How should a woman in ihram cover her face from non-mahram men if wearing the niqab is forbidden for her?
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Question:
The first message in this episode is from our female listeners, M-S-B-S-Kh-S al-Qatari from Jeddah. We sent two questions, the first of which is: What is the ruling on covering the face during 'Umrah and Hajj? She says: We have read in some books that it is forbidden, and whoever does it owes a fidyah. However, in the Haram, men are crowded, especially during tawaf, sa'y, and prayer. Do we have to lower our coverings when we pray? Or do we have to lower our coverings? And if we pray and there are men in front of us, do we lower the covering in prayer, and when we prostrate, do we raise it? Please inform us, may Allah reward you.
Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his Companions. As for the woman in ihram, she has not been forbidden from covering her face absolutely. She was only forbidden from covering her face with the niqab and its like, the burqu', because this is sewn to fit the face. As for covering her face with the khimar or a garment in the presence of men who are not her mahram, this is obligatory for her in ihram and otherwise, in prayer and otherwise, if there are men present who are not her mahram.
The evidence for this is the statement of 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her): "We were with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in ihram, and when men passed by us, one of us would lower her khimar from her head over her face, and when they had passed, we would uncover it." This was in the presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), so it indicates that it is obligatory for a woman to cover her face with something other than the burqu' and niqab. Yes. May Allah reward you. And if she prays and there are men present who are not her mahram, she covers her face in prayer. She only uncovers her face in prayer if she is not in the presence of non-mahram men.
The first message in this episode is from our female listeners, M-S-B-S-Kh-S al-Qatari from Jeddah. We sent two questions, the first of which is: What is the ruling on covering the face during 'Umrah and Hajj? She says: We have read in some books that it is forbidden, and whoever does it owes a fidyah. However, in the Haram, men are crowded, especially during tawaf, sa'y, and prayer. Do we have to lower our coverings when we pray? Or do we have to lower our coverings? And if we pray and there are men in front of us, do we lower the covering in prayer, and when we prostrate, do we raise it? Please inform us, may Allah reward you.
Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his Companions. As for the woman in ihram, she has not been forbidden from covering her face absolutely. She was only forbidden from covering her face with the niqab and its like, the burqu', because this is sewn to fit the face. As for covering her face with the khimar or a garment in the presence of men who are not her mahram, this is obligatory for her in ihram and otherwise, in prayer and otherwise, if there are men present who are not her mahram.
The evidence for this is the statement of 'A'ishah (may Allah be pleased with her): "We were with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in ihram, and when men passed by us, one of us would lower her khimar from her head over her face, and when they had passed, we would uncover it." This was in the presence of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), so it indicates that it is obligatory for a woman to cover her face with something other than the burqu' and niqab. Yes. May Allah reward you. And if she prays and there are men present who are not her mahram, she covers her face in prayer. She only uncovers her face in prayer if she is not in the presence of non-mahram men.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 5326- كيف تستر المحرمة وجهها عن الرجال الأجانب إن كان محظورا عليها لبس النقاب؟ - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.