For something to be considered obligatory in Islam, it would need to be clearly and unequivocally stated in the Qur’an.Not implied. Not inferred. Not built through layers of interpretation and equivocation.Clear.And yet, when we turn to the Qur’an, the word ḥijāb (حجاب) appears in the Qur’an seven times, and not a single one of those instances refers to women’s clothing or a dress code. What we do find are a small number of verses that speak about modesty, dress, and social conduct between the sexes. The two most commonly cited are:<ul><li>Surah An-Nur (24:31)</li><li>Surah Al-Ahzab (33:59)</li></ul>In Surah An-Nur, believing women are instructed to draw their khumur (plural of khimar) over their juyub (bosoms/cleavage), often translated as drawing their head coverings over their chests, and to guard their modesty. In Surah Al-Ahzab, women are advised to draw their jalabib (outer garments) around themselves so that they may be recognised and not harmed.But, before we immediately jump to ‘common-sense’ interpretations of these verses (or make a ‘logical leap’) here is where it becomes important to pause and reflect.Because nowhere in the Qur’an does it explicitly state: ’Women must cover their hair.’Nor is the command related to their clothing connected to modesty or piety. Rather it is connecting it to recognition and protection from harm. So, still avoiding the ‘logical leap’ (thank you Patience on Channel 4! Great series - love a good crime drama), we need to ask:<ol><li>Protection from what harm?</li><li>Recognised by whom? </li><li>Recognised as what?</li></ol><h3 id="bc80b8ba-bdf5-43da-8dce-d47e0b41a883" data-toc-id="bc80b8ba-bdf5-43da-8dce-d47e0b41a883" style="font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.2;">The khimār was a symbol of social status and identity — not modesty or piety</h3>In 7th-century Arabia, women already wore the khimār. It was not introduced by the Qur’an as a new religious garment. Rather, it was a pre-existing cultural item - a head covering worn in a variety of ways, often thrown loosely behind the shoulders, leaving the chest exposed. (Read that again. Boobs out. Breasts on show, just…out there!!) The verse in Surah An-Nur does not command women to start wearing the khimār; it instructs believing women to use what they are already wearing in a different way, to draw it over their juyūb, i.e. their ‘meeting point’, their cleavage.That distinction matters.Because it shifts the focus of the verse away from the hair, and towards the chest. Away from introducing a new dress code, and towards modifying an existing one. The verse is basically saying, cover your boobies ladies!! (See why context matters? If we didn’t know that about Arab women at that time, we wouldn’t really understand the verse’s meaning).And when we turn to Surah Al-Ahzab, the context becomes even more explicit.The jilbāb (an outer garment, like a cloak) is described not in relation to modesty or an abstract spiritual virtue like ‘piety’, but in relation to being recognised so that women ‘may not be harmed.’Recognised as what? Harmed by whom?Here is where the historical and social reality of the time becomes impossible to ignore.Medina was a society in which not all women held the same social status. There were free women, and there were enslaved women. And tragically, enslaved women were far more vulnerable to harassment and assault. Classical sources, including early tafsīr literature, openly discuss how men would harass women at night, and when confronted, would claim they thought the woman was a slave. (Bastards).The jilbāb then, functioned as a social marker. A way of signalling: this is a free woman. A woman under the protection of a household. A woman whose violation would not be socially tolerated in the same way.This is uncomfortable. (It should be).Because it reveals that the verse is not simply about ‘modesty’ in the way it is often preached today. It is about navigating a deeply unequal and violent society, and offering women a form of protection within that reality - not dismantling the system itself, but mitigating harm within it.And so when we read these verses today, centuries later, in entirely different social, legal, and moral contexts, we have to ask ourselves:Are we reading the text — or are we reading the layers of interpretation that have been built around it?Are we recognising the difference between divine guidance and human attempts to apply it within a particular time and place?Because when the Qur’an speaks, it speaks with precision. And what it does not say is just as important as what it does.It does not say that a woman’s hair is ‘awrah’ (Hate that word. Talk about objectifying women). It does not prescribe a universal, fixed dress code for all Muslim women across all times and places.What it does is speak into a specific society, using the language, garments, and social structures that already existed, and guiding behaviour in a way that sought to reduce harm and cultivate dignity, which are core Qur’anic principles.Allah is not talking about sexual purity, modesty, piety and all that male obsession with what women’s bodies can and can’t do, what they can and can’t show, how they should smell, how they should talk, if their hair is fitna and so on and on. Allah is speaking to protecting women from violent dirty men who would rape a woman in public just because she was a slave-woman, and therefore sexually available in his eyes.If a woman wore a jilbab, she would be recognised as a free-woman and not harmed (in theory). <h3 id="867151ef-f231-4870-85a5-f536f1a7b972" data-toc-id="867151ef-f231-4870-85a5-f536f1a7b972" style="font-size: 20px; line-height: 1.2;">So how did we get to this point where we are told hijab is obligatory?</h3>This is where we have to be honest about the role of interpretation. Because over time, these verses did not remain within their original social context. They were interpreted, codified, and embedded into legal frameworks - overwhelmingly by male scholars, operating within patriarchal societies, who often universalised what may have been contextual.And slowly, over centuries of Islamic theology and jurispridence, a shift occurred.What began as guidance became law, what was contextual became universal, and what was about social recognition became reframed as personal piety.And what was once one expression of modesty became the defining marker of a ‘good Muslim woman.’ (This is my number one peeve. There is no such thing as the ‘Ideal Muslimah’! I have the antidote to that in “From Ideal Muslimah to Empowered Muslimah: 5 Steps to a Liberated Life” - read here)This is not to dismiss the hijab as meaningless. For many women, it is deeply meaningful. It can be an expression of faith, identity, resistance, culture, and yes, even empowerment.But meaning is not the same as obligation. Choice is not the same as compulsion.So the question is not whether a woman can choose to wear the hijab? Of course she can! (and two fingers up to any European country that is trying to prevent Muslim women from exercising that right. I will die on that hill if I have to).The question is whether we can say, with intellectual honesty and integrity, that Allah has unequivocally commanded it in the Qur’an.And if we cannot…Then what are we really asking women to submit to?God?Or a particular interpretation of God?This is where the conversation must mature. And I believe that we are ready for that level of maturity. I am seeing more and more women questioning respectfully, daring to offer alternative ideas with humility, and choosing their own spiritual paths with courage. If you are interested in having these kinds of conversations with like-minded Muslim women, then I warmly invite you to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://www.we-rise.co.uk/risingsisterhood">join the Rising Sisterhood</a>. Be part of a community of empowered Muslim women on the path of spiritual awakening, freedom and peace - rooted deeply in Islamic knowledge and connection to Allah.

It's really not as cut-and-dry as you might think. Get ready to bend your mind a little!

What Does The Qur'an Actually Say About Hijab?

Over time, the 'hijab verses' did not remain within their original social context. They were interpreted, codified, and embedded into legal frameworks - overwhelmingly by male scholars, operating within patriarchal societies, who often universalised what may have been contextual.

What Does The Qur'an Actually Say About Hijab?

What Does The Qur'an Actually Say About Hijab?

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