Evidence for the Obligation of a Woman Covering Her Face and Hands
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The questioner:
May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good. To what extent is the Prophetic hadith authentic that permits a woman’s face and hands to be visible when she leaves her home?
The Shaykh:
There is no authentic hadith on this matter. Rather, the authentic hadiths and explicit evidence indicate that it is obligatory for a woman to cover her face and the rest of her body when she leaves her home, and when she is in the presence of men who are not her mahram (relatives one may not marry), she must cover her entire body, including the face, for it is the most severe part of the awrah (part of the body that must be covered), the focus of deviation, and the focus of gazes. Allah, Exalted and Majestic is He, says[Al-Ahzab 33:59]. The command to lower the jilbab (outer garment) means to draw the garment over the face so that nothing of it is visible. Similarly, in His saying, Exalted is He, [An-Nur 24:31], the khimar (head covering) refers to the covering of the head. She was commanded to place it over her chest, so it must pass over her face and cover it. Which is more deserving of covering, the chest or the face?
The face is more prone to fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). Also, in the hadith of Aisha, she said: We were with the ProphetMishkat al-Masabih 2690. And so on, regarding the other evidence. As for the hadith from which the permissibility of uncovering the face is understood, which is the hadith of Asma, it is a weak hadith that does not serve as a proof, and it has defects that greatly weakened it, so it is not suitable for citation as evidence. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you with good and do you good.
The questioner:
Shaykh Salih, some people hesitate on this issue due to what they read from some contemporary students of knowledge and those interested in hadith science, who say that uncovering the face and hands is permissible, and they cite evidence for this. Perhaps the Honorable Shaykh has a comment on this? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh:
Everyone is judged by what he says and is refuted, except the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). So if someone says something or holds an opinion, it must be presented to the evidence. If he has valid, explicit evidence from the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger, it is followed. If he has no evidence, it is refuted and not followed. Among these matters is the issue of covering the face. Whoever says that uncovering the face is permissible has no evidence with him; rather, the evidence contradicts his statement. It is obligatory for Muslims to follow the evidence. Yes.
May Allah reward you with good, and may He do you good. To what extent is the Prophetic hadith authentic that permits a woman’s face and hands to be visible when she leaves her home?
The Shaykh:
There is no authentic hadith on this matter. Rather, the authentic hadiths and explicit evidence indicate that it is obligatory for a woman to cover her face and the rest of her body when she leaves her home, and when she is in the presence of men who are not her mahram (relatives one may not marry), she must cover her entire body, including the face, for it is the most severe part of the awrah (part of the body that must be covered), the focus of deviation, and the focus of gazes. Allah, Exalted and Majestic is He, says
O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be known and not be abused.
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ قُل لِّأَزْوَاجِكَ وَبَنَاتِكَ وَنِسَاءِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ يُدْنِينَ عَلَيْهِنَّ مِن جَلَابِيبِهِنَّ ذَٰلِكَ أَدْنَىٰ أَن يُعْرَفْنَ فَلَا يُؤْذَيْنَto wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests
وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَىٰ جُيُوبِهِنَّThe face is more prone to fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). Also, in the hadith of Aisha, she said: We were with the Prophet
performing the rites of pilgrimage along with God’s messenger, and when they came by us one of us would let down her outer garment from her head over her face, and when they had passed on we would uncover our faces
صلى الله عليه وسلم محرمات، فإذا مر بنا الرجال سدلت إحدانا خمارها من على رأسها على وجهها، فإذا جاوزونا كشفناهThe presenter:
May Allah reward you with good and do you good.
The questioner:
Shaykh Salih, some people hesitate on this issue due to what they read from some contemporary students of knowledge and those interested in hadith science, who say that uncovering the face and hands is permissible, and they cite evidence for this. Perhaps the Honorable Shaykh has a comment on this? May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh:
Everyone is judged by what he says and is refuted, except the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). So if someone says something or holds an opinion, it must be presented to the evidence. If he has valid, explicit evidence from the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger, it is followed. If he has no evidence, it is refuted and not followed. Among these matters is the issue of covering the face. Whoever says that uncovering the face is permissible has no evidence with him; rather, the evidence contradicts his statement. It is obligatory for Muslims to follow the evidence. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 4359- أدلة وجوب ستر المرأة لوجهها ويديها - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.