rate of increase in sex crime in those countries, are only a practical explanation of His. saying ~ High is He-:

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-o Prophet '~ Tell

They wifesand daughters, And the believing women, That they should cast Their outer garments over

Their persons (when out of doors) :

That is most convenient, That they should be known

(As such) and not molested." (Al-Ahzab 3,3 : 59')

The reason behind the revelation of thisverse as explained

by Imam Al-Qonobi, was : -

"Before the widespread use of indoor to:nets, women used to relieve themselves in (be desert. This would cancel the distinction between free 'women, and women slaves, So Muslim women used to be harassed by 'the, wicked infidels, who, thought that 'they were slaves. \\Then approached by such a man, the muslim woman used to' shout to make him keep his, distance ~ When the women complained to' the Prophet (Peace Be UPO'D Him) , the above verse was, re .. vealed, [That was 'when Muslim women started to cover their modesty], From then onward, the free Muslim women were, cle:arly -distjnguished from 'Ibe women slaves, .. " 1

The women who makes; hereself a dazzling display, by uncoverlng ber beauty and make .. up for every body to enjoy, excites dormant desires, 'This exposure causes her to be harmed by the the hands of human wolves, On the other hand, the - covered women hides, her beauty and make-up,

] Talse.1" AJ, .. Qortobi (8JS325) Dar AI- D!lqafa.

12

so that only her face and hands are exposed according to one ruling, or' only her eyes are exposed according to the other ruling. What desires this, covered women exci tes, and what instincts does she incite?

Allah .. the High and Almighty ... order-eel "the cover' to proteet women from harm, .. He knows ~ Praise his name ... that displaying make-up and beauty is in fact an invitatlonto increase sex crimes and stir dormant instincts ..

As for those who believe in this dubiosity and insist on. prootin a it ·w· e -.~ - s ern th 'Ie' fo .'·1]0-:-"'" c g •... fou r fa c c'fr's') fo r them to

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contemplate :

* Fact # -. :

Statisitcsreveal their lies.

* Fact # 2 :

Sex is an instinct which both sexes, possess and 'which Allah - High is He "'" in His infinite wisdom, created to lensure OUf survival, Try to imagine procreation without it I! If a person is sane" and accepts the existence of this instinct, then he, shouldnot make the absurd request of men to act completely normal in front of scenes olf nudity.

* Fact # 3 :

It is a known fact that one of the sources of sexual excitement for men is, staring :It a woman's beauty, whether this beauty is in the face, hair, or body. M,an's sexual excitement win not abate, by watching exciting scenes, for it is impcssible to contradict 'tbe cr-eation of Allah.

* Fact # 4 :

He who claims 'that the solution to sexual repression lies in spreading scenes, of attractive women and nudity until sexual saturation is, reched, knows that only two types of men

will not-be affected by such scenes: - -

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The first Itype eare the eunuchs who are incapable of sexual excitement by watching displayed nudity.

The secondly pe : are the sexually impotenrmenwho are not roused bythe sight of displayed nudity ~

* Second Dubiesity : No Conviction :.

, This second dubiosity can be more categorized as: following one's own wants and desires. If you ask one of our uncev ~ ered sistersabout the reason of her non-commi tment to covering her modesty she replies ! I am not convinced yet with

, the concept 'of ClOVER. once 1 am convinced l wi 11 cover my modesty, Allah's wining.

Our sister-who hides behind such anexcuse, should differemiate between two types of commands : a. h u m a 11 command, and a divine,

A request, or even a command issued by man does not exceed the limits of human words. Aboutthis subject Imam Malik said that humans are liableto be eitherright or wrong. You are free, to accept or reject thewords of any human except the: words of the Prophet: (Peace Be Upon Him). SOl when wetalk abou t a command lor WOlds of men; then it is acceptable for any one 'to claim non-conviction,

However, if the command m's of divine, or-dained by Allah ~ The High and Almighty -, either in His Book or through His Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him), thenthereis no place for .anybody to say u I am, not c~()D,yinced I't The ~ql ] am not convinced ~I' statement is: dangerous because it indicates :8. doubt in the heart of the person, Whoever says such a stale~ ment with ccnvietion, kn.owin:g tha.I it IS a command from Allah, there is. a real danger that this person iSI unknowingly defecti:~g "from Islam,

14

~stead our si ster should have said that she is disobeying Allah, because of her weak win power, irresistible desire, or powerful whims. Such words are definitely more advisalbe than declaring nonconvietion. These words confess weakness, disobedience and most Importantly, our sister does not make herself a judge on the commands of Allah, criticizing and correctingthem,

Allah ~ High is He ~ says:

nil is not f tti ng

For a believer, man or woman, When a matter has been decided

By Anah and tlis Messenger,

TCl have any option

About their decision:

If anyone disobeys Allah _ And His Messenger ~ he is indeed

on a clearly wrong path," ( Al-Ahzab) 33 : 36 )

* 'The required Stand:

When a, slave servant believes in Allah, in His infinite knowledge, power, strengthand wi sdom, then he or she should be polite enough with his or her creator and not put human logic above any divine command. In fact when true believershear a, divine: command" their immediate reaction is to say:

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nWe hear, and we obey: (We seek) Thy forgiveness, OUf Lord, and It) 'Thee

15

Is, the end of all journeys .. ~1 (Al-Baqara 2 : 2:85)

Those believers, know fOI[ :1 fact that .Allah is omniscient; His knowledge is perfect and encompasses every thing;, from the ever beginning, to the ever lasring.withoat limitetioas l That. is w'hy they never place the imperfect, minus-

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ewe an -I urmte n nnman reasoning .3. ~ .•• - ve -ns IUlc.!W. ecge,

When Allah ~. TheHighand Almighty -eommsnds us" He kn.OWS that in 'His, command lies ear best ioteres,tmd happi~ ness.Cons'equently., when Hecommands the woman to cover UPI her modesty, He knowsthat in this command ·Iies. her 'happiness, glory and dignity.

* A Practical Exam pile:

Suppose that we purchasea ne,w computer ,and suppose that we w,ant to inquire ahem t the best method ,of loperation,. order the operationmanual, and ask for technical advice in case of damage, Whom should we conselt then? Shouldwe consult ,1, car wMher or the computer manufacturer?

'The creator and "manufacturer' of'man is our Lord Gnardi-

- - - -

an .. There-fore it i.s, only naturalthat He knows: best about Whalt is goodand what is bad fermankind.Any submission to rOr seeking judgement mom .any source exceptAllah, is a farm of stuplditY~[s it not stup,id to submit to commands, ralings, or even advice of the ignor.ant exposes himseltto tota11oss.

Unfortunately, this is what's happening .. ~,O us M,u:slims". for we are seeking, the answers to our problems from sources tbat donot posses it. Adding msult bJlinjury,.we do not even try to understand the meaning of the word "Is lam. !III! Islam means unconditional' submissionto thecommands Q1I'IIrd·· proh ;b-·I· ... Ion ~, O',f~ A-l'l~IL - I·Th- -,.- e 'H:---~I-'O'b- an r ,de A····· lm ----l·o·bc·N ~

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* Don't fall into eontrsdictlons. 0 virtuous sister ,:

When )I"OU advise our sisters tocover upthekmodesty, a r-ypica:l - reply would be: I am a good MusHm and believer; I strictly observe the timing of the ordained prayers, I per'arm many "Nafl' prayers, 1 fast Ramadan" I have per .. formed the ordained "Hajj" and morethan one "O'mra", and I pay "Zakat" on a, monthly basis.However, I am not convinced that I have to cover up,

* To this sister we sal' ::

¥

If youare performing these great deeds out of reverence

and submission 'to the: commands of Allah ~ tbe- High and Alrnigbty -, and out of fear ofHis wrath and punishment, then wby are you exercising partial belief? A partial belief is believing in part of the Holy Book and denouncing another part ofIt. Belief is an indivisible issue, if you reject any part of the Holy Book then you are rejecting the whole Book .. Allah .. Praise His Name ,~ reprimandedthe Sons of Israel for theirpartial obedience to His orders .. He said - High is He -:

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"Then is h only a part of I[he Book That ye be lieve in,

And doye reject the rest!

But what', is the reward for those Amongyou who behave) ike this But disgrace inthis life·?-

, And onthe day ,of Judgement They sh a ll b ~~ ,-.-- ~,;' g •.. - ed

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. To the most grievous chastisement For Allah is not unmindfu 1

17

of what ye do. t1 (Al-Baqara 2 : 85)

The ordained prayers that you are so careful to observe in, their proper liming are commanded by AUah, as is the command to cover up' one's modesty,

II And say to the believing women That they should lower

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Thei I" 'modesty; that they Should not display their Beau ty and ornaments except What (ordinarily) appear Thereof; that they should Draw theirveils over

Their bOSOO'lS and not display Their beauty except

To their husbands, their fathers, Their h usband's fathers tbe ir sons, Their husband IS sons,

Their brothers or their brother's sons, Or their sister's " ns,

IS,

Or their W'OnlCl1. or the slaves Whorn rheir rigfn hands Possess, or male attendants Free of sexual desires,

Or small children 'who

Have no carnal knowledge of women:

....,

And that they

Should not strike their feet 'In order to dra Vi all tc oti on T() their hidden ornaments. And 0 ve Believers!

,~

Tu r11 ye all together

Towards Allah in repentance that yc 'M ay be successfu L n (Al-N ur 24: 31)

From this verse we know that thi s order is asclear as any other divine order. Refusing to obey it.will jeopardizethe person to Allah's wrath and His puni shrnent as mentioned in Sura Al-Baqara, verse 85 above, If we keep' in mind that the least penal ty in Hell is described by the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) nil the true Hadeeth ~

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On j udgment Day, the least t0l111Cn ted of the people of He 11 is a Ulan who has at the bottom of his feet two embers from which his brain boils the likes of the boiling of a bottle inside a cauldron. I

If this is the case for the Least Tormented, so imagine the condition of 'those whom Allah is threatening withi'the most grievouspenalty" because they rejected part of the Book,

I Narrated by AL"Bukhari in. Al-Raqaq (I l/376)

19

Dearest Sis ter . ~

Are you willingto exchange 'the bounties [of the hereafter with clothing styles and showiness of this life? Are YoOU willing tOr endure, or think that you are capable: of bearing the burden of the eternal "most grievouspenalty" for a few moments of egoistic satisfaction? Even a, lifetime of eanhly enjoyments will only be a passing moment compared to eternity. We only wish you the best of the best, in this life and the hereafter. That is why we ask you, urge you, and beg youto weigh logically the odds of these choices,

- - -

* Third Dublosity, Faith Is In the Heart ::

Among the most common replies that you hear when you as,k our uncovered sisters about the reason why they ilo not cover up their modesty is this :, "Faith is in the: heart. itl Let uscontemplate this dubiosity.

~. I']I~I S· f Thls D biosit

~ .:' te .._ .• ource 0 ". ,;.I.S, I . UIOSl Y :

I t is the erroneous translation of some of the Hadeeths of the messenger of Allah (Peace Be Upon Him), such as his Hadeeth ::

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Allah does not. 10 ik upon your figures or wealth rather He 100ks upon your hearts and deed . r , Once again" our sisters read only part of 'this Hadeeth, and understand it accordingly, Consequently, 'they project their ' wrong understanding onwbat they practice! It is true that the place of faith is in the heart" but that is not. all, OUf sisters 'forget that the Prophet (peace Be Upon Him), 'Said that

~ Narrated by Muslim (,2564)

20

'Dearest Sister:

Allah - The High and Almighty - looks at "deeds 11 and actions aswell as, at "hearts", To underssand this Hadeeth correctly, we should know that the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) wanted to underline the importance of sincerity in [our DEEDS. Allah _. The High and Almighty - accepts from the good deeds of humans only that which is sincere, pure.and committed only 'with the intention to worship Him.:

Another Hadeeth that is misunderstood and misused is his saying (Peace Be Upon Him) ::

Piety is in here'. And he pointed 'towards his chest.J

The amhor of Nuzhat-Ul ... M uttaqeen explains 'this as. such :

The Hadeeth informs us that Allah - Praise His name - rewards our deeds in accordance with the de gree <of the purity and intergrity with which the heart has intended toperform these deeds, The degree and amount of this reward is also related to the acl of caring for 'the heart, correcting its. intentions.and purifying it of what Allah does not like. The better the cave, the better the reward" and vise-versa.J

I It is a good place to rem ind our readers that aU OUT action could be transformedintc acts 0,( worship, if the believer did them whh rhe intention of 'worsh:ipp[in.,g Allah:: Ea.ting ",Uh the runl:cntion to have I. S:Ullllfilg body cepable of worship AUlab.; performing marital duties, with your spouse wilth the intentlon or keeping yourself from committing disobedience; work and Jabot with thle intentlon of ea.min;g money Ito keep y10u and your family from harm, and from be~ning., etc. AU aspects of our life are 9JCES of wonhip ~f preceded by the riJgh:t iintenliiom_.

2 Narrated by Mus:~jjm through Abu Hoeraira (2,564) 3 Nu.zha~ .. UI~MuUaq~en ( 1.125,.

21

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* D'efiniti,oll of Faith ::

Restricting faith to the "heart" alone is not enough to committhe believer to paradise and his sal vation from Hell, The majority of the Learned of Sunni Group define faith as: "lt is, the belief in the mindand heart; the speech that the tonque utters; and the acts that conform, 'to its (the faith) pillars." Any other definition wiU not be in accordance to the Sunni

doctrine. '

Faith is. only complete if the above three condi ... tions are metl

A hypocrite is a person who u Hers the words of fai th with his tongue, and perform the acts, of the believers with his limbs without a sincere belief in hi s heart. The hypocrites used to pray with the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him), pay alms rn oney "and participate in Jihad. However their hearts did not believe in the true religion of Allah - The High and Almighty -" and that was, why Allah has convicted them of hyprocris,y;, 'their just reward will then be the deepest pit ,of H'ell.

The Devil (Iblts), represents the type who be li eve with their hearts, but do not translate this believe into acts and deeds. Iblis believed in the capabili ty of Allah to lend life, as well as the capability for resurrection and JudgementDay, That was the reason why he asked Allah to delay his. death until the Doomsday .. Yet, he never acted with what such faith liequires. Allah - High is He- describes lblis as :

- A."" . I' - " '. .. f:'

. ~c:fl)l:(h ~ 0tS"Ji ~~ lJ .. ~)~

II!'H' he refused and was haughty:..... . , .,. ~]

He was of those who reject Faith. 'I (Al-Baqara 2 : 34)

Anybod y 'who contemplates the Holy Quran, notices. that wherever faith is 'mentioned in any verse of the Holy Qu-

22

ran, it is always, followed by work and action; these two are never apart, You always r-ead :

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'Those who believe and work reigbtcousness. 11'1:

These verse indicate that belief and work are inseparable,

We would like 1)0 ask our virtuous sister, who refuses to clover up her modesty and hide behind the flimsy excuse that she has "faith in her heart", 'the following question:

Let us eonsider the following situations. You are working as a teacher, and your boss (the headmistress) requested you toperform a specific task: a report of some sort. Then on the next day' you do not submit your report; and yO'll say to your' boss: I believe completely and I amconvinced deep in my heart with what you have requested, ofme, yet I did

O"O-,t ;l:."A"":11 '11'1·~1 .. ~ nerfo rm - 'l',nO"~tT Ima L< ,O'I·nA yourse "If- 1°10. - such al s itua ~

"- __ "_ - ,l~~ ,I ,I\.""", r-w..jl.ll!.~./_, _: ~I " 18 .lI.1. - t.. , ----CI . __ ~ : -~- __ .. I.I~. __ . __ " I I I _". - - ' _:_'''''" _ " __ "_"_"

don witbanother human ! Think of the embarrassment, the awkwardness" and ultimately the punishmentwhich your 'boss is, going to inflict on you .. :NOW extrapolate this and think: )"ou are going 'to stand in, 'mont €)f.Allab 'Ihe Almighty, alone without anybody or anything to tend for you except your deeds!

* F orth D u bi,osi ty :: All ab bas not guided IDle to the Ri,gh t Path yet :

Another group of our sisters. usesthis dubiosi ty when asked to cover 'Up her modesty, She replies :: I would love to cover up my modesty, but. Allah did not guide me yet. Pray for me that Allah may guide me!

23

OUf sisterwho say such a thing fans into a.grave fallacy .. We askthis sistenHow did youknowthat Allah did not guide you? If her reply W:8S that she simply knows, then this implies one of two:

First : That she was given the knowledge of the unforeseen, which is written in the 'Tablet Preserved .. 'Through such knowledge" she is sure that she is among the. wretched who will end up in Hell !

Second: That a certain creature, whether human or angel, has informed her of her destiny, and told her that she is not from among those who wre guided to the' right path I!

SO, dearest sister, since thenormal reply to the above is negarive.jben how did you know that Allah did not guide

you'? -

There is a second point :

Allah .. High isHe ... has shown us in his Holy Book that gnidance is of two forms :

"I - Direction. 2 -Assistanee,

1 ~ JDireclion. To show the pathtowards the truth, Every buman belug shares this, type of guidance with the Prophets, and with Allah - The High and Almighty ,~ . Allah .~ High is He- directs His answerable creations. and SbOiWS them the paths to Right and EvU., This derection is r-evealed to them through HisMessengers.and Books, The Messengers" their books" and heralds distinctly' show their people theR.Ight path and. the Evil. path,

2 ~ .Asistance is a specific characteristic of Allah- 'The High and Almighty . Its defivition Involves more than a singular

24

aspect: it is to instill Right in the hearts, It is to project ag~8!inst deviating from. the Right. It is. to assist. help and sustain moving: along the Right Path. It is to make a person love to believe: in Allah and 'beautify this belief in him" It makes him hate fai thlessness, wantonness, and di sobedi .. ence, This type of guidance is granted 10 those: who answer the summoning of Allahand are guided by the guidance of Allah, This type ofguldance comes always after the first Path for all to chose" then He assists those who freely chose and move along it. Only to those who chose to tread along the right path with their own free will, wH 1 Allah grant the "Assistance".

On the above subject, Allah .~. The High and Almigbty ~

s,ays:

"As to Thamud.

Wle gave them guidance,

Hut they preferred blindness . .

(of the heart) 1.0 Guidance :!1 (Fussilat 41 :: 17)

"But to those who receive Guidance, He increases Their guidance,

And bestows on them their Piety and Restraint

(from evil)." (Mohammed 41 : '17)

25

Dea res t Sis te r ~~ ;;iiiiiiiiiiiiiii- 'ii Ie • • iiil iiiiiiiiiiiiii;;;;liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

Second comes Assistance,

However, if the slave servant decide-d to chose evil of his own free will, Allah will deprive him of Assistance" and that will increase 'his loss, Allah ,~Hi.gh is He ~ says about that:

;1 ./' . -:II,..., r{!" ",' ,

~t''''' ), .--. ".' J~ JJ <I, '.'" ~ ~ ~ ~ • ~.I''''''t ....••.. ! I II.' ,r' '"' ;_PO> .~. ~'., ..

'1 J...,.,_. ~ ., ~ I J,~ tl(J1.ft., .. p .. .n tJ, tJ l) • J '

UI. +'Jo ~ iiL'II U ,,_.

"Say : whoever goes

Astray, (Altah) most gracious

Extends (the ropejto them II (Maryam 19: 75)

~~)ll ~ \ t(jf ';'j. ~,

"Then when they went wrong,

Allah let their hearts go wrong." (Saff 61 ':,5)

* An example of the Guidance of Assistance :

Sheikh AI ... Sha'rawi recites a beautiful example of this 'type, and Allah's rules. and regulations concerning it He says :

This guidance is simllar toa man looking for an address, In order to reach his. add res s be asks a traffic 'warden for direc ... tions, After he receives the right directions from the warden" the man faces two choices ::

_, He either believes the w:ardenand moves in accordance with the direction that he receives, Consequently the fartber he moves, the more guided, he is" and tbe ~nearefto his destination he becomes. Or"

-He considers the warden to be a liar, and moves in an opposite direction to that which be receives, In this case" 'the farther he moves, the more lost be becomes, and the further fr-om his destination he will be,

26

That is the story of guidance an going astray.i

This example (or similitude) i san excellent one to make us understand this divine: regulation : He who chooses the Truth, Allah will help ana support; and he who chooses wrong, Allah will let him go astray, and will leave him to himself and his Satan,

* 1)0 your hest in acting upon the causes ofguid~ ance, and yOU! WIIJL have it ::

Such are the rules and regulations of Allah in His creations :

UNo change wilt thou find In Allah's \vay (of dealing) : 'No tU'1'l1 ~ng off wi U thou

Find in Allah's way (of dealing)." (Fatir35 : 43)

!JTh,e regulations of Allah dictate that change will not take place unless a person starts the change in himself, and spares no effort to implement the change he seeks,

}~'L - ... """ .... ,...,

: 0 :;:J' ~ .. ".. .."" ~.,. ...

,L. "t & ~ ILt \J .. .d.lI --~. - '.'. ~ ... f_- PO.A.l. U ~ '1 ~ , ~'~I ..•••...

~~? 'F .., ..,J-P- -~ \-) ~ J"-' J_.... .~

..... ~ ." .,;'!

''. ... Verilv never

Will AUtih change the condition of a people unti I they

change what is int hen] selves, l! (Ra'd 13, :: 11)

Excerpts from 31, I.'ecture g~.vlen ~n Kawai t in the eigbues entitled Does man have a free willi or is he steered?

27

Consequently the pierson who is seeking guidance, has. to do his (or her) very best to ensure (hat Allah's rules of causality take effect, He (or she) should not stop at the point. of asking people to pray for him (Of her) only. In seeking the rules of causality.jhe best role model was Maryam (Peace Be Upon Her), In her weakest stage, while giving birth, she needednourishmen t, That wasw hen our Lord Guardi-lln·j Pra ~j~s;lo H- 0]- s Name ask ed her to P erfo xrn £II task W'·· hi c b

c-~, '~.- "~.~..,~ _., .. ' "gr .. ~' __ ~ ~~._.~"' __ ~ _._ '_. _"'I_.'._~ __ ',~ ~~.:iI __ , ,'.,! •• 1_.:,

the strongestmen can not perform easily : He asked her to shake the trunk of a palmtree, in spite of the rigidity of that trunk. Allah ~ Highis He -told ber :

L'- ~Q "~I i;Ii~~ I'~~I ,'fir. Jl #' -,.

'f~, l:.· .. ·~ ~ ~~ t$ :.m.', .•. '-.' •. :.'~

,.r - i'..,. ~'~ 'ir"I ~ ,,", J ....;

_" _.". .,.

"And shake towards thyself

The trunk of the palm tree:" (Maryam 19': 25)

Without any question, doubt, or hesitation, she complies. AU A.llfllh.-- The High and Al.mighty ~rlequire:s from his slave servants is to do their best, and AICT. The laws of causality which Allah created require action to take place in order to achieve the desired conclu sion, Allah -eould have easily put some food in her hand, or in her mouth.However Hie wanted to teach usa lesson in obedience, and to teach us that weare reqairedto perform QUI· bestaction ... In her weakened state, she put her hand on the tree, and tried her best .. The law of causalitytook effect, and. the result was :

I 'hwi ll let fal 1

Fresh ripe dates upon thee." (Maryam 19' :_.25) ... . _

Such are the laws: and regulation. rOf causality tha·~ Allah has ordained !: It is not possible for any believer to stay in at sacred house of Allah, evenjf it W.QS Mecca, and just worship Allah, pray to Him, and ask Him sustenance, -Alblh .. The High and Almighty ~. requires from all believers to dotheir best in working for their living: heaven does not rain gold and silver. ., -

6." ... til .~-

~ ~ iii" _ .'. _ ,,,1- ~ . I . ~ -_

.i~., .. l.,b) ~.,J' .....•.. .k.h.W · .•

~I!+'.;.;>"" ., •. .,.. o!!"! ..I' .

28

Dearest Sis ter .:

Dearest sister, do your best in sleeking the causes of-guidance, and you shall have it, Allah's willing, Supplication and praying to Allah is only one form of seeking, Other methods include: choosing good company, spending some time reciting the Book. of Allah and contemplating its meanings, listening to religious ca sette tape recordings, attending religiouslectures and seminars, and reading re1 igious oriented books. Remember, before you start on this path, you have to abandon and put behind you, what might hin .. der you from the path of guidance:" or lead you - astray. These hindrances are :: bad company.jeading trashy magazines, eagerly waiting and watch TV series that encourage prohibited relationships, _ tra velling without an unmarriageable relative, building up relationships (through the telephone with young men. and other hindrances, that will stop you from following the guidance path, & will lead you astray.

* Fifth Dubiosity : Impeding Marriage :

Another group of our young single sisters pertain their' noncommitment to hide their modesty to the fear of not getting married 6

In many leases this dubiosity is shared by our sisters. and their paren ts .. It sterns fr-om the fear that young men will not :R'Sk for the hand of a girl for marriage unless they see her hair, her beauty, and the shape of her body. Therefore if the young women was covered, then no one will approach her for marriage. In fact Satan uses 'this fear to stir' this dubiosity in their heart

'Th-·· . - " .. hat . di . hi d bL' •

. I· ere at!:: twOpo.lnts ll~at repudiate to I .. IS .c; U biosity : -

The firs:L ~oirJ1..;... The ideological and theoretical aspect,

2:9

Even though beauty is amajor reson for marrying a wornan, yet it is not the only reason, The Messenger of Allah (Peace Be Upon Him)" indicated the different reasons which make men marry . He said ::

A woman is married for four reasons : her wealth.her famit yber beauty and her piety; do your best to win the pious one" may your hand be soiled with dirt.i (the last phrase is used as a form of affection).

The above Hadeerh clearly indicates that people do not seek beauty only, Rather there are reasons and conditions 'that may be less, more, or as important as beauty, Consequently, assuming (as some of our sisters and. their parents, do) that beauty is the one and only thing that people are looking for.while searching for a wife is not true, It indicates ignorance ofthe nature of man.

'Thc_ ~£oQd p~}jnt : The practical aspect.

M.any of the young men in our society, msist on, marrying a woman eommi tied to cover up her modesty and of a go-od reputation, even thoughthat the: suitor himself might not be commited. Consequently displaying the young woman's beauty and make up.may be the reason why young men would not approach a prospective wife. The young. men's logic is 'cbat -if this woman has carelessly ignored a divine , order, (which is to cover up her modesty), then it is also likely that she may disregard other divine orders. For the

ways of Satan gradual, -

--~- .. --------,---------------------------------

'NraITatedi by Al-Beukahri (9#') l5) under the chapter of Marriage,

30

* Sixth Dubiosity : "Too Young UI:

This is another dubiosity, which is nearer to being a heart's desire rather than a dubiosity.Jt is often repeated by parents and few young uncovered sisters w ho plan to cover their modesty ,at some vague point in tbe future. 111e reply of the parents will be something like this: It isnot fair 10 prohibi t ibis young child from enjoying: life! She is still attracted to beautifuldresses, make: u.p and latest hair styles, Displaying her beauty gratifies her and grants. her lots of happines;,g and pleasure, That alone makes her enjoy life, so why should we prevent happiness at such an early stage? ~hy should we make her blame us in the future when she is grown up for that? Why should we make her miss, the joyful life so quickly?'

The "young age" in this: context could stretch until the age of twenty .. Under such concepts, the young girl who starts menstruation at the age of thirteen is still a child !

A word of advice to the parents.

We would like to remind these, parents that they bear a huge and heavy responsibility in front of Allah on Judgement Day : tbey have, prevented their daughters from covering up their modesty using the excuse that their daughters are still young.

According to the "Shari'a'' law, 'when tbe girl startsmenstruating, she bas to cover up her modesty. Consequently when her legal guardians (her parents, Jn most cases) prev,ent her' from covering D,P, they commit a grave sin. Allah - The High and Almighty - 'will interrogate 'them about that Ion Judgemera Day, He said -High is He--:

3]

"Bur slop them,

For they must be asked : ~ ~ (Saffer 37 : 24) Also our Prophet (Peace Be Upon. Him)" said :

Each one of you is a shepherd, and each one of you win be asked about (is responsible for) his flock.

The father is the first "sheperd" at horne, and be will be questioned on J udgement Day about each and every person of his flock. The wife is "the "shepherd" in her hus band's home during his. absence and will be questioned about her actions with her flock.

Let the. parents ask themselves about the number of young men that their daughter wiU tempt? How many young men will their daughter lead 'to perversion " Finally" how mu.ch harm will their daughter suffer on tbe hands of these young men?

_ c _" •• !I

",4 'word of love to our y oung sister :

May A;Uah be our witnessto the degree with which we worry about you from the punishment of Allah ... The High and Almighty '-. May He be our witness to the degree with w~ich we c!1re a:bo~t s.av"in~ youfrom.~y d~~.ger that you, might face In this life and In the hereafter, ThIS worry and

care is the duty of any devout Muslim to his brothers and $j.s·t,ers.

Among, these dangers that face our uncovered sisters in. tbis Jif)e and inthe hereafter is what the Prophet (Peace Be Upon

Him) said from 'the narration's of Al .. Hakem: -

32

At the end of time (whenthe time of Judgement Day draws near), there will be in m.y people men who ride: their - saddles looking. like masculine: women (effeminate men), They will dismount at the doors of mosques.while their women are wearing clothes as if they are not dressed (immodestly dressed), On their heads are lilk.!e unto the humps of thin camels; damn them, for they are damned (by Allah),

Dearest uncovered sister, do you know the meaning of "damnation"? To be damned is, to be deprived of the mercy of Allah ~ The Hlghand Ahnighty .~. Bven though AUah is most merciful, and His mercy encompasses everything.yet in the above mentioned Hadeeth, die Prophet (Peac·e Be -U .. p' '0· m H, im) 0,- rder every " , M"I -U' s .. ' I I' m , . ·'0" d am . m th -1' s rnp' e' of W·' '11"'\I'm-'- ~ ~n,who ;eerns~'t~bedre~:s~d b~·tl~the;;' ~odeg,t;i:s r,ev,eated. That is why as if 'they me nude C'lnot dressed"),

In snofher Hadeeth which is narrated about the Prophet -(Ple,ace Be Upon Him) he said ::

Two types of HI ell dwellers I, did. not see, People with 'whips Ii~e unto 'the tails: of cows 'with which they hit (other)

33

people. And women who are wearing clothes as, if they are not dressed (immodestly dressed), bent and cause others to bend, their beads, are like: unto the crooked humps of camels, They (these women) do not enter paradise and do not find. its scent. Verily its scent is found from a distance of such and such (avery far distance).

This Hadeeth contains a detailed description ofthis type of women:

,A - She wears some clothes, but she is almost naked since she exposes most of her body ( or at least enough to iCxche,s men 1S, desire )~ She either:

~ exposes her legs, thighs, or bosom,

- or" wears translucent, clothes th.at clearly silhouette the shape of her body,

~ or, wears such. tight clothes that cling: to her body like second skin; and leave little to the imagination.

'That is why she is as if she is, naked, even though she is

wearing ... ·. clothes, ' -

1-

B ~ She wriggles :while walking; (bent)" an actionthat stirs desires (cause others, t-o bend).

C - Her bead is higher than. normal because of the latest hair styles" 'which- 'make it look like the crooked hump of camels,

This Hadeeth states without doubt that 'this type of women is not only prohibited from entering paradise, but they do

not leven smell its scent, - -

Dearst sister, aU WI!: want ,tIQ befall you is Good, Our worry about you is what makes us pray, from the depth of our bearts, th,a:t Allah 'Protects you from all evil; we pray 'to

34

Allah to fill your heart with His, Iight that never fades" to aid you with enough power with which yuu can overcome human and jinn Satans, and break their shackles; we pray to Allah to free you from the captivity of whims and desires, and to open to you the world of freedom, honor, integrity, and the w,arld of purity and chastiry.

Dearest uncovered sister, when you abstained from coverin,g up your modesty" under the pretext of being "too young ilt, did you know (or were you informed) of the date and time of your death? Can you guarantee that you will

live for additinoal few seconds? - -

If your reply is negative, ,(fOf wle are sure that it will be), men keep in mind that death might. come to you after one year, one month..one week, one hour, or even one minute! As long as we do not know the time of lour death, then any of the above is, probable ..

Dearest sister, death dose not come to the old and sick only; it touches the old, the sick, the young, the healthy 11 and even the suckling infants .. Living examples from every day life are plenty.

35

* Real life stories ,:

* First Stlory : Sudden Sickness :

A healthy member of parhament is in his prime youth full of vitality and energy", Suddenly; a. virus invades. his brain, and in a few days he turns to a, living "vegetable" who knows nothing about himself and, hissunoundings,

* S,c,cond Story : Death does not disti.ng,uish be-

tween the slck and bealthy:: '

A, high ranking army officer is strong, healthy, muscle bound, and very active. One morning, his mother enters his room to wake him up, only to discover that he is. dead; death has, taken him in his sleep ,I:

* Third Stery :: My friend burned up :

A fri,· d f' . . 'I'd' ........ - .GIl' '.

, . b '. ,en·~, () 'mtneto ,,', rne me 10' iowmg story:

I donot know how 'to start ·to tell this story that drastically changed my life, Frankly, at first I hesitated about divulging i L However out of my feeling of fear of Allah - The Higband Almighty -,and to warn: my brothers and sisters wh~o do not heed the wrath of AI.lah" I decided to tell it,

. We were three companions, our common denominators were impetuousnessand 'Vanity'. We were three human companions, and Satan was our fourth !

Our pasnme used to bepieking up gullible girls by sweet ta1lking tbem, and taking [bern to isolated farms, Overthere, they see UlS:aS we really are : human wolves withno hearts or feelings, who do not heed their tears. and pitiful begging!

36

'That was how we spent our lives; farms, camps, cars, and beaches, Until that unforgettable day! As usual we went to a farm where everything was prepared; a prey lor each one' of us, the damned drink, and the nice atmosphere, One thing we have: forgotten : food, After a while one of us weni to' buy dinner. When four hours passed and he did not return, I was worried about him, so I rode my car, and went looking for him. On my way I saw a car that was in-

1- d i "d -- ,- d . ld h '1-

vo vee In anaccident; It was turned over on Its siae, W'"I,e

flames w,ere shooting over of it. Getting nearer to the car; I discovered that it was my friend's c:ar. I parked my car, and ran like hell trying to save him from the -Cbumin,g car" When I arrived I found out that half his body hascharred.while he was still alive, 1 pulled him out and-laid hhn on the side of the road, Within minutes he: opened 'his eyes, and shouted : Thefire, the fire,

I talked to him trying to soothe him, and promised to get him to the nearset hospital as quick as possible, .. He replied with a weak crying voice :: 'It's no use, I will not make it.' Tears blurred my vision 10,f my friend dymng in front of me. Suddenly be cried: 'O what shall I ten Him?' What shall I tell Him?' I asked him: 'What will youtell whom?' He answered in a deep faraw,ay voice: I' Allah'.

Panic struck me when ,alii of a sudden he let out a long

shrie ,k'~' after W'''"I· C' 'h he died I -

~.' JL" , __ ,I,I~, "u , ,""' __ , __ ,

That picture never left my mind; my dying friend burning up while shrieking : 'What shaU I tell Him? What shan Ltell Him', Until finally one day, 'while I was 'lying: in bedtrying to sleep and the picture of my dying friend in my mind, I heard the 'Call for Fajr prayer commencing 'with:

'\ ;#, - ' .. ' '" '

;;. I J I" ,iJ .... f } . f )" ..'.ft " t "'..If'; f c' ~ C"'f ~

.~ J '.,>--",'J l~ ut ~ t-U) j 1" yl ';, ~ ~ 'p II; 4\l 1 ~' 'II d I

"

37

1 bloke down.andtears ran unchecked out of my eyes, and when the caller reached thepharase :

C~\ ~ ~ 'C'~U~H ~ ~

(Which means : Come hither to perform The good Deeds.)

1 felt as if 'the caller was. addressing me alone calling for me to abandon my way of life, to close the 'curtain. on a dark chapter of my life, and to start a, new one following the path of guidance and light. That was when 1 performed 'ghusul' to' cleansemy body, and I turned back to Allah in repentance to cleanse my soul.

I always 'thank and praise Allah" who no one else: deserve 'to be thanked, for from that point onward in my life, I am 8, changed person, I always perform my religious duties" and I am planning to perform "Omra" and "Hajj", Who knows

when -I might die:?' - -

Another friend who is working as a member of the highway patrol told me the following : -

I spent my entire school years with myparents in a decent pious atmosphere, Whenever I came back from along ni,gi1t oat, I used to hear the prayers of supplicationofmy mother, and the' voice of my father in his, long night prayer (Tabajjud). I used to wonder about my 'fatlJer's devotion and persistence and the 'length of his (Tahajjud(, ,especially' during the long nights of winter when sleep is the sweetest. Wbat I did not know then, that THAT' was the oasis of'relaxation of the believer 'I and that: the 'I 'Tahajjud'" is tl\e prayer of the chosen Good, who abandon the sweetness of their beds to talk to their Lord Guardian.

38

In our line of duty, we meet all kinds of horrible endings 'of 1:lle lives: of Men. In most leases w'le reach the parties that Hie involved in a bad accident, to find them either dead or unconscious. In few cases do we see them in their last rnomen ts 'W" hile thev 'M' .0 actually ·d1y"'· ~c

me 13" ,,- I .. ~.y Ie,' e c '-', . I· .' .' I,ng.

I have witnessed two particularly bad accidents, 'The first one involved two men" whom we (m:y partner.and I) pulled nut of a car in a state of semiconsciousness. My partner was a pi'OU8 man. When he saw' that thesetwo m.en are definitely dying, he repeatedly asked themto pronounce the "shahada" to no avail (Shahada is saying: I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and that Mohammad is His slave servant arid messenger), Sadly, aU they did was, to blab about their work, and to sing, until they were exhausted, and finally died.

The second one, which happened quite some time later, invalved a young, man who ,;w'as repairing his tire.While dolng' that. he was, badly hit by a speeding car, When 'we Flicked him up" his clothes were .. covered with blood, ~is limbs were almost tom apart, and he was assuredly gorng to die. On, lour way to the hospital, we were suprised to' hear his voice reciting verses . of the Holy Quran ! The voice reciting verses of the Holy Quranl The voice was sobeautiful that it WS, almost angelic, Just before we reached the hospital, the victim lifted up his index finger and very clearly pronounced the "Shahada" after which he died,

My' partner told me that the, final moments of a humanbeing in 'this HIe are probably the most important moments, These moments reflect his whole lifel If 'be W'IS good and pious, then he win be able to diementioning the name of Allah. and pronouncing the: "Shahada' ', Otherwise he will not be able to pronounce the name: of Allah, and will be preoccupied

with whatever earthly business. thatwas preventing him

from performing his du tytowards ,Anah~ - -

* Firth Story : The 'fa,'raway travel:,

My wife told me the following real life' story related toller by one of her friends,

1 did not care much about covering upmymodesty, or perfoming m:y prayers, in their proper times, On tbe other hand, my sister used to perform all her religious duties, and observe "Tahajjud" and other 1tnaflnacts of worship. Many a night I woke up la'te and heard her voice reciting the Holy Quran, or performing prayers, I remember how several times she found me watching video movies, and reading Art magazlnes at the time of pray,ers" she smiled and :said:

Dearest sister, vihy are you wasting your timewatching these low level movies instead of perfoming your dunes? Didn't yearead His Saying - Hi is He ~: -

1 "Every sou) shall have A taste of death ~

And only on the Day of J udgement shall you

Be paid your full recompense," (AI ~ I'mran 3 : 18.5)

She continued: Why donl"t you heed Allah 's warnings? . Don't you believe that you are going to die? . At that poi or I replied tb!u I was still young and have aU my life ahead of me" and t:bs.'t Allah is The Most Mercifnl, Most beneficient,

1 can not forget her answer for the rest of my life;, she said:

Dearest sister, our life span is in. the hands 01 Allah. Who can guarantee you. that you are going to survive your cur ..

40

rent year? I am not sure that I win survive the: next few seconds ! My long trip may start very soon. You. and I should be prepared for such atrip, Imaginewhat you will do if someone asked you to prepare yourself for a tourist trip abroad!' The least that you wUI do is to make: sure that you have a vaild passport, Our LOiDg trip~;s no less important than such a trip, In fact it is the most important trip we will ever encounter, I started weeping then" and asked her to stop scaring me about her tales, or death; 'was. it not enough that I was scared of the dark?' She would then try to soothe me and would say: I am not trying to scare you, all I want you to do is to' remember that we are: aU leaving sooner or later, Remember that OUf ultimate destiny is: either beU or heaven and remember His saying ~ High is He-:

«tj~ ~ ~~ ~;fJ Jl~H 0~ C;"j ,;;J~

". ",' - ~

·'On1 y be whois saved Ear from the Fire

And admi ned to the garden . _

Will have succeeded: II (Al ~ I'mran 3 :: 1 :85)

Less than a year after that discussion, my sister contracted cancerand died, I remember when I was talking to her on her death bed she told me : Pray for me 'dearest sister, my trip is far awa,y and my supplies are Iimited; now J know 'the true meaning of His saying ~ High i;s He, -::

"And one leg will be joined with another :

That D'~ly the Drive_ .... . . ....

Win be (all) 1.0 thy Lord !U (Al-Qiyamah 75 : 2'9 ,~30)

41

'Deares t Sis te r ~~ ~iiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

- ••• 1

I was devastated at first; I cried until there were no more tears in my eyes.. My tears were shed over my los t days, rather than over my dead sister. I was really sorry for the days which I wasted without performing my ordained prayers, I was really sorry for the times which I spent golng out without properly covering my modesty, At that stage I repented to Allah a true and properrepentance.

* Seventh Dubiosily: This, is not covering up one's Modes .. ty ii, is merely the latest fashion i. ,dothiiOg::

Some of our virtuous sisters who do 'not cover thier modesty" repeat the claim: that: there is. no real fear of Allah fun wearing what would cover up' a. women's modesty. They claim that it is merely the latest fad in designer fashions. They even point out to the acts of some of our sisters who wear such clothes but do, not have the fear of Allah in their hearts. SOl, they cone I ude.why should 1 wear these clothes IF this was the .reason behind wearing them?

Before we tackle this. dnbiosity, we have to list the difer-ent types of the covered women :

1 - She who covers up her modesty in order to hide some bodily flaws,

2 - She who covers up her modesty hoping to get married, because most young men are: looking for such .8. girl as a wife.

. '

3 - She who hides behmd her clothes 'in order to commit

acts and deedswhich Allah has prohibited. By wearing clothes which cover up her-modesty, she keeps suspicion sway, and gains, the trust of her parents, 'That w:ill give her the previlege of going wherever she pleaseds without anybody questioning "her or' doubting her motives,

42

4 - She who covers up her modesty because IT IS the latest fashion. This type of cover is known as "The French Cover" it is, 'the type of the SrO called I 'S harP a clothes"

.. l... .. h h-l.'· h . 1 . k . f hai . . isib 1 th k .

tnroug W,l, uc I a iocs or '13R' IS VHU I e, I, e necs IS not

covered, or the dress covers half the leg only, This, type of clothes could be quite tight clearly outlining the contours of the body" or it could be translucent ou tlining the body behind it no matter how wide it is, TOI com:" plete the fashion; the face is normally covered with make-u p ,and perfume is: used in abundance sO' that wherever this woman goes, the roads and pathways are full of her scent.

Such a woman has, rejectedwhat Allah - The High and Almighty "", has ordainedc and accepted what mortals (the: likes of Dior, Valentino St. Laurent, Chanel, Cartier, and others infidels) have ordainedand assigned to their orders a higher priority over the orders of Allah,

5 - She 'who covers up her modesty due to pressure from her pious parents and family ~ She wears: this type of dress againsr her will, but she is worried tbat if she did not wear thistype of dress: then her family 'will be 'Upset" and consequently she will be harmed, This type of women takes off everything once she is sure that the eyes of her' guardlans are not UpOrD, her; sheneltber believes nor is convinced of covering up her modesty ..

6,- The woman who wears the true [religions "Shari'a" dress, 'which properly covers up her modesty, out of faith and conviction, In domg so, she is seeking only the approval of Allah alone, and no other mortal 'This woman commits herself to the following "Shari'a" char-

acteristics of her dress, code: -

43!

.: -)

'Dearest Sister:

a ~A wide enough dresswhich does not outline ,any part of herbcdy,

b -A thick enough fabric dress which does not silhouette any part of her body ~

c ~A dress clear of perfume, scent, ormske .. up.

d - .A dress that does not look like the infidel's dresses, for 'we, are prohibited from irniteting them.

e ~ .. A dressthat does not include a loud (attractive) color,

or to be in itself a dazzling d.isplay. _

f - Covers, thewhole body. However, some scholars say that face and hands can be uncovered,

g ~.A dresswhich does not look similar to men'swear, fer :MusUmwomen are prohibited from looking like men, h -A dress that is not worn for show-off reasons, 800131t people wUI not get involved in the prohibited act of feeling superior over each others.i

The only woman who is, truly seeking tbe approval of Allah, and His mercy, would be wearinga dress that covers Upl her modesty" amid her motives would be that of the sixth

- .. d ,. I

". I - ·e '1 ; '-- I' - '. ,.'.,- ,-)'

type mennone _ p.reV10US y.

It is a fact that there are five more types of women who cover up their modesty, 'bot this, does Do,t exclude 'the sixth type~ So dearest sister, make, sure that you are from among the sixth type, and none other.

Please refe" to Hija.b U[ - Mar - .A ~ Tn ~. Mls:Um@t Fl·~ L - Kit:abl~. Wassu:nrna, ,[ 'The. veil of the :MusUm womana:ccordimg. to themUmg of the Holy Qurarn and the Prophet's Sl!lflfllia) by Al-Albani, and To every- Girl who believes in AU:ah by AJJ~Boutti.

44

Deares t ,5 is ter : iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii. • '. iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii_liiiiiiiiiiiiii

* Eight Duhiosity : Covering up means the Prevention of Make .. up an d elegant dresses:

This one also fans under the categories of whims and desires rather than a dubiosity. The - Question that comes to mind immediately when faced with this desire: To whom do you want to wear make-up elegant dresses, and turn

yourself into a dazzling: display? -

If the answer was, I wear my 'make-up '10 beautify my' 'elf, so that everybody would admire my figure and beauty,

Do youaccept EVERYB,ODY starting at your beauty?

Do you accept to be a piece of mechandise examined by the mean and the noble?

'Do you accept to hand over your body to the, eyes of the human wolves to feast upon'?

Do you accept to be THAT cheap?

If you do, then you should know that Allah - The High and Almighty. - does not accept, and He considers you much more precious than what you consider yourself,

Dearest sister, if you are beautyfying yourself for your husband, or your women friends, then that is acceptable b1y lour religious, standards. However you should remember that the 'modesty of women in front of other women is from the navel to '[he knees ..

45

* A Praetlcal Exampte :

Dearest Sister : Visualize 'in your mind's eye how the client examines a product which he (or she) wants to purchase. When he is satisfied, he asks the salesman to give him a brand new one which has, never been used before, Contentplate this carefully, and you will. realize how precious you are in the. balance of Allah and in 'the eyes of men 'when you cover up what Allah ordered you 10 hide,

* .'inth UIIJ'blosity :: Veil fCuveri:m,g up women) reduces So .. d:ety I s p'roductivit~ by haU ;

'This dubiousity is promoted by secular oriented people. They cliam that covering 'up women would unemploy half of society, because Islam orders women to stay at horne,

For this dnbios.it·ythere are 'Severa. counter arguments :

]i - Islam. basically requests women to stay at home ,. in ac-

cordance to Allah's order in. His ,sayi.ng - High is He :.

~' 1..:< to ~ ! .".."' '" ~ ::.,.~. .- (;:i:".. ", , ... ,.:- '};

,JJl'l U-WI r: _j -''':>'- ~ ~J: ,' ... '-.1 iW J. I) _j'J'" '

'. - __ -- ~~'#, '\;_,Jo!! v- ~ ,.)'.,-' _.:_ ~- ~...I'''I!!!'!I _. -.

!lA" , d " ·'1'

, ", n. stay quietty Ul

Your houses, and make not i~ dazzling, display, Uke TIUll of the former times

of Ignorance: ,. " (Al .. Ahzab 33 : 33)

,

How' can anybody claim thatthis is, an insult to women and a cancellation of her productivity? Is it not the best employment of her power?

2 - Islam. considers raising children and teaching them the proper manners one of the most important duties, of a

46

woman. Intemationaland local statistics indicates clear-

- - - --

ly chat one of the 'm~jor causes of juvenile delinquency is the break-up of homes and insufficient parental care.

3 - Islam did not ordain women to support themsleves or their families. In fact it is 'I'be duty of a man to upkeep his family and his wife, Consequently, the natural order of things is; 'or a man to go to -work, sad for a woman to be free to perform a much more important task 'than work ouside the borne : namely raising: generations through whom societies exist and prosper,

4-lslam 'takes, great pains to protect society from collapse.

Mixing men- withwomen IS; the source of problems that exposes women to danger and weakens society. This mixing will preoccupy single men and women 'in acts and deeds that win not, benefit society at all. When this mixing is coupled with women openly displaying their , make-up and, beauty" single men and women will in _, dulge in actsthat 'wnl destr-o,y the ve:ry fabric of society.

5 - Islam does not prohibit women from work, In fact it is the duty of a women to work and be active in certain fields, that society requires. Society will be better off when 'these fields requiring one person to expose himself or herself to another are occupied by a person of the same sex, such as gynecologist, mid-wife, teacher Xray specialist, ,etc.

6 - Moreover when necessary, Islam does not prohibit a woman from work as long as she adheres to the "Shari'a' t rules. These rules include: a) her legal guar .. dian's permission, b) not to mix. or be alone wi thmen, c) that her job is legal, d) the job does not involve a disobedience Ho Allah), e) the job is morally and so-

47

ciall y acceptable, and f) this job does not hinder or stop her from performing her maternal duties at home, etc. 1

* Tenth Dubiosity : Veil (Cever'ing up women) is uncivilized :

It is claimed thatshe outward appearance of the veil is an aspeet of a backward society and is uncivilized. For what: is themeaning ofthese moving blacktents andthese crows? Is: it not areversal toprimaivc societies?

* MlsJ_c~l,(ling Nomenclature :

This is a, fallen dubiosity in itslef.Progress is not measured by outward appearances, such as clothes" buildmgs, or' ornamentation ! Anyone who measures progress with these superficial measures is either biased or intentionally unfair,

- -

Civilization is a word describing the total characteri sties, behavior, and morals of a nation, The superficial, appearances are only parti:al results of any culture and, nat the reasons which create it

*PracUeall Exo~mples,:

A visitor to the United'States. for example, can clearly see ihe importance which thar society givesto personal freedom, They worship personal freedom to such anextem that, they built a statue especially to emphasize the importance they give to freedom. Everyone there respects personal . freedom, whether ruler or rulod.Anybody could criticize anybody else regardless: of his social status or financial power, wihtout fe ar or worry,

11 P'~lease F'efer to Letters to the MusHm WiQrnaJll by KhaJedAJ~Hammaldj Pages ] '0.5- 12

48

That was why the. U. S~ became the leader of the western world; not only due '.:0 their degree in technological advancement." but due to the human concepts which are valued by that society, and the governments, consider themsel yes as guardians of 'these concepts 'Governments in tbeU, S '. have risen and fallen in. accordance to the degree which they respect and apply these concept,

Another example is any We stem European country, When you goto a bus stop in those countries, you find a schedule of arrivals and departures of buses for the whole week, which depicts the exact time of arrivals and departures of each bus. 'Prornptness" or the respect of the value of time" is an important social value in those societies, .. If a citizen of those countries arrived at a bus station, and the bus was delayed fora few minutes, then complaints of all kind 'win bombard the responsibleperson, This, person might be fired from his job, and the incident might lead to a public uproar .. The respect of the value of time and "Promptness It is, a valuedconeept in 'that society, and therefore it is, a. gauge of its culture.and-not onlythetechnology which they posses.

- In comparison, our societies (in the Muslim "Third World") are considered backward societies, not only because we do not posses the 'technical know how" but because we gave up our principles and values which originate from our great religion, OUf societies are considered among: the most unjast societies in which basic human ri,ght are missing, chaos _ is prevalent, other people's opinions are not respected" dictatorship is the norm" and other cultural values are not re-

spected, Consequently commitment to the true Islamic "Shari 'a" veil is considered a. Forward step on the road to

. build a 'true culture, since it is a value emanating from our

true religion and holds, a, real moral value. -

49

* Eleventh Dubiosity :: My parents and jny hus-

band s:top Ole from comnlilttiing loyself .:

First: the basic concept here is that obeying Allah haspnoritY' over obeying ,any other human being, whoever be. might be.Next, parents, have the right of obedience immediately after Allah ~ 'The High and Almighty, unless they order their children to performan act of disobedience ..

Second: disobeying the '(1legal) guardian in order to obey Allah. is considered as a direct invi tationto the guardian .. , and as such is one of the :S1CtS that gets: the slave servant nearer to Allah.

Third : In, most cases the guardian, whether a parent Of a husband, will ultimately yield to the will of the person cw- ?bL ,n,ml " h e. ' I' !l"'n~8·.· p' ·OrD·· sibl ~ for, espeeially whe n he" ·",·,Qoe-tC1, 'h·· 'e' II a .• t,~

.v. . .,.al',", ....,' ,,,",,,, '" nJ._,., "'0r""'''' ,u, "_. . .u., , , .... ,.;:n.'· ,o:!! !:. ... lL __

ter'spersistence.

Following are some Fatwa (Islamic rulings) concerning this subject:

The fi ' · '. d b S' h lkh B'· B

e rirstquestion IS answerec ~'Y ···•· •. -.elf(-. sm =82::

QI . What is the mUng onawomanwho disobeys, her moth-

er wben the mother is requesting an. act that is a direct disobedience towards Allah ~ 'The High and Almighty -? For example the mother is requesting her daughter to uncover her modesty, and display ber make, ... up and beauty'. Morever ' she (the mother) isclaiming tbal wearing dresses which cover modesty is. amythwhich has no place in the pract'ical reality of Islam ! She also, requests her daughter to attend mixed parties, and she gets very upset when she sees her daughter covered in accordance with the "Sharia'a" dress code,

50

'D e ares t Sis t er : _: iiiiiiiiiiiiiiii... iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

A : You do not obey a creature whether be is a. father, mother or otherwise" when he (or she) is ordering an act of discbedience, It has. been narrated in the true Hadeeth, about the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) that he said :

{

Verily obedience is in aU Just matters only.

It has also been narrated in the true Hadeeth about the, Prophet (Peace: Be Upon Him) 'that he said:

{ ~lijl;;l~!!~~'~' ~,~!" ~I ~ii.c lb U ] :$ IJiIJ,~

~ ~ ~,~

'Obedie-nce Is not to be: observed towards a creature in any act involving the disobedience of the Creator ..

The matters which the mother of the questioning woman is requesting her daughter toperfonn are: actsof disobedience towards Allah. Therefore she (the mother) is not to be obeyed" in what she is requesting her daughter to do.

The second question W',IS answered by Sheikh Bin Othaimeen.

Q ~ The top authorities in my Muslim home town have ordered all women to take off the: clothes wbich confirm tothe Islamic' code of dress especially the head cover, Should I obey such an order, knowingthat any 'woman who diso-' beys this order risks imprisonment, or at least she will be fired from her job?

A : Wba't is happening: in your home town is, part of the trials that Allah- The High and Almighty - tests His slave

. h h . d' H" hi H' --

servants, Wit' "_ -_e saio - Ig . , rs " e :

51

Deares t S' , - is te r ~~ iiiiiiiiiiiMiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

•••

UA' L'M"

_' ," ii' ' r e- ", ;;

Do men think that

they win be left alone On saying, I,ve believe', And that theywill not

be tested?

- - . - -

W,e did te it those

Before them, and Al lah will

Certainly know those who are .' .. _

True from those who are alse." (Ankabut :29 : 1 ... ,3)

Therefore" in my opinion, the Muslim women who live in 'that country have '~O disobey the ruler's authority in this heinons order. My reasoning is that obeying the legal guardian in an heinous order is refused bv Allah, Th High and Almighty said:

~~ ,~~~. JJl'j J~)l l~fJ' 2b i I~'r I~T ~l!i 4i~ ~,

..

UO ye who believe !

Obey Allah, and obey theMessenger, And those charged -

with authority among you." (Al-Nisaa 4: 59)

If you contemplate this verse you would see that Allah -the High and Almighty - Has repeated the word obey twice; once while requesting the obedience of Allah, and the second time while requesting the obedience of His, apostle, Hie did not repeat this, order for the third time when mentioning those t'charged with authority", 'This indicates that obedience of the (ega] guardians (Men with authority), should be

52

linked to the obedience 'of AUahand His apostle. From this follow's: tbat if the orders of men with authorny ar-e contradictory '~O the orders of Allah. and His apostle, then they lose their right of obedience from their subjects. And remember:

Obedience is 'Dot to be observ -d towards a creature in. any act involving the disobedience of the Creator ~

'Under such testing circumstances" women are ordered to be patient and ask Allah to give them. strenght to face the: injustice that befalls, them from their legal guardians. We pnly to Allah to guide their guar-dians to 'the right path,

I do not thinkthat enforcing this order takes, effect unless women leave their homes. So women could stay at home in or-der to survive such an ordeal , If study or schooling leads to disobedience of Allah, then it is forbidden, Under such circumstances, women should smdythe necessary sciences which they need for their life and the: Hereefter, It is possible to teach women these sciences at home in most of the cases. To summarize, it is never allowed to obey legalguardians if,th1ey ordered or requested abominable deeds. 1

'The third question was, also answered by Sheikh Bin Othaimeen.

Q : A married man with children disapproves of his wife who wants to 'wear ber clothes according to. 'the Islamic dress code (The "shari'a" dress), What is your adviceto him, may Allah bless you,.

A : We advice him to fear Al1ab -The High and Almighty - in his family, and to thank Him for granting him such a

I Patwas 'of Ibn othaime'cn Vol. 31 87Q1~ :871 Dar A:lam A.~Fikr version.

53

wife who wants to observe Allah's orders in the dress code. Obeying this order is sufficient tOI save her from the ordeals of trials. Moreover, Allah- The High and Almighty - Has ordered His believers' slave servants to protect themselves their families from 'the fires of Hell. He said ~ High is Hie ~:

HO' ye who bel ie ve !

Save yourse ~ ves and your Fam it ies from a Fire Whose fuel is 'Men

and St-ones, over which Are (appointed) angels Stern (and) - everc',;

Who flinch not: (from Executing) the Commands They receive from Allah"

But do (precisely) __

What they are commanded. U (Tahrim 66 : ,6)

Also the Prophet )Pieace Bit Upon Him) has put, ,thle responsibility of the family on the shoulders of the man of the house, He said (Peace Be Upon Him) :

{':~J~~ J9~9 ~,i l~e:IJI~~n~: ~aln J"'J J!Ii}

, .. " ,~

Man is tb.e shepherd in his family, and be is responsible for

b-I ~ - fl· . k-I

__ lSI DC' ••

54

So how could such a man try to force his wife to leave the "Shari'a" dress: in favor Iota forbidden one? How could a" husband accepts to bethesource of trials towards his wife? He should fear Allah in his dealings with his family, and thankHim for hi,s favors in granting secha good wife,

As for th.,e wife, she could never be permittedto obey her husband .in his: orders to disobey Allah, because obedience is not to be observed towards a creature in any act involving the disobedience of the Creator. 1

1'.0 sum up : You have here the rule of "Sheri'a" as, clarified by our learned (Ulema), however you have to be 'wise in refusing to obey your guardian if be orders you to display your beauty and make- up, and to refrain from wearing "Shari 'a" dress, Wisdom requires the following:

1 -You have to be polite In arguing and explaining your beliefs and attitudes, without raising your voice, or using

words whichwill upset theguardian .. , -

2 - Y oumus t toleratethe name calling andridicule by the

d .' h nati d' f'" -f-" )-'k-' - b - - 'k- .-

, .' . -, ' .,c -c .!' . . .' , .. 'il . ,- 1- . I" .•• -1' ',' I .; '1- i'·, 'I", I" ". '-', '

gUBlEt Utn Wit. panence, a.n. .. .re rS1D, .. [lOm ta . ,lng .ac .... to

you guardian.

3 .~ Youmust request belp firstfrom Allah, then from. your relatives who have chosento followthe paili of Allah.

4 - Requestingthe help' of Allah, is to p.tay and supplicate to Him.and ask His. assistance to help you stay firm on your standvand to alleviatethe pressure, Reci ting the Holly Quran help's, ,I great, deal, especially w hen faced witb name calling, ridicule and insults,

I The F'altwas of Bim Othaimee:n (2/81'3)

55

5 - Do not try to discuss or display your beliefs from a superior' poin t of view" or u singthe instructor's method. You should rather offer your beliefs as a student who is seeking knowledge and information, and from the point of view of the person. who is worried about the other person, That is especially true when dealing: with your parents; in general, parents. do not like to be, treated in a superiorway by their children,

6 ,_ Answer a bad deedwith a good one, and always honor your parents.

7 - Try 'to chose theproper time to talk tothem openly about

your plans, -

8 ~ Dearest sister" you should know that paradise is expensive. Like all expensive th ings you do not get it unless you wo:rk hard" toil, and bear .all kinds of hardship to attain it (It is well to, remember the True Hadeeth;

:;"~;g ~ ~(iJ11 ~,~ '.JJI "tS6 ",LJI6\:'L! 4lnLcJ ~~t;;" }

~ ~ ~

[.~~I ,~J ~!II ',J6', ':UI.bU'liL! ~(~n LmJ ;':0;11

~ ~ "

He who looks forthe pleasure of Allah.jhrough the wrath of peop le, Allah win spare him the effort (to fend) people (away), while he 'who looks for the pleas ure of people through the wrath of Allah, Allah will leave him to the People, 1]

~ Narrated by Al- Tjrmithi, and is considerd as a true Hadeeth by ALAlbani,

56

Epllogue ::

When the infidels conq uered us for some 'time" wars of independence raged throughout the: occupied Muslim states. When the conquerors found out that they were paying ,3 heavy price for keeping us under their influence by using military force, they decided to change their tactics, The im ... perialist governments discovered that direct military conflict would only increase their losses" and fan the flames of resistance to a higher crescendo,

Conseq uently, to ,cut down their losses" fhe imperialists. de ... cided thatthe best 'way to, keep our Muslim societies under their influence was '[.0 abandon the military conquests" and to concentrate on cultural invasion, To achieve their goals, they targeted OUI sons, (the young genrations) and enticed them to follow their lead, their customs, and their moral values, B,Y' doing: so, they succeeded in creating a group of elite that would be in actuality the slaves of the invaders, and the e xecu tors, of their will.'

Sadly enough they succeeded in their aim. and their major trophy was -the Muslim woman, They wanted her to 'be ;1 replica of their women; to adopt boyfriends, compete with men, and unveil her charm beauty and make-up, They su .. ceeded in inviting our women to swim half naked side: by side with men. To attain their goal, they enlisted an army of writers; artists, actors, and actresses. They enlisted the help

f-' 'TV· .. · ~ 1 1..-

o .. \ series, rmssionanes newspapers, magazmes, C DuS

and societies ..

They exerted, a powerful effort, which ultimately succeeded in enslaving our countries to their will without deploying a single soldier ~ They achieved that by spreading corruption, and destroying our moral 'values, which emanate from our Just religion,

57

The scenes that we observe nowadays of unveiled women making dazzliug displays of themselves: is, the result of this cultural invasion which started from the time of the collapse of the Onoman Khaliphate and is still continuing" without abating its, fury. until now ~

Dearset Sister, it is your duty to do your best to try to revive our own true customs and habits. You have to do your best to try to put an lend to the bleeding of lour moral values, to be truly free independent and honorable,

58,