Elements of the Sermon
1- The greatness of Islamic rulings, including the obligation of Hijab.
2- The immediate compliance of the female companions with the command to wear the Hijab.
3- The essence of Hijab in Islam.
4- Warning against women’s displaying their beauty and the evils consequences thereof.
5- The responsibility of girls' guardians to raising them on commitment to Hijab.
6- Advice for Muslim women.
The First Sermon
Praise be to Allah, the All-Knowing, the All-Powerful, the Ever-Living, the Concealer [of humans’ faults], Who has commanded His servants to do all that is lofty and pure, and forbidden them from everything vile and evil. May Allah’s blessings and peace be upon Prophet Muhammad; the bringer of glad tidings, the warner [against Allah’s punishment], and the illuminating lamp, and upon his honorable family, and his chaste, obedient, and pure wives.
To Proceed:
O servants of Allah, fear Allah as He should be feared and be mindful of Him in private and in public:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ
“O you who believe, fear Allah as He should be feared and do not die except as Muslims.” [Sūrat Āl ʿImrān: 102].
Dear Muslims:
Our religion is a sublime one, as its teachings are very upright and its legislations are completely wise. It is a religion that comes from the All-Knowing, All-Wise Lord Who knows the needs and desires of His creation, and what will set their affairs and conditions right, as He, the Almighty, said:
أَلَا يَعْلَمُ مَنْ خَلَقَ وَهُوَ اللَّطِيفُ الخَبِيرُ
“How could He not know His Own creation? For He is the Most Subtle, All-Aware.” [Sūrat al-Mulk: 14].
It is a religion that takes into account the best interests of individuals and communities, ensuring that individuals can protect their faith, intellect, honor, life, and wealth, and that the community can achieve security, solidarity, integration, and unity.
One of the great obligations imposed by our Lord, the Almighty, is the prescription of Hijab for Muslim women, to protect their honor, preserve their modesty, and safeguard their chastity. Allah says:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ قُلْ لِأَزْوَاجِكَ وَبَنَاتِكَ وَنِسَاءِ المُؤْمِنِينَ يُدْنِينَ عَلَيْهِنَّ مِنْ جَلَابِيبِهِنَّ ذَلِكَ أَدْنَى أَنْ يُعْرَفْنَ فَلَا يُؤْذَيْنَ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ غَفُورًا رَحِيمًا
“O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be known and not be harmed. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.” [Sūrat al-Aḥzāb: 59].
Islam views the woman as a precious pearl that not everyone can reach; she should be protected from the lustful looks of wicked people of filthy hearts, and her appearance in the public domain should not be a cause of mischief. Her modesty and chastity should be preserved so that only her close relatives (maharim) can look freely at her and only her husband can approach her.
Dear Muslim brothers!
Before Islam, women used to display their beauty and dress immodestly. Allah forbade Muslim women from doing so, saying:
وَلَا تَبَرَّجْنَ تَبَرُّجَ الجَاهِلِيَّةِ الأُولَى
“And do not display yourselves like that of the times of ignorance”
[Sūrat al-Aḥzāb: 33].
In this regard, Allah, the almighty, commanded women to wear Hijab as an obligation, saying:
وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَى جُيُوبِهِنَّ
“And let them wrap [a portion of] their head-covers over their chests” [Sūrat al-Nūr: 31].
The Muslim women immediately complied with this command. ʿAishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “May Allah have mercy on the early emigrant women. When Allah revealed: ‘And let them wrap [a portion of] their head-covers over their chests,’ they tore their garments and covered themselves with them.” [Reported by Al-Bukhari]. Abu Dawud narrated from Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her) that she said, “When the verse:
يُدْنِينَ عَلَيْهِنَّ مِنْ جَلَابِيبِهِنَّ
‘Let them draw their veils over their bodies’
Was revealed, the women of the Ansar came out as if there were crows on their heads, wearing clothes that covered them.”
This is how a Muslim man and woman should respond to the orders of Allah and His Messenger ﷺ – they should submit, obey, and comply immediately, without hesitation, misinterpretation, or objection. Allah says:
وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤْمِنٍ وَلَا مُؤْمِنَةٍ إِذَا قَضَى اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَمْرًا أَنْ يَكُونَ لَهُمُ الخِيَرَةُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَعْصِ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلَالًا مُبِينًا
“It is not for a believer, man or woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decreed a matter, that they should [thereafter] have any choice in their decision. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger has indeed strayed into a plain error.” [Sūrat al-Aḥzāb: 36].
O servants of Allah!
Indeed, Hijab in Islam is a means to cover the beauty and charms of a woman from men who are not her closes relatives (mahram). Allah says:
وَقُلْ لِلْمُؤْمِنَاتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَارِهِنَّ وَيَحْفَظْنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَى جُيُوبِهِنَّ
“And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their private parts and not to display their adornments except that which is apparent, and to draw their veils over their chests.” [Sūrat al-Nūr: 31].
The Hijab is not just a headscarf that covers a woman’s head and hair while revealing other attractive parts of the body by wearing tight, short, or transparent clothing. Rather, the genuine Hijab is the full, wide, and loose dress that covers the entire body. The dress style of many women today, called the “modern Hijab,” is not an acceptable Hijab. In reality, it is a form of adornment. Those who dress like this think they are properly covered, but their condition is as the Prophet ﷺ said: “There are two types of people from the people of Hellfire whom I have not seen: people with whips like the tails of cows who beat people, and women who are dressed but naked, swaying and causing others to sway, with their heads like the humps of camels, leaning to one side. They will not enter Paradise nor smell its fragrance, even though its fragrance can be detected from such and such a distance.” [Reported by Muslim].
How many women today show their beauty, while believing that they are abiding by Hijab! How many women are considered naked even though they are wearing clothes! Such women are ignorant of the Qur’an and Sunnah and follow corrupt voices in the media, until they reached that condition.
O Muslims:
A woman who shows her beauty in the public domain is not merely committing one sin and is not merely corrupt in and of herself. Rather, by such conduct she commits more than one sin; she is deviant from the true path, and deviating others:
First; By persisting on such conduct, she becomes a persistent sinner, which is counted as another sin.
Second; She practices her sin in public, which is, in turn, counted as another sin. The Prophet ﷺ said: “All of my nation will be forgiven except those who openly sin.” This is so because openly sinning acts as an encouragement for sin. A woman who shows her beauty in public causes mischief with her conduct, and encourages others to do the same. Thus, she is burdened with the sin of herself and the sin of those who follow her in this disobedience.
Thirdly; Such conduct of women causes temptation for men, which may incite their lustful desires. This, in turn, causes corruption in marital lives, as they may lose interest in their wives. In fact, looking at women who show their beauty in public drives many to abstain from fulfilling their desires through lawful means. This creates many troubles or even separation among spouses. Women who display their beauty bear a large share of this sin.
It is simpler for a person to be corrupt than corrupting others, for the one who corrupts others is doing the work of Allah's enemy, the Satan, in leading the children of Adam astray. Allah says,
وَاللَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ المُفْسِدِينَ
“Allah does not like the corrupters” [Sūrat al-Qaṣaṣ: 77], and:
لَا يُصْلِحُ عَمَلَ المُفْسِدِينَ
“Allah does not amend the work of the corrupters.” [Sūrat Yūnus: 81].
Indeed, the spread of such conduct of women in the society portends misery and evil. It is a gate to the spread of immorality and a manifestation of the loss of virtue. It is also a cause to violating others’ honor, having illegitimate lineage, undermining people’s pride in their dignity, spreading vices, increasing illegitimate children, refusing marriage, eliminating chastity and modesty, and women become less secure. All this may lead to murder, kidnapping, or rape. The end result is a painful punishment and great torment from Allah. We ask Allah for safety and protection against these evil acts for us and all Muslims.
May Allah make His Book, the Glorious Qur'an, a blessing for you and me, and may He make us avail of its verses and reminders contained in it. With that said, I ask Allah’s forgiveness for me, for you and for all the Muslims. So, you also should ask for Allah’s forgiveness. Indeed, the successful are those who seek forgiveness.
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The Second Sermon
Praise be to Allah, and may Allah exalt and send peace to the Messenger of Allah, his family, his companions, and whoever follows his guidance.
To proceed,
Muslim brother,
On the Day of Resurrection, you will be held accountable for the commitment of women under your guardianship with the Hijab and for their adherence to modesty, chastity, and decency in their behavior. This is because the Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Each of you is a guardian, and each of you is responsible for his subjects.” Indeed, men's negligence and laxity in instructing their women to abide by the Hijab contributes to the corruption of society and the loss of its morals and virtues. So, we have to be mindful of Allah regarding His commands for women, and we have to shoulder our responsibility of being guardians over them according to what Allah has commanded.
Men are responsible for raising their daughters on Hijab, and the best way to do this is to get them accustomed to it since their childhood. This way, they grow up modest, decent, chaste, and pure, knowing the boundaries of interacting with non-relative men, and behaving differently from disobedient women, as it is said, old habits die hard.
Muslim sisters,
Indeed, the Hijab is a symbol of the believing women’s dignity and their identity which is now targeted by the enemies; it acts as a shield in the battle against westernization, corruption and liberation from rules of religion. Indeed, the enemies of Islam, the disbelievers, the hypocrites, and the deviant atheists, strive to encourage you to abandon the Hijab. Therefore, do not concede to their temptations.
They claim that they want to free your freedom, but actually, this is not true. They want nothing but the freedom to access you, influence you, and manipulate you. Since when the enemies act for the good of Muslims, while their deceit and plots have come to be clear, and their natures have been proven perverted?!
They attempt to prove that Hijab means backwardness and is a symbol of covering the mind, and that the Niqab is only a black tent that frightens people. Therefore, they claim that a veiled woman is a complicated and backward woman. It seems that they view women as enlightened, rational, and civilized only when they expose their beauty to every beholder and show their bodies in public!
In their view, women have the freedom to undress and show off any part of their bodies as they want, but there is no freedom to wear the Hijab and cover what they want. They have no problem with women being displayed as merchandise in advertisements to win money, but when female students are honored for abiding by the Hijab as a way to raise them on morality: that is an unforgivable crime.
They show crocodile tears for a young girl because she abides by the Hijab, but they do not show any sorrow for girls who lose their parents by the missiles of their leaders –the Western countries, or cry because of the girls thrown into the camps of misery and coldness because of the running wars. They do not show any sympathy for the girls abducted with force and from their families by suspicious organizations.
Muslim sisters,
Today, you are getting close to Allah by your commitment to the Hijab, and by resisting the desires of the disbelievers, the hypocrites, and the corrupt people. Today, you are like the warrior who stands on the front lines in the war against Islam, fighting against the destructive forces in a vile materialistic world. So, proclaim clearly: you will never drive me to rebel against the Hijab, and you will never get your goal through me!
Today, you are a safety valve for Muslim communities. Through your steadfastness in wearing the Hijab, you provide an example of modesty for young Muslims. With your steadfastness, you are worthy of the reward of fifty females among the companions of the Prophet.
So, get your strength from your Islam, and your pride proud from your faith, and honor from your Hijab. Be like an impenetrable barrier against which the desires of the hypocrites and the corrupt demolish.
Ask Allah to send His blessings and peace upon the Prophet who was sent as a mercy to all worlds. O Allah, may Your blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his Companions.
O Allah, guide Muslim women to the right path! Make them modest through their Hijab, beautiful through their chastity, and protect them from the evil of the wicked and the deceit of the wrong-doers. Cover their faults and give them security, and grant them steadfastness and determination in righteousness. Make them love faith, adorn it in their hearts, and make them hate disbelief, disobedience, and sin. O Allah, forgive all Muslim - men and women, and all believers - men and women, those who are alive and those who are dead. O Allah, guide our leader to that which pleases You, direct him to righteous and good deeds. Our Lord, give us in this world [that which is] good and in the Hereafter [that which is] good and protect us from the punishment of the Fire.
Servants of Allah,
Remember Allah frequently and glorify Him morning and evening, and make our last words be “Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.”
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