What is the stronger position regarding the issue of a man covering his face while in the state of ihram?
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The questioner : We said that there is scholarly disagreement regarding a man covering his face; some permitted it and some forbade it, based on the validity of the narration in Muslim. Has the stronger position not been established?
The Shaykh : By Allah, I have not been able to determine the stronger position in this matter, because there is a possibility that the narrator who reported it last and added this wording mentioned it later, and there is a possibility regarding that. Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) leaned toward the view that it is not authentic.
The questioner : Is it authentic that covering the face is [permitted]?
The Shaykh : No, the wording is not authentic, and there is nothing wrong with covering the face.
The questioner : Okay, Shaykh, is it obligatory for a woman to cover her face when there are no non-mahram men present?
The Shaykh : But with a niqab or without a niqab?
The questioner : Without a niqab.
The Shaykh : There is nothing wrong with it, but leaving it is better, meaning it is better for a woman to uncover her face if there are no men present.
The Shaykh : By Allah, I have not been able to determine the stronger position in this matter, because there is a possibility that the narrator who reported it last and added this wording mentioned it later, and there is a possibility regarding that. Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) leaned toward the view that it is not authentic.
The questioner : Is it authentic that covering the face is [permitted]?
The Shaykh : No, the wording is not authentic, and there is nothing wrong with covering the face.
The questioner : Okay, Shaykh, is it obligatory for a woman to cover her face when there are no non-mahram men present?
The Shaykh : But with a niqab or without a niqab?
The questioner : Without a niqab.
The Shaykh : There is nothing wrong with it, but leaving it is better, meaning it is better for a woman to uncover her face if there are no men present.