Discussion of the narrations in al-Tabari that the woman reveals one eye.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : I want to ask you about three issues?
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
The questioner : The narrations in al-Tabari, in the exegesis of the verse[Al-Ahzab 33:59]
The Shaykh: Yes
The questioner : There are three narrations in it that indicate they lower their jilbabs over their faces, meaning they cover their faces, leaving only one eye uncovered.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : I called about the book on hijab once, and you told us that this narration is weak.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : ButThe Shaykh : Al-Sindi in Saudi Arabia and others say that it is the most authentic of the narrations and that it is of the highest degree of authenticity.
The Shaykh : May Allah forgive them.
The questioner : May Allah forgive them, meaning the three narrations found in al-Tabari, are all three weak!?
The Shaykh : The three narrations, Professor, scientifically it is not permissible to speak about them in a general way, and perhaps you were influenced by our language.
The questioner : Without a doubt, you have great merit, may Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : Excuse me, it is not permissible to judge the three narrations as a lump sum, but rather each narration has a specific status.
The questioner : Is one of them strong, or of the highest degree of authenticity, only one of them?
The Shaykh : Are the narrations in your hands right now?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Okay, do you have the narration of Ibn Abbas in your hands?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : The narration of Ibn Abbas in your hands?
The questioner : Yes, it is in my hands.
The Shaykh : Yes, read its chain of narration.
The questioner : From Ibn Abbas, Ali narrated to me, he said: Abu Salih narrated to us, he said: Mu'awiyah narrated to me...
The Shaykh : Stop there. This Abu Salih is named Abdullah ibn Salih, and he is the scribe of al-Layth, and he has weakness in him, which is well-known among the people of hadith, and he had a neighbor who would slip things into his collection that were not part of his hadith.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Now, is it Mu'awiyah ibn Salih?
The questioner : Ali narrated to me, he said: Abu Salih narrated to me, he said: Mu'awiyah narrated to me
The Shaykh : Which Mu'awiyah after him.
The questioner : From Ali from Ibn Abbas.
The Shaykh : This Ali is Ali ibn Abi Talhah, and he did not hear from Ibn Abbas, so do you not think, and without a doubt you share much of our stock in the science of hadith.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : So do you not doubt then that such a chain does not constitute a proof?
The questioner : The second one, Professor.
The Shaykh : Bring it.
The questioner : Ya'qub narrated to me, he said: Ibn Aliyyah narrated to me from Ibn A'wan from Muhammad from Ubaydah.
The Shaykh : This Ubaydah is a Tabi'i.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And even if his hadith were marfu' (traced to the Prophet) (peace and blessings be upon him), it would be mursal (a report missing the Companion link).
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : And can a mursal hadith be a proof!?
The questioner : No, it does not become a proof, Professor.
The Shaykh : What do you say when it is munqati' (a report with a broken chain) and mawquf (a report stopping at a Companion)?
The questioner : It is mawquf (a report stopping at a Companion), so this is his ijtihad (independent legal reasoning).
The Shaykh : His ijtihad (independent legal reasoning).
The questioner : Is the chain to him correct?
The Shaykh : The chain to him is correct.
The questioner : The chain to Ubaydah is correct.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : They are referring to this, this is what they say is of the highest authenticity, they say Ubaydah is a man... If he said this, he must have said it with knowledge.
The Shaykh : But this statement is not from the words of the people of knowledge, meaning if the chain to a Tabi'i is correct, whether by statement, exegesis, or ruling, then in places of dispute and disagreement, it is weighed against the legal evidence, and if it agrees with them, it is accepted, not because he said it, but because it agreed with the legal evidence.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : And at that time, it is not permissible to use it as evidence, especially in contradicting the authentic narrations coming from the great Companions, and especially from among them Ibn Abbas, whose chain I found to be weak and flimsy, yet it is authentic from him that the face of a woman is not an 'awrah (the part of the body that must be covered)...
The questioner : This is authentic from him, where, Professor?
The Shaykh : In the Musannaf of Ibn Abi Shaybah... And that is authentic from his namesake Abdullah, but Ibn Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), likewise the same is authentic from him, so how do we prefer and prioritize the opinion of this Ubaydah or Ubaydah, this Ubaydah, how do we prioritize his statement and his exegesis of the verse over the interpreter of the Qur'an, Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him)!?
The questioner : I mean, Shaykh, that this hadith...
The Shaykh : If there is no harm to you, then I am with you.
The questioner : There is no harm to me... Ya'qub narrated to me, he said: Hisham narrated to me, he said: Hisham informed us from Ibn Sirin, he said: I asked Ubaydah, meaning the last intermediary is only Ubaydah.
The Shaykh : This Ubaydah has, meaning, more than one chain, and therefore we do not doubt the authenticity of this statement narrated from him, but it is not a proof.
The questioner : The other narrations, in four narrations, indicate parts up to the forehead.
The Shaykh : Some of them
The questioner : Is there anything authentic in them, or are they all weak as well?
The Shaykh : Some of them are established, and suffice you what I mentioned to you earlier, Ibn Abbas and Ibn Umar with correct chains, that the face of a woman is not an 'awrah (the part of the body that must be covered), but I want to draw your attention to a scientific linguistic aspect.
The questioner : Please go ahead.
The Shaykh : And that is what our Saudi brothers, the shaykhs, do not address when Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Ahzab 33:59] They interpret His saying with "they cover," and this interpretation is an error from all Muslims, this interpretation, an error from all Muslims, including the Saudi shaykhs, because they permit, and praise be to Allah, they permit the woman to reveal at least one eye, and some of them, may Allah reward them with good, were lenient and allowed her to reveal both eyes, are the eyes not part of the face!?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Ah, how do they interpret[Al-Ahzab 33:59] as covering their faces with their jilbabs? This cannot be said by a person who thinks about what comes out of his mouth, and I conducted an experimental practical interpretation with some of the shaykhs there during my trip that I mentioned earlier, I said to one of them, here you put the turban on your head, so assume that this turban is the jilbab mentioned in the verse, now cover your face with this jilbab, so he did, and I said to him, walk toward me, he said I cannot, I said then how do you impose on women what you cannot do? How do they smell in the streets? He said, open a hole, the shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) laughed. This is one of the wonders of ideas, he said, we open a hole so you can see with one eye, and I said to him, you say with your own philosophy, when you do not find from the legal evidence what supports your viewpoint, and you establish the proof with it against your opponent, you go to philosophy, and to the science of kalam (theology) which you specialized in fighting only in creed, but in legal rulings and branches, you have been clothed in the science of kalam, from that you say: how can it be that the face of a woman is not an 'awrah (the part of the body that must be covered), and the most beautiful thing in a woman is her face, this is philosophy, and based on your philosophy I say to you, if the most beautiful thing in a woman is her face, what is the most beautiful thing in her face? Are they not her eyes? He said yes, and I said how did you permit her to reveal the most beautiful thing in her, which is her eye, and contrary to the idna (lowering) which you interpreted as covering, so the man was speechless, and this is a point I hope you are thinking with me about, I do not want you to be a follower (taqlid) with me, for as you know we fight taqlid (following a scholar without knowing his evidence), and we call to insight, so when Allah the Exalted said: there was a very profound wisdom, when our Lord deviated from His saying "they cover," because idna (lowering) has limits, and this is what came in its interpretation in the practical Sunnah from one side, and the hadiths in that are many, as you must have read them in my book The Hijab of the Muslim Woman, and especially the hadith of Asma' which the Saudis keep repeating its weakness, they and those who follow them and imitate them, they go to the extent that it is a weak hadith, and I have said that the chain of Abu Dawud in it is indeed weak.
The questioner : But it is strengthened.
The Shaykh : But it is strengthened, first by another path in Sunan al-Bayhaqi, secondly by the statements of the Companions some of which I mentioned to you earlier, and thirdly and finally the practical Sunnah, which is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): This clarifies His saying in the Qur'an: This hadith defines the scope of idna (lowering), which is the entire body except the face and the hands.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : May Allah bless you.
The questioner : You mentioned an expanded verification of the hadith of Asma' in the book on hijab.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : Then you mentioned the authentic hadith in Sunan Abu Dawud.
The Shaykh: Yes
The questioner : Is there anything new added to the verification existing in The Hijab of the Muslim Woman?
The Shaykh : You will see that in our new edition, if Allah wills, and hopefully it will be soon.
The questioner : The new edition of the book on hijab?
The Shaykh : Yes, yes.
The questioner : Is there more verification in it about what was mentioned here now?
The Shaykh : And do you not know our rigidity to the old!
The questioner : No, no, excuse me.
The Shaykh : The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) laughs. I say that there is something new in every edition.
The questioner : I mean, regarding this hadith, the verification of the hadith of Asma'...
The Shaykh : Yes, yes, there is something new in it.
The questioner: May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : Do you know the first edition of *Al-Hijab*?
'Abd al-Hamid: Yes.
The Shaykh : Do you not find a difference? It is the edition that you printed in Egypt.
The questioner : This is correct.
The Shaykh : Ah, do you not find a vast difference between it and the edition printed by the Islamic Office?
The questioner : Yes, a big difference.
The Shaykh : So you will find a difference like this, or greater, in the new edition, if Allah wills.
The questioner : When do you expect it to appear, approximately?
The Shaykh : As for when, that is not in my possession nor within my power.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : Because this concerns the printer and the publisher.
The questioner : The third question, Professor.
The Shaykh : Yes?
The questioner : The third question.
The Shaykh : Please, go ahead.
The questioner : You mentioned in... *Al-Khulasa*, meaning that it is permissible for her to uncover her face, on the condition that there is nothing of adornment on it.
The Shaykh : Yes, artificial adornment.
The questioner : Excuse me, you did not specify this, Professor. Excuse me.
The Shaykh : If I did not specify it, I specify it now, and you have the merit.
The questioner : May Allah bless you, Professor. You mentioned a hadith that indicates the exposure of the eyes and the henna on the hands, on the condition that there is nothing of adornment on them, absolutely, everything.
The Shaykh : But there should be nothing of adornment on them. What comes to your mind? After we have specified kohl and henna by mention, does it not come to mind from this expression that the intended meaning is artificial adornment for the woman? That is what I aimed at. And yet, I will remove any ambiguity if there is any in the expression.
The questioner : Excuse me, who stops at that point, meaning one might overlook the first one or...
The Shaykh : In any case, if Allah wills, we will clarify that.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : And may He reward you.
The questioner : If Allah wills, we will see you in good health and well-being, Professor.
The Shaykh : And you are well.
The questioner : With our greetings to all the attendees, and may our Lord preserve you and prolong your life.
The Shaykh : May Allah keep you safe and reward you with good.
The questioner : Until we meet again, if Allah wills.
The Shaykh : Welcome, peace be upon you.
The questioner : And peace be upon you.
The Shaykh: Go ahead.
The questioner : The narrations in al-Tabari, in the exegesis of the verse
to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments
يدنين عليهنّ من جلابيبهنّThe Shaykh: Yes
The questioner : There are three narrations in it that indicate they lower their jilbabs over their faces, meaning they cover their faces, leaving only one eye uncovered.
The Shaykh: Yes.
The questioner : I called about the book on hijab once, and you told us that this narration is weak.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : ButThe Shaykh : Al-Sindi in Saudi Arabia and others say that it is the most authentic of the narrations and that it is of the highest degree of authenticity.
The Shaykh : May Allah forgive them.
The questioner : May Allah forgive them, meaning the three narrations found in al-Tabari, are all three weak!?
The Shaykh : The three narrations, Professor, scientifically it is not permissible to speak about them in a general way, and perhaps you were influenced by our language.
The questioner : Without a doubt, you have great merit, may Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : Excuse me, it is not permissible to judge the three narrations as a lump sum, but rather each narration has a specific status.
The questioner : Is one of them strong, or of the highest degree of authenticity, only one of them?
The Shaykh : Are the narrations in your hands right now?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Okay, do you have the narration of Ibn Abbas in your hands?
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : The narration of Ibn Abbas in your hands?
The questioner : Yes, it is in my hands.
The Shaykh : Yes, read its chain of narration.
The questioner : From Ibn Abbas, Ali narrated to me, he said: Abu Salih narrated to us, he said: Mu'awiyah narrated to me...
The Shaykh : Stop there. This Abu Salih is named Abdullah ibn Salih, and he is the scribe of al-Layth, and he has weakness in him, which is well-known among the people of hadith, and he had a neighbor who would slip things into his collection that were not part of his hadith.
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : Now, is it Mu'awiyah ibn Salih?
The questioner : Ali narrated to me, he said: Abu Salih narrated to me, he said: Mu'awiyah narrated to me
The Shaykh : Which Mu'awiyah after him.
The questioner : From Ali from Ibn Abbas.
The Shaykh : This Ali is Ali ibn Abi Talhah, and he did not hear from Ibn Abbas, so do you not think, and without a doubt you share much of our stock in the science of hadith.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : So do you not doubt then that such a chain does not constitute a proof?
The questioner : The second one, Professor.
The Shaykh : Bring it.
The questioner : Ya'qub narrated to me, he said: Ibn Aliyyah narrated to me from Ibn A'wan from Muhammad from Ubaydah.
The Shaykh : This Ubaydah is a Tabi'i.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And even if his hadith were marfu' (traced to the Prophet) (peace and blessings be upon him), it would be mursal (a report missing the Companion link).
The questioner: Yes.
The Shaykh : And can a mursal hadith be a proof!?
The questioner : No, it does not become a proof, Professor.
The Shaykh : What do you say when it is munqati' (a report with a broken chain) and mawquf (a report stopping at a Companion)?
The questioner : It is mawquf (a report stopping at a Companion), so this is his ijtihad (independent legal reasoning).
The Shaykh : His ijtihad (independent legal reasoning).
The questioner : Is the chain to him correct?
The Shaykh : The chain to him is correct.
The questioner : The chain to Ubaydah is correct.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : They are referring to this, this is what they say is of the highest authenticity, they say Ubaydah is a man... If he said this, he must have said it with knowledge.
The Shaykh : But this statement is not from the words of the people of knowledge, meaning if the chain to a Tabi'i is correct, whether by statement, exegesis, or ruling, then in places of dispute and disagreement, it is weighed against the legal evidence, and if it agrees with them, it is accepted, not because he said it, but because it agreed with the legal evidence.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : And at that time, it is not permissible to use it as evidence, especially in contradicting the authentic narrations coming from the great Companions, and especially from among them Ibn Abbas, whose chain I found to be weak and flimsy, yet it is authentic from him that the face of a woman is not an 'awrah (the part of the body that must be covered)...
The questioner : This is authentic from him, where, Professor?
The Shaykh : In the Musannaf of Ibn Abi Shaybah... And that is authentic from his namesake Abdullah, but Ibn Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him), likewise the same is authentic from him, so how do we prefer and prioritize the opinion of this Ubaydah or Ubaydah, this Ubaydah, how do we prioritize his statement and his exegesis of the verse over the interpreter of the Qur'an, Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him)!?
The questioner : I mean, Shaykh, that this hadith...
The Shaykh : If there is no harm to you, then I am with you.
The questioner : There is no harm to me... Ya'qub narrated to me, he said: Hisham narrated to me, he said: Hisham informed us from Ibn Sirin, he said: I asked Ubaydah, meaning the last intermediary is only Ubaydah.
The Shaykh : This Ubaydah has, meaning, more than one chain, and therefore we do not doubt the authenticity of this statement narrated from him, but it is not a proof.
The questioner : The other narrations, in four narrations, indicate parts up to the forehead.
The Shaykh : Some of them
The questioner : Is there anything authentic in them, or are they all weak as well?
The Shaykh : Some of them are established, and suffice you what I mentioned to you earlier, Ibn Abbas and Ibn Umar with correct chains, that the face of a woman is not an 'awrah (the part of the body that must be covered), but I want to draw your attention to a scientific linguistic aspect.
The questioner : Please go ahead.
The Shaykh : And that is what our Saudi brothers, the shaykhs, do not address when Allah the Exalted said:
to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments
يدنين عليهن من جلابيبهنLet them draw
يدنينThe questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Ah, how do they interpret
to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments
يدنين عليهنّ من جلابيبهنّLet them draw
يدنينThe questioner : But it is strengthened.
The Shaykh : But it is strengthened, first by another path in Sunan al-Bayhaqi, secondly by the statements of the Companions some of which I mentioned to you earlier, and thirdly and finally the practical Sunnah, which is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him):
When a woman reaches the age of menstruation, it is not permissible for anyone to see of her except her face and her two hands
إذا بلغت المرأة المحيض لم يصلح أن يرى منها إلا وجهها وكفّيهاLet them draw
يدنينThe questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : May Allah bless you.
The questioner : You mentioned an expanded verification of the hadith of Asma' in the book on hijab.
The Shaykh : Yes, exactly.
The questioner : Then you mentioned the authentic hadith in Sunan Abu Dawud.
The Shaykh: Yes
The questioner : Is there anything new added to the verification existing in The Hijab of the Muslim Woman?
The Shaykh : You will see that in our new edition, if Allah wills, and hopefully it will be soon.
The questioner : The new edition of the book on hijab?
The Shaykh : Yes, yes.
The questioner : Is there more verification in it about what was mentioned here now?
The Shaykh : And do you not know our rigidity to the old!
The questioner : No, no, excuse me.
The Shaykh : The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) laughs. I say that there is something new in every edition.
The questioner : I mean, regarding this hadith, the verification of the hadith of Asma'...
The Shaykh : Yes, yes, there is something new in it.
The questioner: May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : Do you know the first edition of *Al-Hijab*?
'Abd al-Hamid: Yes.
The Shaykh : Do you not find a difference? It is the edition that you printed in Egypt.
The questioner : This is correct.
The Shaykh : Ah, do you not find a vast difference between it and the edition printed by the Islamic Office?
The questioner : Yes, a big difference.
The Shaykh : So you will find a difference like this, or greater, in the new edition, if Allah wills.
The questioner : When do you expect it to appear, approximately?
The Shaykh : As for when, that is not in my possession nor within my power.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : Because this concerns the printer and the publisher.
The questioner : The third question, Professor.
The Shaykh : Yes?
The questioner : The third question.
The Shaykh : Please, go ahead.
The questioner : You mentioned in... *Al-Khulasa*, meaning that it is permissible for her to uncover her face, on the condition that there is nothing of adornment on it.
The Shaykh : Yes, artificial adornment.
The questioner : Excuse me, you did not specify this, Professor. Excuse me.
The Shaykh : If I did not specify it, I specify it now, and you have the merit.
The questioner : May Allah bless you, Professor. You mentioned a hadith that indicates the exposure of the eyes and the henna on the hands, on the condition that there is nothing of adornment on them, absolutely, everything.
The Shaykh : But there should be nothing of adornment on them. What comes to your mind? After we have specified kohl and henna by mention, does it not come to mind from this expression that the intended meaning is artificial adornment for the woman? That is what I aimed at. And yet, I will remove any ambiguity if there is any in the expression.
The questioner : Excuse me, who stops at that point, meaning one might overlook the first one or...
The Shaykh : In any case, if Allah wills, we will clarify that.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : And may He reward you.
The questioner : If Allah wills, we will see you in good health and well-being, Professor.
The Shaykh : And you are well.
The questioner : With our greetings to all the attendees, and may our Lord preserve you and prolong your life.
The Shaykh : May Allah keep you safe and reward you with good.
The questioner : Until we meet again, if Allah wills.
The Shaykh : Welcome, peace be upon you.
The questioner : And peace be upon you.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.