Does the phrase “except what appears of it” in Surat al-Nur, verse 31, indicate that it is permissible for women to uncover their faces?
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Question:
Honorable Shaykh, some people say that it is permissible for a woman to uncover her face or her hands, and their evidence is the saying of Allah the Exalted:[An-Nur 24:31]. Others say that this is not permissible, and their evidence is the verse: “And let them draw their head coverings over their necks.”
Answer:
Yes, this is the correct view: it is not permissible for a woman to uncover her face. This is not based on this single piece of evidence, but on multiple pieces of evidence. The hadith of 'A'ishah states that when men passed by us, one of us would lower her khimar over her face, and they were in the state of ihram with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). This indicates that covering the face is obligatory. [Ask them from behind a screen][Al-Ahzab 33:53] The hijab is what covers the woman, covering her completely. [Al-Ahzab 33:59] And [lower their veils].
They lower it over their faces. “They lower it” means over their faces from their outer garments. Ibn Abbas interpreted this verse in this way. So there is much evidence. As for the claim that it is permissible to uncover the face: it was permissible for a woman to uncover her face in the early days of Islam, but this was abrogated.
Some people held to the initial ruling and did not know about the abrogation. This was abrogated in the end, and it became obligatory for the woman to cover her face. This is the final ruling. The Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned this in his treatise on the hijab and clothing in prayer. He stated that this was the case in the early days of Islam, and then it was abrogated in the end. Some people remained on the initial ruling and did not know about the abrogation.
As for His saying “except what appears of it,” the meaning is the adornment of clothing. That is, the adornment of clothing is what appears. A woman cannot hide her clothing. She does not hide her clothing. Yes. So “what appears of it” means the adornment of clothing. Yes. Not the adornment of the body. Because adornment has three categories.
The adornment of the body, the adornment of jewelry, and the adornment of clothing. The adornment of the body and the adornment of jewelry must be covered, but as for the adornment of clothing, it is not possible to cover it because the clothing is visible. Yes.
Honorable Shaykh, some people say that it is permissible for a woman to uncover her face or her hands, and their evidence is the saying of Allah the Exalted:
except that which [necessarily] appears thereof
إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَاAnswer:
Yes, this is the correct view: it is not permissible for a woman to uncover her face. This is not based on this single piece of evidence, but on multiple pieces of evidence. The hadith of 'A'ishah states that when men passed by us, one of us would lower her khimar over her face, and they were in the state of ihram with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). This indicates that covering the face is obligatory. [Ask them from behind a screen]
And when you ask [his wives] for something, ask them from behind a partition
وَإِذَا سَأَلْتُمُوهُنَّ مَتَاعًا فَاسْأَلُوهُنَّ مِن وَرَاءِ حِجَابٍO Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ قُل لِّأَزْوَاجِكَ وَبَنَاتِكَ وَنِسَاءِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ يُدْنِينَ عَلَيْهِنَّ مِن جَلَابِيبِهِنَّThey lower it over their faces. “They lower it” means over their faces from their outer garments. Ibn Abbas interpreted this verse in this way. So there is much evidence. As for the claim that it is permissible to uncover the face: it was permissible for a woman to uncover her face in the early days of Islam, but this was abrogated.
Some people held to the initial ruling and did not know about the abrogation. This was abrogated in the end, and it became obligatory for the woman to cover her face. This is the final ruling. The Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned this in his treatise on the hijab and clothing in prayer. He stated that this was the case in the early days of Islam, and then it was abrogated in the end. Some people remained on the initial ruling and did not know about the abrogation.
As for His saying “except what appears of it,” the meaning is the adornment of clothing. That is, the adornment of clothing is what appears. A woman cannot hide her clothing. She does not hide her clothing. Yes. So “what appears of it” means the adornment of clothing. Yes. Not the adornment of the body. Because adornment has three categories.
The adornment of the body, the adornment of jewelry, and the adornment of clothing. The adornment of the body and the adornment of jewelry must be covered, but as for the adornment of clothing, it is not possible to cover it because the clothing is visible. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، هل يدل قوله ﴿إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا﴾ سورة النور 31 على جواز كشف الوجه للنساء؟ للشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.