Is it permissible for a woman in Hajj to cover her entire face while in the state of ihram?
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Question:
May Allah reward you with good and do you well. One of the listening sisters says, from Riyadh, she says: Honorable Shaykh, I would like to ask several questions. The first is that it is said that when a woman enters the state of ihram for Hajj or 'Umrah, she does not wear the niqab or gloves. At the same time, it is said that a woman must cover her face when she encounters non-mahram men, and naturally, the Haram is full of non-mahram men, so she must cover her face. What is your opinion on this? May Allah reward you with good?
Answer:
Yes, the matter is as the questioner mentioned. It is authentic in the hadith from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he forbade the niqab or burqu' on her face, and wearing gloves on her hands. This is what the woman in ihram is forbidden from doing. She is not prohibited from covering her face from men other than with the burqu' or niqab, and she is not prohibited from covering her hands from men with gloves. So she covers her face from men with her garment, and covers her hands from men with her garment, as Aisha, the Mother of the Believers (may Allah be pleased with her), mentioned that they were with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in the state of ihram, and when men passed by them, one of them would lower from her head over her face, and when they passed, they would uncover their faces with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).
This indicates that the woman is not prohibited from covering her face absolutely, but rather she is prohibited from covering her face and hands with a specific covering, which is the niqab or burqu' on the face or gloves on the hands, because they are considered part of the sewn clothing that is forbidden for a woman to wear on her face and hands. This is what the woman in ihram was forbidden from, and she was not forbidden from covering her face from men; rather, she is commanded to do so, just as she is in the state of ihram, in the Haram and elsewhere. She covers her face with her khimar, and covers her hands with her garment or abaya. Only two things are prohibited: the burqu' and niqab on the face, and gloves on the hands. As for other coverings, it is not
May Allah reward you with good and do you well. One of the listening sisters says, from Riyadh, she says: Honorable Shaykh, I would like to ask several questions. The first is that it is said that when a woman enters the state of ihram for Hajj or 'Umrah, she does not wear the niqab or gloves. At the same time, it is said that a woman must cover her face when she encounters non-mahram men, and naturally, the Haram is full of non-mahram men, so she must cover her face. What is your opinion on this? May Allah reward you with good?
Answer:
Yes, the matter is as the questioner mentioned. It is authentic in the hadith from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he forbade
The woman in ihram
المرأة المحرمةWears
تلبسThis indicates that the woman is not prohibited from covering her face absolutely, but rather she is prohibited from covering her face and hands with a specific covering, which is the niqab or burqu' on the face or gloves on the hands, because they are considered part of the sewn clothing that is forbidden for a woman to wear on her face and hands. This is what the woman in ihram was forbidden from, and she was not forbidden from covering her face from men; rather, she is commanded to do so, just as she is in the state of ihram, in the Haram and elsewhere. She covers her face with her khimar, and covers her hands with her garment or abaya. Only two things are prohibited: the burqu' and niqab on the face, and gloves on the hands. As for other coverings, it is not
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 4005- هل يجوز للمرأة في الحج أن تغطي جميع وجهها وهي محرمة؟ - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.