An Analytical View on the Ruling of Face Covering (Part 17)
Scholars’ Consensus (Ijma) on the Necessity of Covering the Face and the Prohibition of Revealing It
A large group of Islamic scholars and thinkers, to whom Allah has granted firm knowledge and insight, are unanimous that women should not leave the house without covering their faces. Some of their statements are mentioned below:
1. Ibn Raslan Al-Shafe’i, (MABH), narrates: «اتفاق المسلمين على منع النساء أن يخرجن سافرات الوجوه، لا سيما عند كثرة الفساق» Translation: “Muslims are agreed that women should not leave their homes without covering their faces, especially when there are immoral and lustful people in the markets.”
2. Imam Nawawi Al-Shafi’i ((MABH)), who lived in the seventh century, wrote in Rawzat Al-Talebin:
«ووجهه الإمام باتفاق المسلمين على منع النساء من الخروج سافرات، وبأن النظر مظنة الفتنة، وهو محرك للشهوة»
Translation: “The Imam has stated that Muslim scholars are unanimous in this fatwa that Muslim women should not leave their homes without covering their faces because looking at women’s faces without a mahram causes sedition and corruption and stimulates lust.”
3. Allama Sheikh Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri ((MABH)) stated the consensus of Islamic scholars in his book Bazl Al-Majhoud, Sharh al-Sunan Abu Dawood: «اتفاق المسلمین علی منع النساء أن یخرجن سافرات الوجوه و بأن النظر مظنة الفتنة و محرک للشهوة» Translation: “Muslims have agreed that it is forbidden for women to go out with their faces exposed because looking at a woman’s face causes sedition and arouses lust.”
4. Sheikh Yusuf Dajvi, (MABH), says in this regard: «… أما اذا خشیت الفتنة و لم یؤمن الفساد، فلا یجوز کشف وجهها ولا شیء من بدنها بحال من الاحوال عند جمیع العلماء» Translation: “… But if there is a fear of sedition, and security from corruption is not guaranteed, it is not permissible for a woman to reveal her face or any part of her body in any case, and this ruling has been accepted by all scholars.”
Practical Consensus of Muslims Throughout History
The practical consensus of Muslims on this issue has been narrated by scholars at different times, some of which are mentioned below:
1. Allama Hafiz Ibn Hajar Asqalani Al-Shafi’i, may Allah have mercy on him, who lived in the seventh century, said: «ولَم تَزَل عادَة النِّساء قَدِيمًا وحَدِيثًا يَستُرنَ وُجُوههنَّ عَن الأَجانِب» Translation: “The way of life of women, from the past to the present, has always been such that they have covered their faces in front of non-mahram men.”
2. Abu Huyan Al-Andalusi, who lived in the eighth century, writes in Tafsir Al-Bahr Al-Muhit: “The custom of the people of Andalusia was such that women covered their entire bodies in front of men, except for one eye.”
3. Abu Hamid Al-Ghazali, (MABH), who lived in the fifth century in Syria and Iraq, says in his famous book Ihya’ al-Ulum al-Din: «اذ لم یزل الرجال علی ممر الزمان مکشوفی الوجوه، والنساء یخرجن منتقبات» Translation: “Men, over time, have always walked around with their faces exposed, while our women have always left the house wearing the Niqab.”
4. Dr. Muhammad Arifi, one of the prominent contemporary scholars, says in this regard: “Covering the face for women has been an inherited tradition among Muslim women throughout Islamic history. Even images taken from Islamic countries, including Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia, and Syria, show that Muslim women have always had their faces covered in hijab and Niqab.”
It is clear that covering the face in front of non-mahram has been a matter of consensus and general adherence among Muslims throughout Islamic history based on the totality of historical statements and evidence. Great scholars and jurists have also emphasized the necessity of this ruling and considered it one of the necessities of maintaining chastity and preventing sedition.
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