المحراب

المحراب — Page 157

(111) O wives of the Prophet, you are not like any other women if you are right- eous۔So be not soft in speech, lest he in whose heart is a disease should feel tempted; and speak a decent speech۔And stay in your houses with dignity and do not show off yourselves like the showing off of the former days of ignorance (33 : 33-34)۔(iv) O ye who believe, let those whom your right hands possess, and those of you who have not attained to puberty, ask permission of you three times before coming into your presence: before the morning Prayer, and when you take off clothes at noon in summer and after the night Prayer (24: 59)۔The following inferences are clearly deducible from the verses quoted above: (i) When they go out, Muslim women are to wear an outer and wrapping garment which should cover their heads and bosoms in such a manner that the garment should come down from the head to the bosom covering the whole body including the face۔This is the significance of the Quranic words The۔(60 : 33 يدنين عليهن من جلابيبهن outer garment is intended to make known the fact that while a Muslim woman goes about her business she may be spared the mental anguish of being stared at by persons of questionable character۔(ii) Muslim men and women are to restrain their eyes when they happen to face each other۔(iii) The third commandment though apparently applying to the wives of the Prophet, includes, as is the practice of the Qur'an, other Muslim women also۔The words "And stay in your houses" imply that whereas women may go out when necessary, the principal and pri- mary sphere of their activities is inside the house۔(iv) At three stated hours, even children are not allowed to enter the private apartments of their parents nor are 10 domestic servants or female slaves al- lowed to enter the sleeping room of their masters۔The first commandment applies to women when they go out۔Then they are to use an outer garment which should cover their whole body including the face۔The second commandment relates to "pur- dah" primarily inside the four walls of the house when near male relatives fre- quently come and go۔In that case men and women are only to restrain their looks and as an additional precaution women are to take care that their a i۔e۔beauty of person, dress and orna- ments, is not displayed۔They are not required to use (outer garment) because that would be very irksome and even impracticable in view of the free and frequent visits of near blood rela- tions such as cousins, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, etc۔The context shows that this commandment relates to "purdah" inside the four walls of the house, because all the persons mentioned in the verse are very near relations who generally visit the houses of their rela- tives۔The special mention in it of four categories of persons besides near rela- tives, viz۔, decent women, old servants, female slaves and minor boys, lends additional weight to the inference that the commandment in this verse relates to "purdah" within the four walls of the house۔The fact that the first command- ment refers to "purdah" outside the house and the second commandment basically refers to "purdah" within the four walls of the house is also apparent from the different words that have been used to express the two forms of "purdah" in the relevant verses i۔e۔33: 60, and the verse under comment۔Whereas in 33: 60 the garment which a woman is to use when she goes out is the garment which she has to use inside the house when relatives visit is Moreover, whereas in 3360 the words used are over them their outer garments (for a e they should let down۔عليهن من جلابيهن see يدنين and جلباب detailed discussion of