Submitters' dress, in a second part that reads 24:30, 24:31, 33:59 and 24:60 as commands for modesty, covering the chest, and showing only the parts washed for the contact prayer. A second article asks how submitters know the rites God decreed but left undetailed in the Quran, and answers through Abraham and the messengers. A reader in Ontario writes about finding Dr. Khalifa's translation.
O children of Adam, we have provided you with garments
to cover your bodies, as well as for luxury. But the best garment is the
garment of righteousness… 7:26
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Dress alone will not eliminate the attraction
of the sexes, nor violence against women. A woman may be totally covered
up, but still behave in a way that displays her beauty, manipulating men
through her sexuality. Another woman may not follow that type of traditional
dress code but may be quiet and humble in her dress and manner. She does
not play on attracting men. It is one’s innermost intentions that
count the most.
In order to protect men and women from sinful thoughts and actions, at
the beginning of the verses 24:30 and 24:31, both men and women are
commanded to “subdue their eyes and
maintain their chastity.” The meaning of the word “subdue”
is to conquer and bring under control, and the meaning of the word chaste
is to stay pure. Therefore both men and women must control and conquer
their sexual desires and stay pure. We are commanded to interact with
one another in the above state. Other commandments for the submitters’
dress include:
“And tell the believing women to subdue their eyes
and maintain their chastity. They shall not reveal any parts of their
bodies, except that which is necessary. They shall cover their chests,
and shall not relax this dress in the presence of other than their husbands,
their fathers, the fathers of their husbands, their sons the sons of
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Dress
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their husbands, their brothers, the sons of their
brothers, the sons of their sisters, the other women, the male servant
or other employee whose sexual drive has been nullified or the children
who have not reached puberty. They shall not strike their feet when
they walk in order to shake or reveal certain details of their bodies.
All of you shall repent to God, O you believers, that you may succeed”
24:31.
It is argued by the ignorant that the only “necessary”
parts to show are the eyes. In this case the woman is hidden under
a tent-like sack, which is demeaning and difficult. On the contrary,
God does not wish to make religion difficult for us. It is we who
make it difficult for ourselves. We are commanded to dress “modestly”
but not to hide ourselves. Therefore, “necessary” parts
seem to be the parts that we use to perform the ablution for the
Contact Prayers (Salat) five times a day.
Relaxing the Dress Code
“The elderly women who do not
expect to get married
commit nothing wrong by relaxing their dress, provided they do not
reveal too much of their bodies. To maintain modesty is better for
them. God is hearer, knower” 24:60.
In Webster’s dictionary the word “modest” means
“quiet and humble in appearance.” This verse is the
second time that God tells when to relax the dress. The first one
is mentioned in 24:31 which is quoted earlier.
Immodest Behavior and Dress
“O Prophet, tell your wives, your daughters,
and the wives of the believers that they shall lengthen their garments.
Thus, they will be recognized and avoid being insulted. God is Forgiver,
Most Merciful” 33:59.
This final commandment is to dress in a fashion that will make
others to recognize our modesty and protect us from being insulted.
This will happen automatically if one follows the guidelines for
submitters’ dress: Dress modestly, cover your chest, lengthen
your garment and do not show off details of your body.
It is all right to express oneself through
dress and to look beautiful. However, if one dresses seductively,
then sexual harassment and humiliating attitude from unrighteous
men become more possible. Even more important is that one disobeys
God.
...They shall not strike their feet when they walk
in order to shake and reveal certain details of their body”
24:31.
The fashion show model on the runway is a good example of this
behavior. Why do some women want to show off their bodies, flirt
with men and manipulate them with their sexuality? Don’t they
want to be respected as human beings with rights and obligations?
That is what God wants for them to be rather than sexual objects.
God tells us that women are equal to men [3:195, 4:25] but have
different qualities 4:32. God created everything in pairs 43:12
to complement each other.
Senobar Tafozali and Naima Turner
THE RITES OF OUR RELIGION
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According to Verse 22:32, God expects
the righteous submitters to practice specific rites decreed by Him,
“Indeed, those who reverence the rites
decreed by God demonstrate the righteousness of their hearts.”
These practices help us to redeem our souls and increase our faith
(2:110, 4:162, 9:71), and yet God has strangely omitted many of
the specific details regarding certain important rites. How do we
know the right way to practice “the rites decreed by God?”
God tells us in the Quran how to prepare ourselves for the Salat
Prayer (5:6), but not HOW to pray it. God tells us that the Zakat
charity is an obligation (2:110) and when we should give it (6:141)
but not HOW MUCH to give. If God has decreed specific rites,
then we are obligated to practice these rites as God has decreed
for us to practice them. But how do we know?
Abraham asked God to “teach us the rites
of our religion, and redeem us. You are the Redeemer, Most Merciful”
(2:128). Abraham goes on to ask God to send a messenger to the people
“to recite to them Your revelations, teach them scripture
and wisdom, and purify them.” God answered Abraham’s
prayers. He taught Abraham the rites of our religion (21:73) and
has sent to us many messengers throughout the generations to teach
us and purify our religious practices (2:150-151).
God told Muhammad, “We have inspired you,
as we inspired Noah and the prophets after him. And we inspired
Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob, the Patriarchs, Jesus, Job, Jonah,
Aaron, and Solomon. And
we gave David the Psalms.
Messengers we have told you about, and messengers we never told
you about…” (4:163-164)
God thus chose to reveal certain religious rites to us through
Abraham and his descendents (21:73)—the instructions are
not recorded in a written scripture. And God continues to purify
his revelations to us through his messengers. God tells us to fear
only Him and He will then perfect His blessings upon us. Blessings
“such as the sending of a messenger from
among you to recite our revelations to you, purify you, teach you
the scripture and wisdom, and to teach you what you never knew”
(2:150-151).
In Verse 7:43, we hear the righteous submitters saying, “God
be praised for guiding us. We could not possibly be guided, if it
were not that God has guided us. The messengers of our Lord did
bring the truth.” Praise be to God for giving us honorable
and truthful messengers in whose footsteps the people can follow
with assurance— knowing that God would never lead us astray
through the teachings of a messenger:
(6:90) These are the ones guided by God; you shall
be guided in their footsteps. Say, “I do not ask you for any
wage. This is but a message for all the people.”
(2:252) These are God’s revelations. We recite
them through you truthfully for you are one of the messengers.
(2:252) The day will come
when the transgressor will bite his hands (in anguish) and say,
“Alas, I wish I had followed the messenger.”
(81:19-21) This is the utterance of an honorable
messenger. Authorized by the Possessor of the Throne, fully supported.
He shall be obeyed and trusted.
(24:54) If you obey him (the messenger) you will
be guided.
God says that He reveals precedents for us to follow (3:137, 6:34),
and there are NO precedents in the Quran that speak of any of God’s
honorable messengers leading the people astray by ignorantly teaching
them the incorrect “rites of their religion.” There
are, however, many verses in the Quran where God warns us to beware
of being diverted from the path of God by those who mislead with
personal opinions and conjecture.
If we are to use the Quran alone for guidance in our worship practices,
then we must “study the Quran carefully” (4:82), and
follow the precedents God has set down for us. Accepting the instructions
of an honorable messenger (especially when we are able to verify
those instructions for ourselves) regarding the rites of our religion
is as Quranic as it gets!
Let us continue to enjoin each other to be righteous and to commemorate
our Lord at every opportunity. Peace.
Beth Harris
Comments From a Submitter
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As-salaamu Alaikum
I recently borrowed a copy of Dr. Khalifa’s “Quran: The
Final Testament” from our public library. I was very impressed with
his Introduction and Appendices. These answered a lot of things that were
puzzling me about our religion of Islam. In the society I grew up in,
we were not encouraged to ask questions but to accept whatever was conveyed
to us. This book make so much sense to me, it made so many things clearer
to me. After reading the book and the website I realize that I was already
a “Submitter.”
Unfortunately, I was unable to completely
read the translation of the Quran. It was a borrowed book and I had to
return it to the library. I wanted to have my own copy so badly that I
called the library and bookstores to no avail. Then I decided to check
out the Internet and lo and behold to my joy I found your website. I have
been able to answer a lot of my children’s questions about Islam
now that I have read your materials on site. I printed out the Y.E.S.
lessons. These were fantastic for my children. My 11-year old daughter
had a lot of questions about Hijab, halal and haram
things etc.
The article on Hijab helped a lot. All the
articles are great.
I would really like to be connected to other “Submitters”
in Ontario, Canada. Maybe we should have a pen pal hookup or something.
Is there any mosque or organization that Submitters can get together in
Ontario? If so I would really like to know about it….
I would like to receive a complimentary issue of the Submitters Perspective
monthly newsletter.
May God bless!
Thanks
Mrs. F. M.
About this work
Kind
Document
Author
International Community of Submitters
Publisher
International Community of Submitters / Masjid Tucson