The previous summer, I used to walk to my academy and it took me about 20 minutes. In June, at about 3 pm when the temperature would be around 30-40 degree Celsius, by the time I reached there I would be sweating heavily, considering that I also walked quickly, and usually had to drink up about a liter of water later to bring myself back to normal. It wasn't a very pleasant exercise but I was fine with it. I had been getting fatter over the past couple of years and it was a good and easy way to stop that. The thing is, I wasn't the only one doing that, there used to be a class fellow, a friend of a friend as well, who used to walk to academy and it is my guess that it would take her similar amount of time to reach academy from her hostel. The difference was, while I would usually be wearing a half sleeves shirt and summer jeans, she was clad in a full-fledged burka! Something like this:
Photo credit: theepochtimes.com
Then came the winter and one day when I walked into our TV-room, my mom was watching a Bollywood movie song and the heroine was dancing around in skirt with snow all around her. Now I know for a fact that women actually do that in real as well. Why? Islam does not require the burqa of the kind shown above to be worn; the women do not need to wear to skirts in winter and yet, they do.
When I asked a couple of women, each of whom did one of these things. I got the answer along these lines:
Burka woman: Its true that chador is enough to meet the needs of hijab but burka is a lot more convenient when we are walking and moving. Chador gets in the way.
Skirt woman: I want to look attractive.
Both these answers have some logic behind them and both imply a free will. A choice. But does the choice really exist? Does this choice really make sense? I don't believe so. The Burka issue is easy to explain away because of the West which is out to grant freedom to our woman. 'They are not given the choice. They are forced to wear these strange things because of the male-dominant, conservative society where honor is all for women to protect.' I agree that is true of a lot of cases; I am sure a lot of Muslim women wouldn't wear burka, at least, in today's world if it wasn't for fear even though they might still observe hijab.
Fear, however, is not the only factor. Quite a few of them are indoctrinated to wear these things, from the time of birth and at times there are societal pressures; they might have a choice in theory but it doesn't exist in fact. It is my belief, these latter factors are also the ones which apply to women in skirts. 'To look beautiful you have to show your body parts otherwise no guy would look at you; you would look so much hotter if you were to wear skirt in winter,' add in the corporations and big businesses always there to create pointless unmet needs and there you have it: A woman in skirt in winter.
And the last question for today. Why is it that only women have to wear all these strange thing for religion or fashion? Therein lies the real problem.
Then came the winter and one day when I walked into our TV-room, my mom was watching a Bollywood movie song and the heroine was dancing around in skirt with snow all around her. Now I know for a fact that women actually do that in real as well. Why? Islam does not require the burqa of the kind shown above to be worn; the women do not need to wear to skirts in winter and yet, they do.
When I asked a couple of women, each of whom did one of these things. I got the answer along these lines:
Burka woman: Its true that chador is enough to meet the needs of hijab but burka is a lot more convenient when we are walking and moving. Chador gets in the way.
Skirt woman: I want to look attractive.
Both these answers have some logic behind them and both imply a free will. A choice. But does the choice really exist? Does this choice really make sense? I don't believe so. The Burka issue is easy to explain away because of the West which is out to grant freedom to our woman. 'They are not given the choice. They are forced to wear these strange things because of the male-dominant, conservative society where honor is all for women to protect.' I agree that is true of a lot of cases; I am sure a lot of Muslim women wouldn't wear burka, at least, in today's world if it wasn't for fear even though they might still observe hijab.
Fear, however, is not the only factor. Quite a few of them are indoctrinated to wear these things, from the time of birth and at times there are societal pressures; they might have a choice in theory but it doesn't exist in fact. It is my belief, these latter factors are also the ones which apply to women in skirts. 'To look beautiful you have to show your body parts otherwise no guy would look at you; you would look so much hotter if you were to wear skirt in winter,' add in the corporations and big businesses always there to create pointless unmet needs and there you have it: A woman in skirt in winter.
And the last question for today. Why is it that only women have to wear all these strange thing for religion or fashion? Therein lies the real problem.
i strongly disagree with your view point !
ReplyDeleteits said that
"little knowledge is dangerous thing"
n specially when u r giving opinion regarding things that are already scrupled ...
girls don't just wear "abaya" to protect them but its religious obligation set by ALLAH Almighty n for we Muslims ,who follows n practices Islamic injunctions that's mandatory ! wearing abaya is not the choice of " western abaa's or bahiya's" but Allah says in Quran :
“And tell the believing women to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), and protect their private parts (from illegal sexual acts) and not to show off their adornment except only that which is apparent (like both eyes for necessity to see the way, or outer palms of hands or one eye or dress like veil, gloves, headcover, apron), and to draw their veils all over Juyoobihinna (i.e. their bodies, faces, necks and bosoms) and not to reveal their adornment except to their husbands, or their fathers, or their husband’s fathers, or their sons, or their husband’s sons, or their brothers or their brother’s sons, or their sister’s sons, or their (Muslim) women (i.e. their sisters in Islam), or the (female) slaves whom their right hands possess, or old male servants who lack vigour, or small children who have no sense of feminine sex. And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornment. And all of you beg Allaah to forgive you all, O believers, that you may be successful”
[al-Noor 24:31]
It would have been so much better if you had mentioned whether you are a female or an abba and bhaiya. But I believe you are abba or bhaiyya so tell me how do you actually know? And you missed my point totally btw.
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