What is your guidance regarding women wearing trousers?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : May Allah reward you, Shaykh. Lately, it has become common for some women to wear the niqab and trousers and other such clothing in the presence of their guardians. It would be desirable to have a word of guidance on this matter, given its seriousness.
The Shaykh : By Allah, my brother, there is no doubt that women have begun to expand their clothing and use of perfume when going out to the market. The first reason for this is the decline of religion, because when religion weakens, a person’s obedience to the command of Allah decreases. Otherwise, the Qur'an is explicit:[Al-Ahzab 33:33] [An-Nur 24:31] [An-Nur 24:31] This indicates that the clothing in the era of the revelation of the Qur'an reached down to the ankles, because the anklet is on the leg. And His saying: is evidence that the clothing covers these anklets. This is the first point: the weakness of religion.
The second reason is the weakness of modesty, and modesty is part of faith. Many women have lost their modesty, may Allah protect us from that, and they no longer care. In the past, as we knew it, an unmarried woman could not go out to the market. Even if her relatives invited her to stay with them for a day, she would not go out until after the sun had risen, and she would not return to her house until after the sun had set. In the past, no one was out and about before the sun rose, and after the sun set, there were no shops or anything else. Then women expanded their behavior based on what they heard from the women who came to them, what they heard from the media, and what the foolish men dictate to them.
Another reason is that their guardians did not fear Allah the Exalted and did not respect the trust they had been given. Allah the Exalted said:[At-Tahrim 66:6] And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: So we ask Allah, the Exalted and Sublime, to guide everyone. There is also another factor: the weakness of the deterrent from the ruler, meaning there is no deterrent from the sultan or the rulers. We used to know that if a woman put out her hands and arms in the market, the lowest of people would forbid her, and the men of the market inspectors (hisbah) would go as far as beating her. But now, as you see, the matter is such that a woman walks on one leg and with a cane. We ask Allah to strengthen those who enjoin good and forbid evil.
The student: O Allah, amen.
The Shaykh : By Allah, my brother, there is no doubt that women have begun to expand their clothing and use of perfume when going out to the market. The first reason for this is the decline of religion, because when religion weakens, a person’s obedience to the command of Allah decreases. Otherwise, the Qur'an is explicit:
And abide in your houses and do not display yourselves as [was] the display of the former times of ignorance
وَقَرْنَ فِي بُيُوتِكُنَّ وَلا تَبَرَّجْنَ تَبَرُّجَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ الْأُولَىto wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests
وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَى جُيُوبِهِنَّAnd let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment
وَلا يَضْرِبْنَ بِأَرْجُلِهِنَّ لِيُعْلَمَ مَا يُخْفِينَ مِنْ زِينَتِهِنَّwhat they conceal
مَا يُخْفِينَThe second reason is the weakness of modesty, and modesty is part of faith. Many women have lost their modesty, may Allah protect us from that, and they no longer care. In the past, as we knew it, an unmarried woman could not go out to the market. Even if her relatives invited her to stay with them for a day, she would not go out until after the sun had risen, and she would not return to her house until after the sun had set. In the past, no one was out and about before the sun rose, and after the sun set, there were no shops or anything else. Then women expanded their behavior based on what they heard from the women who came to them, what they heard from the media, and what the foolish men dictate to them.
Another reason is that their guardians did not fear Allah the Exalted and did not respect the trust they had been given. Allah the Exalted said:
O you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَاراً وَقُودُهَا النَّاسُ وَالْحِجَارَةُA man is a shepherd over his family and is responsible for his flock.
الرجل راع في أهله ومسؤول عن رعيتهThe student: O Allah, amen.