By Sana Khan
As a hijab-wearing woman who has worked hard to earn her place in society to make a livelihood, along with being an ardent women’s emancipation enthusiast, I still find it hard to explain my hijab to people at work and off work. The following are some examples of comments I receive on a regular basis because I choose to wear a hijab:
“You talk about women’s rights and education, but why do you wear a hijab?”
“Why did your Allah ask you (women) to cover your hair and not the men?”
“There is no gender equality in Islam; you can’t be a Muslim and a feminist.”
“Isn’t hijab a symbol of patriarchy? Why should you carry it on your head all the time?”
“Poor woman, she is conditioned to wear a hijab and that’s why she is defending it too!” This coming from women’s rights groups who continue to see me as conditioned, trapped and a victim of patriarchy.
Furthermore, one of my ex-colleagues took my hijab as an insult to men and said, “Do you think we are all creeps and that we will get aroused by just seeing your hair?! Maybe, Muslim men are like that! We aren’t!“
My wearing a hijab has nothing to do with what other people think of me, what I think of men or what others think about the hijab in general.
My reasons for the hijab have been evolving over the years, from it being an identity of resistance to society who expect women to dress a certain way, to striving for complete submission to Allah and now, as an act of immense gratitude.
I wear the hijab because Allah has asked me to. If I say I am Muslim, then I submit myself to Allah’s love obediently, respectfully and gratefully because Allah brought me to life from nothingness to experience His greatness.
After years of justifying my hijab to others and reflecting upon it on my own, I have learned to keep critical reasoning out of my spiritual realm. One can only use it for their worldly affairs and not for their spiritual ones. It will just blur your heart’s vision and mirror other’s views about you. Whatever reason or logic behind the concept of hijab one brings to the table for the critical mind, it will never be sufficient enough to satisfy every critic on the planet.
If we can follow the rules of our employer, government and society, why can’t a Muslim woman follow the rules of her Creator in her life? It is as simple as that.
Moreover, when you go to a theme party or fancy dress, do you judge each other for your costumes or themes or how you are looking? You don’t. You accept and enjoy different role plays and each other’s themes without attaching any label or bias to any character somebody wants to portray. You just have fun with it.
Islam is our theme for life; modesty and hijab are our dress codes for role-playing in this temporary residence of duniya, Arabic term for “world.”
Sometimes, I wonder why I even justify it and then, I remember that regardless, some Muslim, somewhere in the world, is deemed as having a low IQ or a lack of intellect. Still, the optimist in me writes with the hope that someone with an open mind and a quest to know why women in Islam wear hijab, is reading this and trying to understand rather than judge us.
About The Author
Sana Khan is a Motivational Speaker, Writer and Coach. Moreover, Khan has attained her engineering degree from Shobhit Institute of Engineering and Technology (now a Deemed University) and Dr. APJ Abdul Kamal University (former UPTU) in India. She has an MA in International Business from EAE Business School in Barcelona Spain and UPC Catalunya, Spain. Khan has recently written a motivational eBook entitled, “Dreamcatcher Framework.” She has also co-authored a spiritual anthology called, “Pause and Pen.” When she is not reading or writing, she prefers to nature-walk or sip coffee with her husband and son in Belgium.
Website: https://www.talkwithsana.com/
YouTube and Facebook @TalkwithSana
Instagram @Sanakrblogs