A woman committed to the Shari'ah but complaining of weak eyesight; she is a teacher and when she leaves the house she covers her body with a loose black garment and her face is covered
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The questioner : A woman committed to the Islamic Shari'ah, and she praises Allah for that, and she says: I complain of weak eyesight, and I am a teacher. When I leave the house, I cover my body with a loose black garment and my face is covered, and nothing is visible from it except the eyes, meaning that I am wearing a niqab. What is the ruling on this? May you be rewarded.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
It is obligatory for a woman when she goes out to the market to cover her face from men. This is because covering a woman's face from non-mahram men is obligatory, as indicated by the Qur'an and the Sunnah, and it is the stronger position among the opinions of the scholars.
However, if there is a need to open a small opening for her eyes, there is no harm, on the condition that it does not exceed the width of the eye. However, if there is a fear that women will expand in this matter, then it is obligatory to block the means leading to the forbidden. This is a legal principle of usul al-fiqh, which is that the means leading to the forbidden must be prevented. Allah Blessed and Exalted is He said:[Al-An'am 6:108] So Allah the Exalted forbade cursing the gods of the polytheists, even though they are in reality worthy of it, so that it would not be a means to cursing Allah Mighty and Majestic. And Allah Mighty and Majestic is free from cursing, and He is worthy of praise and glory.
So if the woman, as the questioner mentioned, needs to open a small opening for her eyes, there is nothing wrong with it, but on the condition that it does not become a means to what is wrong, such that women expand in that until they open a larger part that includes the lower forehead and the upper cheek, and perhaps they will expand in that greatly.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment:
It is obligatory for a woman when she goes out to the market to cover her face from men. This is because covering a woman's face from non-mahram men is obligatory, as indicated by the Qur'an and the Sunnah, and it is the stronger position among the opinions of the scholars.
However, if there is a need to open a small opening for her eyes, there is no harm, on the condition that it does not exceed the width of the eye. However, if there is a fear that women will expand in this matter, then it is obligatory to block the means leading to the forbidden. This is a legal principle of usul al-fiqh, which is that the means leading to the forbidden must be prevented. Allah Blessed and Exalted is He said:
And do not insult those they invoke other than Allah, lest they insult Allah in enmity without knowledge
وَلا تَسُبُّوا الَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ فَيَسُبُّوا اللَّهَ عَدْوًا بِغَيْرِ علمSo if the woman, as the questioner mentioned, needs to open a small opening for her eyes, there is nothing wrong with it, but on the condition that it does not become a means to what is wrong, such that women expand in that until they open a larger part that includes the lower forehead and the upper cheek, and perhaps they will expand in that greatly.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.