The ruling on wearing trousers.

The questioner : We understood that the trouser is now either disliked or forbidden?

The Shaykh : But before you build castles in the air on top of it, I want you to be convinced that this is not permissible. So, do you know why it is not permissible?

The questioner : No, my question is still in its beginning, regarding practical life.

The Shaykh : This is not a question; you want to raise an objection to the Islamic ruling. So, before you raise an objection to the Islamic ruling, look at whether you are convinced of it or not?

The questioner : I want to ask about the Islamic evidence.

The Shaykh : I am telling you, ask. You want to say the reality is such and such. What do we want with the reality? Does the reality existing today in the lands of Muslims represent Islam?

The questioner : No, it does not represent it.

The Shaykh : Leave the reality to us. The duty of Muslims who are careful to adhere to the Book and the Sunnah is to address the reality, at least the one around them. So, may Allah reward you and all those present now, you must know why the trouser is not permissible to wear. The answer is for two reasons. The first reason is that it is not from the clothing of Muslims. This trouser came to us when the "trouser-wearers" came, and they are the disbelievers and polytheists, and so on, and they occupied the lands of Islam, whether here in Jordan or in Syria or in India and Pakistan, and so on. And they spread their traditions and customs in these lands. Do not blame me; in the old days, you would not find Muslims in the lands of Islam with shaved heads. You would not find this. What is the reason? Because of the Islamic customs that were prevalent. But the Europeans truly colonized us. First, they colonized us militarily, so they occupied our lands by force. Then they colonized us socially, culturally, and so on. Then Allah the Exalted decreed their departure, and they left, but they left their bad effects in the lands of Islam. And these are the effects that we must today try to get rid of. We got rid of their influencers, meaning those who created them, but we did not get rid of their effects. Among those effects are trousers. The trouser is the clothing of the disbelievers. And the disbelievers, as you know from the text of the Noble Qur'an, do not forbid what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden. They have nothing called "awrah" (nakedness). Allah says: Who are they? So, these people have nothing called halal and haram, and they have nothing called honor. Even a specialist in foreign languages told me that there is no word in their language that is a synonym for the word "honor." Therefore, we are now influenced by their customs, tastes, and traditions. Among these is wearing the trouser, my brother. Wearing the trouser is suitable first for those men who do not sit on the ground, because the first time they sit, the crease breaks. And perhaps you all know from his saying (peace and blessings be upon him) when a man came to him and greeted him, he said: And his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): This is the first reason for the dislike of the trouser and its lack of legitimacy. The second reason: We said earlier at the beginning of the session, when we spoke about images, that we enter the mosque and see a worshipper in front of us with an image on his back. Now, in front of us is a worshipper, and a man, who may be around forty or fifty, less or more, when he bows, and especially when he prostrates, you find the buttocks are defined, and you find more than that, between the buttocks, you find the testicles are defined. This is, in Islam, among the ugliest things, because Islam ordered the covering of the awrah, as came in the authentic hadith, he said:The questioner : "O Messenger of Allah, what are our awrahs, what do we come to them and what do we leave?" He said: He said: O Messenger of Allah, if I am alone. He said: Preserving the awrah is in two forms, one of which is more obligatory than the other. The first is covering the awrah with a covering, and the other, which is what we are currently addressing, is to cover it with a loose garment. May Allah have mercy on you. Now, look at how the Muslims have gone astray from the right path. I am not speaking now about the general Muslims, but I specifically mention those afflicted with trousers. If he has a wife, or if he has a sister, or if he has a daughter, does he allow her to wear the trouser that defines her thighs and her buttocks, and she walks in the streets like this? Does anyone accept this? No one. So, what is the difference between the man and the woman in this? The woman is entirely awrah, but for the man, it is between the navel and the knee. We are now saying a trouser that defines the man's thigh and the man's buttock. And the woman, why do we blame women for wearing something that defines her awrah, and her awrah is even what? The legs. And we forget ourselves and wear the trouser that defines our awrah. This is negligence. What is the cause of this negligence? Imitating the disbelievers. And the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade imitating the disbelievers, even in words. There is a hadith in Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Musnad Ahmad, and others, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was on a journey, and naturally, his Companions were with him. They passed by a large tree of sidr (lote) that belonged to the polytheists, on which they hung their weapons. What did one of the Companions say? He said: "O Messenger of Allah, make for us a Dhat Anwat as they have a Dhat Anwat." What is in this word? Make for us a tree on which we hang our weapons, as these polytheists have a tree on which they hang their weapons. So he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Where is that? They said: Make for us a god to worship besides Allah. These people did not say this thing, but it is like that. They have a tree to hang on, so make for us a tree. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: As in the other hadith: They said: "The Jews and the Christians?" He said: So we have been afflicted by this imitation, afflicted by this following without awareness. And the lack of awareness is very clear in our issue from two aspects. The first aspect is the jurisprudential aspect, and of course, not everyone shares in knowing this. But the second aspect is shared by everyone. Why do you not allow your wife to wear tight clothing? No, this is forbidden, it is not permissible, because it reveals the awrah. So, you yourself are afflicted with revealing the awrah, especially when you pray, you bow, you prostrate, and the awrah is fully defined. So, will you stop? If Allah wills.

The questioner : A small question, any employee...

The Shaykh : What is the reason?

The questioner : A military employee, a civilian employee.

The Shaykh : I know, I know. The reason is the Muslims' turning away from their religion. So, does every individual have to be turned away from his religion? Our brother excuses himself and says he is military. But now, if his military service is compulsory, he is not blamed. But when the compulsion ends and it becomes voluntary, God forbid. But here, he is not military, he is not military, he is not military. Why, why this trouser?

The questioner : The dishdasha is not practical.

The Shaykh : Practical how?

The questioner : I mean, from a military perspective, he goes to train.
The questioner: He wants to work as a mechanic on a car, he wants to work as a mechanic in the garage, he manufactures.

The Shaykh : May Allah reward you. What is your father's name? What do they call you?

The questioner : Abu Usamah.

The Shaykh : Abu Usamah, welcome. Do not take the issue from the narrow side, because necessity has its rulings. Allow me. We used to see some farmers wearing [trousers] and lifting their thobe to show some of their thigh. Why? Because they are wading in water. So, you do not speak about the one who wades in water. Speak about the people who are not in that position and do not have that description that you are mentioning. Speak about...

The questioner : We reached the point.

The Shaykh : Good. So, speak about the ordinary people who do not have these excuses. This is one thing. The second thing: Is it possible to address the matters you are pointing to, and that it is not possible with the dishdasha? I will give you a blank check, Abu Usamah. The situation does not go with the dishdasha. We do not impose the dishdasha. We impose clothing that does not reveal the awrah. Now, stay with me. Let the leg clothing be entirely exposed. Does the situation go for the one who works on the lathe and the driver, and so on? Does the situation go? Why?

The questioner : It does not go.

The Shaykh : It will not get injured?
The questioner: The situation does not go.

The Shaykh : Be patient a little. We will cover it well. We will cover it like some trousers. I do not know, the military do not bite the leg. What is it called?

The questioner : He wears...

The Shaykh : Yes, this prevents injury. What prevents it from being from the top? Be patient a little. What prevents it from being from the top, not revealing the awrah? Good, if we agree on this thing.

The questioner : Good, we... we want to address this point.

The Shaykh : We dealt with it, right? It is wide on top and narrow on the bottom, meaning the private parts are not gathered up or tied, because there is no need to tie them up there; that part needs to be tied up, but here there is no need for it. The work is not from here; the work is from below.
Al-Halabi : The Pakistani garment, O Shaykh.

The Shaykh : O Professor Abu Usamah, do not think that there is anything in this world that is treated with what is forbidden, or that can be treated with what is lawful. Do not think of this at all.

The questioner : The farmers' clothing, the trousers with the button...

The Shaykh : O people, we have in Syria a pant called the "Muhakimaji" pant, named after the courts. When this pant first started to spread, just as you now observe the employees who are afflicted with wearing this pant, when it first began to spread in the time of the Turks, it entered the employees of the Shari'ah courts. They would wear a pant that gathers the private parts so that they do not become exposed. So they thought of it and made the pant in the shape of a trouser, but instead of having a button, it has buttons, and it is wide. Then it was named the "Muhakimaji" pant. Personally, when I was about twenty-five to thirty years old, I wore this pant. There is no problem except that it is solved in a Shari'ah manner, but what does it need? It needs engaging the mind and caring about the rulings of the Shari'ah. Now, let us be honest with each other, for religion is sincere advice. We wear this pant because work sometimes compels us to do so, even though it should be treated within the limits we mentioned.