An Analytical View on the Ruling of Face Covering (Part 6)
Pre-Islamic Historical Review of “Face Covering”
When we examine the history preceding Islam, we can glean from the context and interpretation of certain narrations that among women who adhered to divine principles, as well as women from various civilizations and empires, it was common to observe practices related to hijab and niqab.
1. Among Hebrew and Jewish women, it has been common to cover the face. As chaste women of that time paid more attention to this, it is clear from some narrations that this was not emphasized among them. From other narrations, it is known that it was an important custom. A quote from the book “Shulhan Arukh” indicates that covering the face was not considered necessary in that era. However, there is also evidence from the Torah showing that wearing a face covering was not widespread among the Hebrews. Even so, they were ordered not to adorn themselves in front of foreign men, as mentioned in the book of “Isaiah,” which states that punishment was sent to the daughter of Zion because of her face makeup in front of strangers.
2. However, it is evident from some narrations that in the Old Testament, covering the head, face, and entire body was emphasized for Jewish women, with many pieces of evidence supporting this, such as:
– It is stated in the Book of Genesis, “When Tamar saw that Sheila had grown up and was not yet married to him, she changed her widow’s clothes and put a veil over her face and covered herself with a veil. Then she sat at the gate of Anaym village, which is on the way to Tamneh. When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute because she covered her face.”
– It is also mentioned in the Book of Genesis: “When Rebekah saw Isaac, she got down from her camel and asked Abraham’s steward, ‘Who is that man coming to us from the field?’ The steward replied, ‘He is my master.’ So, Rebekah covered her face with a veil.” Joseph Dixon says, “Jewish and Greek women never appeared in public without a headscarf.”
3. In the religious texts of Christians, it is also prescribed to wear a hijab and ban self-decoration in public. For example, it has been narrated from Sayidina Jesus Christ, peace be upon him: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ but I tell you that whenever a man looks at a woman out of lust, he has committed adultery with her in his heart. So, if your right eye causes you to go astray, take it out and throw it away; for it is better to lose a part of your body than to be cast into hell with your whole body.”
4. Covering the face was common in the Byzantine, Greek, and Roman empires. Among the civilizations of the Assyrians, Chaldeans, Sumerians, Persians, Byzantines, Goths, etc., women covered their faces in front of foreign men. Archaeologists and historians have discovered statues from the remains of great empires, depicting women with a burqa or veil covering their faces.
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