Two of the things that externally display our faith are the hijab and the beard. Both are rooted in Islamic contexts, where the beard is recommended and encouraged by Sunnah (the way of the Prophet Muhammad) and the hijab is said to be obligated, though I do not have enough knowledge on the topic to make this claim. The claim may also differ depending on the way that you read the Quran – whether you try and read it as absolute or allow room for the changing times.
Photo Credit: Sagal @sagaleeyaa
When asked about why many Muslim women take up the hijab, the first thing that comes in mind is faith. They do it for the sake of Allah, in order to bring them closer to Him. It’s something that is spiritual, and brings in the spiritual in something with their daily life.
The hijab is a reminder that they should be modest, in both action and in the way you dress. However, with some women this doesn’t really apply as they feel like they have the way that they dress, irrespective of the hijab. They know that they would dress modestly and be modest even if they weren’t wearing the hijab.
While bringing in modesty, the hijab also liberates Muslim women. By dressing modestly, it privatizes their sexuality, and shows that their body isn’t the most important thing that they are showing to people. By taking away this, it makes them feel like it highlights their personality and who they are more than if they were not wearing the hijab. It makes them feel comfortable with who they are.
Image Credit: Saufeeya Goodson @feeeeya
By wearing the hijab, you are showing the world that you are Muslim. It’s an open statement that “Yes, I am Muslim,” and by that many feel that they are representing the religion. They feel like they are making a statement every day that they walk around with the hijab and they aren’t conforming to the norms. However, sometimes these statements are based on assumptions. Some girls expressed how they hated how with the hijab there are so many assumptions that get tied to the person – that they are religious, pray five times a day, fast throughout Ramadan. While this might be true for a vast majority, there are many girls who wear the hijab and do not and there are many girls who don’t wear the hijab and do all of this. Wearing the hijab doesn’t define how religious you are, even though the people around you may assume otherwise. Religiousness is a very personal concept and varies from person to person.
When it comes to the hijab, some may think of it as oppression, which is a misconception due to negative portrayal in the media. Because of this, people don’t want to ask questions about it, and they never receive the answers for it. There’s an interview of Dalia Mogahed by Trevor Noah about this, which explains the misconception of the hijab and oppression beautifully, to the point that I couldn’t say it any better.
Many girls have removed the hijab later on in life though, for many different reasons. Some felt like they didn’t identify with it anymore and some felt as if they didn’t believe in it. Some girls may have been forced to take it up as a child and then later felt as if they needed to find it for themselves, instead of something that they didn’t really discover on their own.
For men, the beard is something that has a religious concept, tied in with a lot of other things like aesthetics. Every single guy I asked told me that they grow their beard for aesthetic reasons. While for some of the guys, this was the sole reason for growing a beard, some had other reasons. It was easier to keep than to shave every day and it helped them feel more masculine. Someone talked about the first time they realized that they could grow a beard and how it was a fun, new thing that felt really cool at the time. Beards go with the current fashion, and it’s something that changes with new trends – while before beards may have been something that is regarded as tacky, it really no longer is.
Photo Credit: Jamel Sahia @yodayia
Growing beards have helped men identify with their culture and their religion. Seeing other men with beards helps them develop a sense of brotherhood and belonging. You recognize each other and form an identity due to it.
With both the beard and the hijab, there is always that aspect of backlash from society. Though none of the people I talked to had ever personally faced any backlash from wearing a hijab or growing a beard, there was a definite sense of paranoia. If someone is looking at them from far away, they would think its because of that, and that the person is developing misconceptions about them. They may feel like they are singled out in a crowd of people who do not have the beard or the hijab, just because they look different. Guys feel like the beard isn’t looked upon favorably in society, that it appears rugged, unprofessional or that they are just trying to look stylish.
Some parents may tell girls to remove their hijabs because they don’t understand why they are doing it when they are just standing out in the crowd. They also believe that the hijab would cause an issue with their careers later on, because they may be singled out due to it. Parents may tell their sons to shave as well, for similar reasons. It comes down to a defensive strategy, where parents are just trying to protect their children from possible persecution in society.
Photo Credit: SUBHITAHA @subhi.taha
A major reason why I wanted to write about the beard and the hijab was this piece by Naveed A. Khan, talking about his parents telling him to shave off of his beard because of the current political issues. He talks about how in the past, his father was harassed due to his name alone. My major takeaway from the piece was how growing a beard helps to fight back against the constant discrimination that the community is facing these days, and how it’s making a statement of who you are every day that you walk around. Whether you wear the hijab or grow a beard, you are making a statement about what it means to be Muslim in this day and age.
You can read the piece here.
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