In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The story of our mother Hawwa (Eve).
Hawwa and the garment of taqwa (God-consciousness).
O Hawwa, there is a profound connection
between your outward appearance
and the faith in your heart.
For whenever faith and taqwa increase in the heart,
this faith overflows onto your outward appearance.
That is why Allah the Almighty said—
let us reflect on it after the story of our mother Hawwa—
"O children of Adam,
We have bestowed upon you
clothing to conceal your private parts
and as adornment; but the garment of taqwa—
that is best. That is..."
“O Children of Adam! We have revealed unto you raiment to conceal your shame, and splendid vesture, but the raiment of restraint from evil, that is best. This is of the revelations of Allah, that they may remember.” (7:26)
"...that they might remember."
Sayyid Qutb, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
There is a correlation between the law of Allah,
which provides clothing to cover private parts and for adornment,
and taqwa.
Both are garments.
One covers and adorns the private parts of the heart,
and the other covers and adorns the private parts of the body.
They are inseparable.
For from the feeling of taqwa for Allah and modesty before Him
springs the feeling of finding bodily nakedness repulsive,
and the sense of modesty regarding it.
And whoever does not feel modesty before Allah nor has taqwa of Him,
does not care about being naked,
or about calling others to nakedness—
nakedness from modesty and taqwa,
and nakedness from clothing and the exposure of private parts.
Clothing is a blessing from Allah;
He sent it down to us for a purpose He clarified for us
in the same verse by saying:
“O Children of Adam! We have revealed unto you raiment to conceal your shame, and splendid vesture, but the raiment of restraint from evil, that is best. This is of the revelations of Allah, that they may remember.” (7:26)
Thus, covering is a legal requirement
that aligns with sound human nature (fitra).
Muhammad Rashid Rida, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Allah the Almighty addressed the children of Adam
in this verse and others like it
with a call used for those who are distant,
because of the state of the Arabs and non-Arabs alike
at the time this Surah was revealed in Makkah,
in their distance from sound human nature
and the upright path.
It was a warning to their minds, striking their ears,
informing them of the nakedness of their earliest ancestors,
and of what He had blessed them with
in terms of clothing of varying degrees,
and types, from the most basic,
which conceals the private parts from the eyes of people,
to the types of garments
that resemble the feathers of birds in protecting the body
from heat and cold by covering the entire body,
along with the various types of adornment therein,
which are appropriate for all human males
and females,
regardless of their ages or circumstances.
He says:
"O children of Adam,
We, by virtue of Our power, grace, and mercy,
have sent down to you from the height of Our heavens,
through Our management of your affairs from above Our Throne,
clothing to conceal your private parts—
and Allah considers the one who lacks it
to be humiliated and disgraced—
and adornment with which you beautify yourselves in your mosques,
your gatherings, and your assemblies."
This is the highest and most complete form.
Between these two is the clothing of necessity,
which is what protects against heat and cold.
Every girl in the world loves beauty
and loves beautiful clothing,
and Allah the Almighty has not forbidden it;
rather, He has regulated it with guidelines
to protect her and cover her.
Furthermore, Allah has guided
those who love beauty to adorn themselves
with the garment of taqwa,
so that they may increase in beauty upon beauty,
and in the beauty of their attire.
He said, "But the garment of taqwa—that is best."
Al-Tabari, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
He only began the report about His sending down the clothing
that conceals our private parts
and the adornment as a rebuke to the polytheists
who used to strip naked while performing their circumambulation
of the House (the Ka'bah), and He commands them to take
their garments and cover themselves in every situation,
along with believing in Him and following His obedience.
He teaches them that all of that—
everything they were persisting in
of their disbelief in Allah and their nakedness—
is not that He informed them that some of what
was sent down to them is better than others.
What indicates the correctness of what we have said regarding this
are the verses that follow this verse,
namely His saying:
“O Children of Adam! Let not Satan seduce you as he caused your (first) parents to go forth from the Garden and tore off from them their robe (of innocence) that he might manifest their shame to them. Lo! he seeth you, he and his tribe, from whence ye see him not. Lo! We have made the devils protecting friends for those who believe not.” (7:27)
“O Children of Adam! Let not Satan seduce you as he caused your (first) parents to go forth from the Garden and tore off from them their robe (of innocence) that he might manifest their shame to them. Lo! he seeth you, he and his tribe, from whence ye see him not. Lo! We have made the devils protecting friends for those who believe not.” (7:27)
"...stripping them of their clothing
to show them their private parts."
And the verses that follow until His saying:
"...and that you say about Allah
that which you do not know."
For He, glorified be His praise, commands in all of that
to take adornment from clothing,
to use garments,
and to abandon stripping and nakedness,
following His command and acting in obedience to Him.
He forbids associating partners with Him
and following the command of Satan,
confirming in all of that what He had summarized in His saying:
“O Children of Adam! We have revealed unto you raiment to conceal your shame, and splendid vesture, but the raiment of restraint from evil, that is best. This is of the revelations of Allah, that they may remember.” (7:26)
“O Children of Adam! We have revealed unto you raiment to conceal your shame, and splendid vesture, but the raiment of restraint from evil, that is best. This is of the revelations of Allah, that they may remember.” (7:26)
"But the garment of taqwa—that
is best."
The most correct of opinions in interpreting His saying is
the soul's awareness of the taqwa of Allah,
in refraining from what Allah has forbidden of His disobedience,
and acting upon what He has commanded of His obedience.
This encompasses faith,
righteous deeds, modesty,
fear of Allah, and a good demeanor.
Because whoever has taqwa of Allah
is a believer in Him, acts upon what He has commanded,
and fears Him,
and is modest before Him, lest He see him
doing what He dislikes from His servants.
Whoever is like that, the traces of goodness appear in him;
his demeanor and conduct become good,
and the radiance and light of faith are seen upon him.
We only said
that the garment of taqwa means
the soul and heart's awareness of that,
because a garment is essentially a shield—that which is worn—
or a covering—that which one is clothed with,
or covering one's body or part of it with it.
So everyone who shields himself with something or covers himself with it,
until he or its effect is seen upon him,
is a wearer of it.
That is why He, glorified be His praise, made men
a garment for women,
and they are a garment for them.
And He made the night a garment for His servants.
Every garment wears out,
except the garment of taqwa.
So what is your share of it?
Al-Sa'di, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
The garment of taqwa continues with the servant,
and it neither wears out nor perishes.
It is the beauty of the heart and the soul.
As for outward clothing,
its limit is to cover the outward private parts
or to be an adornment for the person,
and there is no benefit beyond that.
Also,
if this clothing is absent,
one's outward private parts are exposed,
which does not harm him if exposed out of necessity.
But if the garment of taqwa is absent,
then one's inward private parts are exposed,
and one incurs disgrace and scandal.
Your concern for the garment of taqwa
does not justify your negligence
regarding your outward clothing.
And your concern for your outward clothing
does not justify your neglect of the garment of taqwa
and the increase of faith.
So, is your clothing in front of women far
from nakedness?
And is your clothing outside the house...?
Join us in a future meeting, if Allah wills.
And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
The story of our mother Hawwa.