Abdur Rahman ibn Yusuf Mangera – Have you Heard of the Middle Class Hijab

Bismillah al Rahman al Rahim Al Hamdulillah Al Hamdulillah. He was

salatu salam ala Sayyidina Muhammad while early he also asked

me about a cover seldom at the Sleeman Kathira Ilario. Within a

month but

Allah subhanaw taala says in the Quran, Allah you Dina Xena tahona

Illa Muhammad

Ali other dreaming to be Homare Hinata Gu beginner What are you

Dina Xena Tahuna Illa. liberality Hina. And and until the end of the

verse, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam then said to a

smart, minty have you back are the Allahu anha yazma in the numerator

either Bella what? Allah Muhammad laying your Salah, a Euro minha

Illa Hurva wahana what Ashara Illa witchy waka fi so this is a Hadith

narrated by Imam widowed Allah subhanaw taala also says in the

Quran, further Tada and a beanpole for Ultima Isla de vie will be

murdered or killed Napoleon now rufa.

Okay, so based on these Hadith and these Quranic verses, the

discussion I want to have today is something that's going really back

to the basics, something that there's a lot of discussion about

already, there's, I'm sure many talks about this, and I'm sure

you've heard this. And it's something that a number of women

actually contemplate all the time, there's a guilty feeling inside,

if they're not observing this, there's a guilty feeling inside as

to when should I start observing this, this is speaking about the

hijab covering, essentially to cover up. Now how much to cover

up, that's a different discussion. And that's not what I want to

speak about today, I just want to speak about just the whole focus,

I just want to put the whole focus today on drawing closer, closer to

Allah subhanaw taala.

Externally, which obviously has to come from the internal, of a human

being, that when their mind and their perspective, etc, change,

then it will give rise to this external, external expression.

Many of us you'll see, you'll see many people Subhanallah, we've

grown old, and they're still not, for example, making salats you

know, they're getting older, they've got children now as well.

They're happily married, they've got no issues, you know, that it's

not about, they have to show it to anybody, or they have to display

to anybody, but it's just this mindset. I mean, really, what else

is it that is preventing somebody from drawing closer to Allah

subhanaw taala. And fulfilling these external observances, other

than a mindset other than some kind of thought that if I start

doing that, then I'll be in a different league, I'll be seen

differently. Now, this is just purely psychology is just purely a

mindset. And it needs to it needs to change because to draw closer

to Allah subhanaw taala, we need to make differences. We need to

make an effort to make a difference, to do things that are

differently, to show things that are differently and enhance

ourselves if we're the same, that we were, you know, 10 years ago,

and we haven't really, you know, made any difference to ourselves,

then. I mean, what's the point? What, Where are we going, when are

we going to make this difference? Subhan Allah, people die all the

time. People don't die at appointed times known to us, they

die at appointed times known to Allah subhanho wa taala. And for

some people, Allah subhanho wa Taala writes the appointed time to

be in a very surprising situation, in a sudden situation in all of a

sudden, at a young age, you know, 20 years old, 30 years old, 5060,

whatever it may be, there's, there's no guarantee for anything,

just the fact that we have comfortable living, and money and

wealth to spend etc, doesn't mean that you're going to live longer

than somebody who doesn't have these things. It's up to Allah

subhanaw taala. Allah works with his own timetable. Now, the thing

he is very clear, what I want to mention here is that most people,

they can't make this difference because they are scared, they are

frightened of what others would say. They don't want to be the

first one to make that difference. They don't want to be the first

one to make the change. Maybe they are among a group of a group of

people who are all in a similar kind of situation, and they don't

want to be the first to do it. Now, the thing here is that this

is an opportunity, this is an opportunity. The reason why this

is an opportunity is that the first person to make this

difference and have to face maybe a barrage of criticism or jokes or

etc. Whatever the case is, they will be rewarded for every single

joke that is made about them every single tone that they receive

every single criticism that is directed their way. And whatever

it may be any joke or any any font that's made of them, but

eventually, it will stop I mean, people don't keep bothering

somebody.

forever and ever, you know, once they once once they've changed,

then, you know, they try to they try to make fun of them for a

while. And then after that they stopped because there's just no

point afterwards you become silly and foolish. So you have to

realize that it's only a short while, it's only for a short

period of time that you have to face these things. And after that,

it just becomes quite normal. That's what you have to realize.

The stakes are very high. Here. You see, the fact that many of us

do things based on our influence from from external influence is

something that cannot be denied that there's, you know, there's

girls that we know, and because I'm speaking to women here, that's

why it's about this. So it's I'm not trying to be male chauvinist

or whatever it is, it's just because we're speaking to women

here. That's why this discussion is about that. And you know, I

don't speak about this all the time. But this is it has to happen

sometimes because mashallah, you know, we have people who have

great capability, we have people who love Allah subhanho wa Taala

in their heart and want to get closer, but they just lacking in

this ability to take this step. And that's what I want to just try

to help out in this in this regard and try to give some

encouragement, and to show the benefits. Remember, if you're

among the group of people who are not observing a sunnah, in fact,

forget a Sunday, you're not observing a font, right? You're

not observing a necessity, something mandatory, something

that is obligatory, then if you are the first one to start it and

then inshallah others will follow you, you get the reward of

everything, you get the reward of all of this plus, you get the

reward of enlivening Asuna in a time, when it's a time of

corruption among your group of people. Because, you know, there

are lots of other people who wear hijab mashallah, if you go to, you

know, our local girls schools here, you know, our local secular,

you know, a government run girls schools here, you've got majority

of them are wearing hijab, you've got so many people outside wearing

hijab, I find it very difficult that a woman in this time and age

in London, especially, you know, in these areas where there are so

many Muslims, and there's just so much hijab and niqab out there,

right? That somebody would find it difficult to do, you know, that

there has to be some major impediment in the psyche for them

not to do it is just really surprising, right? Honestly

speaking, you know, I can understand if you're the only

person in town, I mean, like, I, we were like that at one, you

know, at one time in, in America, in one area, where we were the

only kind of you can say Muslims in town, dressed in a particular

way.

That that is difficult, but you can still do it now in a place

where others are doing it, then it's only a few people that you

are fearing and the question is why you fearing people, why aren't

you fearing Allah subhanaw taala tomorrow you're gonna have to

stand in front of Allah subhanaw taala and, and give answer to

that. And the problem there is that in this world, that the

problem is there as compared to this world is totally different.

In this world, you know, you can overcome the foolishness of people

against you, but in the hereafter you lose, you lose it's it's a

loss. And then we have to be you know, punished in hellfire if, if

that's what Allah subhanaw taala seeks from us. So just to give us

some foundation, this what I want to what I want to mention is Allah

subhanaw. Taala says in the Quran, Allah Tala and a bill called Don't

soften your voices when speaking to men. Don't soften your voices

when speaking to men, like try to keep it very formal, essentially,

keep it very formal and official, and don't try to get flirty in any

sense. And a lot of the time, you know, it's just the fact that

there are some people whose voices are very attractive and this is

both in male and female, some people's voices are very

attractive, you just have to try to not soften it to that level and

just try to actually be a bit more, a bit more formal. That's

very important. When are you Dina Xena Tahuna Illa, Mahara minha a

person should not reveal themselves. Now. One is that you

just go out. The other thing is that you actually go out with

revealing yourself trying to accentuate parts of your body or

your hair or, or your clothing or whatever it may be, just to be

more attractive, that is really even worse than just going out

without without a hijab on, right in your normal state. I mean,

they're both bad, but the to accentuate yourself to put perfume

as well to, to wear something extremely flashy, to, you know, do

things like that. I mean, that's another category on its own. So

many of the women who don't wear hijab, they're going to be

complaining about women with hijab who cover their hair, but then

they've got all these weird types of, you know, makeup and clothing

and hijabs, etc as well. There are two different things, you know,

one is not wearing something, not covering yourself fully, that's a

problem. And then the other thing is to be a, you know, to make

yourself out to be attractive. And that's what Allah Subhana Allah

says, Allah Ube Dena, Xena, tahona you've got Xena, you have

adornment? You Allah has given you this adornment. Don't don't it's

not to show to others who is not halal for it to be shown to.

That's the thing. For example, one of those things

would be that I was in, I was in a, an Islamic program recently.

And on the women's side, right, which the men could not see, but

there was a sister was one of the organizers. So you can clearly

tell that she's got some love for her Deen for her religion, she's

sacrificing time, you know, etc for this, but she's got these, you

know, really these high sounding shoes on our footwear on. So when

she's walking around because she's the organiser, she's not one of

the, you know, people that just who's come to listen, so she's not

sitting calmly, she's obviously walking around trying to organize

this, that and the other. She's that, you know, her her her shoes

a resounding in that whole entire whole. I mean, why does somebody

need to wear something like that in in that kind of situation?

Right? Because with every tick tock, you are inviting you're

you're attracting attention, you know, whether it's positive or

negative attention, it's attracting attention. So one needs

to be very careful about what they're doing. Because at the end

of the day, we we are the servants of Allah subhanho wa Taala were

the servants of Allah subhanaw taala we want to satisfy him. Now,

you know, sometimes we want to do something selfish for ourselves,

but you know, this is Subhanallah this is this is an issue a smarter

the Allahu anha as related by Imam Abu Dhabi. In his son, the Prophet

salallahu Alaihe Salam said to a smarter the Allahu anha

that when a woman reaches menstruation essentially when a

woman when a girl reaches the age of maturity, then it is not laying

your Salah it is not appropriate at all, that anything should be

seen of her except her face on her hands, except this and this.

That's what he said and then he directed towards his face and

hands. Then you have you know, I don't want to go into the whole

niqab hijab issue but this is the Hadith generally used for people

to say niqab is not necessary only hijab is necessary. When I say

hijab, I mean, covering the hair, and you know, the head and the

neck, etc. And niqab. By that I mean covering the face. However,

there are other deals for niqab for those who consider that to be

necessary. I consider both of them to be completely established.

Right. And I consider I consider both of them to be established and

a goal in themselves to get to the there's a hadith in Bukhari and

Muslim as well, that a woman came to Rasulullah sallallahu and said

that what about if we don't have a jilbab? A jilbab means an outer

covering? Right, a full covering? If we don't have one, then what do

we do? So he says that little buzzer Sahiba to Hammond, Gil

Baba, little Bishara Sahiba to humming Jill Baba, her friend

should borrow her one, a friend should loan her one and give her

one to use. Now you can see that there's encouragement here that go

out of your way to get one, go and borrow one from your friend. If

you have to go outside and you don't have one, then use one of

those things. Now these are all general I mean, you know, these

are all kind of general narrations that we need to form a picture

through. Now all I what I can say is that the one of the benefits of

hijab one of the benefits of covering up in general is that it

should help to create some modesty in your it's one step. It's better

than not doing it at all. Right? So it's a step. It's a really

major step. And I think and you know, especially in cities around

the UK, and in places like you know, even other countries in the

west where you know, mashallah lots and lots of women are wearing

it. I don't see any issue whatsoever. You know, at the end

of the day, it's your relationship with Allah subhanho wa taala.

It will make you feel better, it will make you feel closer to Allah

subhanaw taala you've taken that one step along with that you need

in a modesty that's very important, because the Prophet

sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said that modesty, chastity bashfulness

goes together with iman. And if they are inseparable, essentially,

if you lose modesty, you've lost a massive aspect of Islam, and Iman,

because it will then help, it will help them diminish your Islam,

because in many other things, you will become loose as well, when

you don't have that hijab. Now, the that's a hadith that's related

by your ambi hockey that modesty and Islam are intertwined. modesty

and faith are intertwined. Like they're interrelated like that.

Now, the other thing that I want to mention is that we're speaking

about us in this area, we actually have a religious middle class, and

a religious you can say, high class or whatever it is. But what

I mean by that these are just these are just terms. Don't read

anything into them except what I'm saying. The reason I say this is

that if you go to certain cities, maybe up north or in other places,

what you see is that there's actually no middle class, in terms

of religion. What it is, is either you've got old guys who don't you

know, who who don't have beards, who don't, you know,

who don't observe externally, or you've got everybody who's got

like a beard and a quota and you know, Islamic throbs and garments

and jukebox, etc. And when it comes to the women, you've either

got those who are totally, like hijab bliss and everything or

you've got those who are full niqab. There's no kind of in

between. Now, what I would suggest what I would say

suggests that you can take it step by step, if you're jumped to the

niqab is, too, it's too much of a jump for you, then at least start

covering up, don't go out in clothing that you would want to,

you know, display to others only, you know, for to show yourself out

to show yourself off, what you want to do is what start off with

just wearing an over garment, you know, an overdue bar that goes

over all your clothes, when you go outside and covering your hair, at

least, you start off with that, no, you know, no makeup, no

perfume, just like that. And then after that, you go out and

inshallah slowly, slowly you get used to that, then you can have

the trophy to do niqab as well. However, if you're if it's the

jump directly from nothing to niqab, then, then that's going to

be a bigger jump, Allah gives you the tofi can Hamdulillah. But I

would say at least start off with this, for those who aren't doing

anything whatsoever, at least get into the middle class from the you

know, from, from, you know, from not wearing anything whatsoever, I

don't want to give that cluster name, right, I don't want to give

that cluster name because I don't want to be derogatory in any any

sense. But at the end of the day, what you've got in certain areas

is that they demand full observance. Otherwise, you know,

it's not acceptable. And that's why it leaves a lot of people in a

limbo, the way I look at it is that we have to get closer to

Allah subhanaw taala slowly and slowly and slowly. And the way to

do that is to start observing in as much as possibility as

possible, as in as much, you know, in whatever amount as possible.

And then and then you get closer to Allah subhanaw taala. Like

that. So

what I would encourage is that among these groups we have in

certain families and other places, the ones who are the bold ones,

the ones who are the people listen to those who are, you can say the

trendsetters, those who are the ones who will, you know, put

people down, those are the those who are the ones who will

criticize others who will be the first you know, who other people

are fearful of, or who people love. Those are the people who

need to take this opportunity because they have an opportunity

that the others don't have. See, among all types of people, you're

going to have people who are followers, they're just going to

blindly follow, right. And there's others who are going to me, the

leaders, they're the ones who set the trends. They're the one who

people either are fearful of or they've got respectful, right. So

those are the kinds of people who need to take this and take it by

the hand and say, This is what I'm going to do. And they need to

start making changes they need to maybe, you know, find a friend who

can start with them and just make a change. I mean, if that requires

you to, you know, to do whatever it is then then then do that. So

Hala, there are people who have been for hajj, there are people

who've had people who have died in their families, they've had all of

these lessons and you know, these kinds of symbols and signs from

Allah subhanaw taala. And yet, we still don't get closer to Allah

Subhanallah you've got people who are grandmothers now, right?

You've got people who are grandmothers, their husbands or,

you know, religious people, sometimes in the sense that

they're doing religious activities, they're part of

religious organizations, and yet they still their daughters are

wearing hijab, and they they don't wear hijab the other kind of weird

thing that I saw once is we had this

person that this couple that came not a couple, but it was it was

the older mother. And it was a younger it was a it was a it was

her daughter who was you know, probably 20 something or 30. The

daughter is not covered, but the mother is got a niqab on and she's

like, you know, 60 years old. So I said, you know, I said Subhan

Allah, I said, How come this is the case? I mean, shouldn't you at

least have your hair covered? I mean, your mom's got a niqab and

when, you know, she's probably at an age when she doesn't even need

her niqab in a sense, because when you get really old niqab is not

necessary for you, although it's good to do so. Right. But yet,

it's kind of the other way around. There's a mentality among some

communities, you know, there's a thought and idea in some

communities that you only wear all of these things when you retire,

you know, when you get too old to not bother anymore anyway, right

to not be attractive anyway, then you start covering your face up. I

mean, that's kind of more than ridiculous, really, it should

start when you're younger Hamdulillah I really my heart goes

out to all of these young sisters who are wearing hijab nowadays.

And look, I know a lot of them the wearing hijab, but then they've

got all this other funky clothing on inshallah they'll get Tofik.

Right, I would encourage that they get Tawfeeq to not do that, and to

come on proper a job, right? That's my, that's my, that's my

dua. At the end of the day, you try as much as possible, and you

always try to get better. Don't ever think I'm doing enough. And

that's it. That's what we need to realize. And again, it's a call to

those people who have influence, you know, they can make a big,

they've got a lot of potential investment in the in this case

that if they do the right thing, Allah subhanaw taala will really

really help them and Allah subhanho wa Taala will give them a

great amount of reward. The reason why this is so important, is

because the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam made some really,

really severe warnings about women who are outside and who do you

know, just like men who do strange things for women who do strange

things outside where they

showing themselves to be showing off themselves, attracting people

to themselves. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam he

gave, I'll just give you one example. There's one Hadith

related by multimedia in Abu Dhabi in which the Prophet sallallahu

sallam said in Almora, either stat thorat that if a woman goes out,

just perfumed, you know, forget about displaying anything, just

put me in imagine a woman even with niqab and but she puts all of

this, you know, she sprays herself with, you know, Calvin Klein

obsession or something like that, right? And just really, like it's

reeking of this stuff for Margaritaville imaginisce And she

goes past a group of people, you know, men essentially for here

together or whatever. So the process allows them then said

she's like this and she's like that, you know, he criticized such

a woman. So this is just one example. I don't want to give you

you know, all the other warning Hadith about this, but this is

just one example. And there's many, many, there's many, many

other examples about, you know, not getting close to Allah

subhanaw taala and this happening and that happening.

And

I don't want I don't want to go in through all that. But may Allah

subhanaw taala give us a little feat to get closer to Allah

subhanho wa Taala and make such changes in our life that do take

us closer to Him and be sincere about it. Working with that one

only hamdu Lillahi Rabbil Alameen