Behind the hijab... did Muhammad hide his sins and lust..
Some of the Muslim women proudly wear hijab; some are forced to wear it, but most wear it accepting it as part of culture, without knowing why they were asked to wear hijab; they just follow the words of Muhammad without questioning: why he ordered Muslim women to cover their full body, from head to toe, and call it a sin for women if they showed any part of their body to any man other than their husband. God has created humans, women and men, to live freely, to live as they are created. Why then did Muhammad order women to hide in the hijab for their entire life? Every time I see a Muslim woman entirely covered by a hijab, I question myself:
Why is she hiding herself from others?
What wrong has she done?
Why can't she walk freely like other free humans?
Who is she afraid of?
There are two main reasons that make people hide from others:
- Shame
- Fear
Shame: I do not think it is shameful to be a woman. Woman gives birth to new life, and it is something they should be proud of. Why are Muslim women ashamed of what God has made them?
Fear: Another reason for wearing the hijab can be fear of men. Yes, women, who live beside uncivilised men, such rapists and abusers, may want to cover themselves because of fear.
When pondered on these questions, it appears to be a situation like this:
There was a kingdom on Earth, ruled by a whimsical powerful king. In his kingdom, there were two farmers, Nawaz and Ali Jinnah, both having mango-farms very close to each other. One summer Nawaz's mango farm had a very good season, full of beautiful mangos, but Ali Jinnah’s farm had a poor harvest. Ali Jinnah was upset and jealous of Nawaz's farm. On one night, Ali Jinnah stole mangos from Nawaz’s farm, and sold them. Nawaz got to know about it. And the next night, he kept watch on his farm, and he caught Ali red-handed as he tried to steal mangos again. He was forgiven when promised not do it again. But he again attempted to steal mangos from Nawaz’s farm. He was caught again brought to the king.
But Ali Jinnah was loyal to the king and had served him well. The king, advised by minister, spoke:
“I know Ali Jinnah is a noble man and prays five times a day, and worships my God the way I have ordered to my citizens. On the other side Nawaz is a hardworking man. I heard Nawaz’s mangos are nice, and the finest in the kingdom.
Ali Jinnah is an honest and truthful man, but he became weak when he saw Nawaz’s mangos. Nawaz’s mangos enticed Ali Jinnah, and the mangos made him commit the crime of stealing.”
So he removed all the charges against Ali Jinnah and filed a case against Nawaz. The king spoke: “The law has spoken; you should put fencing around your farm, bigger than the trees you have in there, so that no one can see your mangos. If no one sees them, no one will steal.”
The king’s cruel justice, thus, ruined the farm and life of Nawaz---an honest, innocent, and hard-working man. He punished the innocent, and set a criminal free.
The wisdom of Allah and Muhammad vis-à-vis the imposition of hijab on Muslim women was similar to the king's. Muhammad did not advise men to respect women. He allowed his male-followers to marry four women and keep unlimited number of slaves for sex. He even imposed hijab on the women to cover their beauty, lest his uncivilized male-followers get tempted and rape or molest them. Just like the king said: cover your mangoes, so that others don't get tempted to steal them.
Women’s safety is not the main reason for the hijab. The true for Muhammad's imposition of hijab on women is revealed.
Muhammad had so many wives, most of them young and beautiful; some even younger than his grandkids. Once he heard some of his followers about his so many young wives and his lustful character; they started talking about his wives and the age-difference with him. A young follower of his had even said: he would marry Muhammad's child-wife Aisha after the Prophet's death. So, Muhammad sought ways to prevent others from getting tempted toward his wives and ordered his wives to wear veils not to show their face or any part of their body to other men. He knew that if people did not see his wives, they would never get to know about their age and beauty, and they would not get attracted to or talk about them.
Islam prescribes women to start wearing the hijab at the age of 6. It was likely ordered by Muhammad, since he married his child-wife Aisha at the age of six. If Muhammad had married Aisha or another girl at the age of three, he would have ordered women to wear the hijab from the age of three. Muhammad hid his sins and lust under the hijab. He made laws out of the necessities and desires of his own in the name of God. Every law he made, he said, was the law of God.
God didn't send women covered head to toe. On the Judgment Day, God will never ask if you wore the hijab or scarf, Indian sari or Western dress, dirty clothes or clean clothes. The only thing God will ask is: how pure you were in your heart.
