By: Dr. Yusuf Al Qardawi

Clothing and Adornment
Islam permits, and in fact requires, that the Muslim be careful about his appearance, dress decently, maintain his dignity, and enjoy what Allah has created for the purpose of clothing and adornment.

From the Islamic point of view, clothing has two purposes: to cover the body and to beautify the appearance. Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala counts His bestowal of clothing and adornment upon human beings as one of His favors to mankind: O children of Adam! Verily, We have bestowed upon you clothing to cover your shame as well as to be an adornment to you…. (7:26) Whoever neglects either of these two aspects, covering or adornment, has deviated from the way of Islam toward the path of Satan. Accordingly, Allah warns people concerning both nakedness and neglect of good appearance, as these are snares of Satan, in the following verses: O children of Adam! Do not let Satan seduce in the same manner as he expelled your parents (Adam and Eve) from the Garden, stripping them of their raiment in order to expose their shame…. (7:27)

O children of Adam! Wear your beautiful apparel at every place of worship, and eat and drink, but do not be wasteful…. (7:31)

Islam has made it obligatory on Muslims to cover their private parts, which everyone naturally feels a sense of shame at exposing in order that they may be distinguished from the naked animals; in fact, it instructs them to avoid uncovering these parts of their bodies even when they are alone so that they may attain perfection in morals and religion.

Bahaz ibn Hakim, on the authority of his grandfather, reported the latter as saying: I asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah! What should we conceal and what can we show of our private parts?’ He replied, ‘Let no one see them except your wife or your bondwoman.’ I then asked, ‘What if some people live together (e.g., during travel, or camping)?’ He replied, ‘If you can manage it, try not to let anyone see them ‘ I then said, ‘And what if no one is present (meaning if one is alone)?’ He said, ‘Allah Tabarak wa Ta’ala is most deserving of your modesty.’ (Reported by Ahmad, Abu Daoud, al-Tirmidhi, and Ibn Majah.)

Cleanliness and Beautification Are Characteristics of Islam
Before directing its attention to the questions of adornment and good appearance, Islam addressed itself in considerable depth to the question of cleanliness, for cleanliness is the essence of good appearance and the beauty of every adornment.

It is reported that the Prophet (peace be on him) said: “Cleanse yourself, for Islam is cleanliness.” (Reported by Ibn Hayyan.) “Cleanliness invites toward faith, and faith leads its possessor to the Garden. (Reported by al-Tabarani.)” The Prophet (peace be on him) placed a great emphasis on keeping the body, clothing, houses, and streets clean, and he laid special stress on cleaning the teeth, hands, and hair. This emphasis on cleanliness is not to be wondered at in a religion which makes cleanliness the key to its principle form of worship, salat, for the Muslim’s salat is not acceptable unless his body, clothing, and the place where he performs his salat are all clean. In addition to this requirement’ there are the obligatory types of cleansing, either of the entire body in the form of ghusl (total washing), or of those parts of the body which are exposed to dirt, in the form of wudu (ablution for salat).

The desert environment of Arabia and the nomadic life of its people were not very conducive to cleanliness and refinement, and most of them neglected these aspects. The Prophet (peace be on him), with his lively instruction and to-the-point admonition, gradually led them out of their uncouth habits and taught them refinement and civil manners. Once a man approached the Prophet (peace be on him) with his hair and beard disheveled. The Prophet (peace be on him) made some gestures as if asking the man to comb his hair. He did so, and when he returned the Prophet (peace be on him) said to him, “Is not this better than that one should come with disheveled hair, looking like a devil?” (Reported by Malik in Al-Muwatta.) On another occasion the Prophet (peace be on him) saw a man with unkept hair and remarked, “Does he have nothing with which to comb his hair?” (Reported by Abu Daoud.) Upon seeing another man with dirty clothes he remarked, “Cannot he find anything with which to wash his clothes?” (Reported by Abu Daoud.)

A man came to the Prophet (peace be on him) wearing cheap-looking garments. “Do you have property?” the Prophet (peace be on him) asked him. “Yes,” the man replied. “What kind of property?” asked the Prophet (peace be on him). “Allah has given me all kinds of wealth,” he said. The Prophet (peace be on him) then said to him, “Since Allah has given you wealth, let Him see the effects of His favor and bounty upon you.” (Reported by al-Nisai.)

The Prophet insisted that people come to general gatherings, such as the Friday and the ‘Eid prayers, nicely dressed and well-groomed. He said, If you can afford it, it is befitting that you wear garments other than your working clothes to Friday prayer. (Reported by Abu Daoud.)

Gold and Pure Silk are Haram for Men
Beautification and elegance are not merely permitted but are required by Islam, and in general it repudiates any attempts to prohibit them. Say: Who has forbidden the adornment of Allah which He has brought forth for His servants, and the good things of His providing? (7:32)

Islam has, however, prohibited two kinds of adornment for men, while permitting them to women. These are, first, gold ornaments and, second, clothing made of pure silk. ‘All reported that the Prophet (peace be on him) took some silk in his right hand and some gold in his left, declaring, “These two are haram for the males among my followers.” (Reported by Ahmad, Abu Daoud, al-Nisai, Ibn Hayyan, and lbn Majah, who reports the additional phrase, “but halal for the females.”) ‘Umar reported that he heard the Prophet (peace be on him) say, “Do not wear silk, for those who wear it in this life shall not wear it in the Hereafter.” (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim. A Similar hadith is reported by them on the authority of Anas.) On another occasion, referring to a silken garment, he said, “This is the dress of a man who has no character.” (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)

The Prophet (peace be on him) once saw a gold ring on a man’s hand. He immediately took it from him and threw it down saying, ‘Does a person pick up a piece of burning coal and hold it in his hand?’ After the Prophet (peace be on him) had left the place, someone asked the man, ‘Why do you not pick it up and benefit from it?’ He replied, ‘No, by Allah! I shall not pick it up after the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) has thrown it away.’ (Reported by Muslim.)

The same prohibition which applies to the gold ring likewise applies to what we observe among conspicuous spenders, i.e., the gold pen, gold watch, gold cigarette case and lighter, gold teeth, etc.

The Prophet (peace be on him), however, permitted men to wear silver rings. On the authority of Ibn’Umar, al-Bukhari reported the former saying, “The Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) wore a silver ring. After him, Abu Bakr and then ‘Umar and ‘Uthman wore it, until it fell off his finger into the well of Arees.” (Reported by al-Bukhari in the chapter on “Clothing” (Al-Libas).) As for other metals such as iron, there are no sound texts prohibiting them. On the contrary, in the Sahih of al-Bukhari we find that the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) advised a man who wanted to marry a woman to, “Present her with a gift, even if it be ring made of iron.” On the basis of this hadith al-Bukhari inferred the permissibility of iron rings.

The Prophet (peace be on him) made concessions in the wearing of silken garments for medical reasons, as he gave ‘Abd al-Rahman bin ‘Auf and al-Zubayr bin al-‘Awwam, both of whom suffered from scabies, permission to wear silk. (Reported by al-Bukhari.)

The Wisdom of These Two Prohibitions Concerning Men
By means of these two prohibitions which concern men, Islam’s aim is to achieve certain noble educational and moral objectives.

Since it is the relof jihad (striving) and strength, Islam must safeguard the manly qualities of men from any show of weakness, passivity, and lethargy. Allah has made the physique of the man different from that of the woman, and it does not befit a man to wear clothes made of fine material or to adorn his body with costly ornaments.

There is, however, a social aim underlying these prohibitions. The prohibition of gold and silk to males is part of a broader Islamic program of combating luxuriousness in living. From the Qur’anic point of view, luxurious living leads to weakness among nations and to their eventual downfall; the existence of luxury is also an expression of social injustice, as only a few can afford luxurious items at the expense of the deprived masses of people.

In addition to this, luxurious living is an enemy of every call towards truth, justice, and social reform. The Qur’an says: And when We intend that We should destroy a township, we permit its luxury-loving people to commit wickedness therein. Then the word is proved true against it, and We then destroy it utterly. (17:16) and again, And We did not send a warner to any township without its luxury-loving people saying, ‘Assuredly we are disbelievers in that with which you have been sent.’ (34:34)

In keeping with the spirit of the Qur’an, the Prophet (peace be on him) forbade Muslims any indulgence in conspicuous consumption. He not only forbade the use of gold and silk to men but also forbade men and women alike the use of gold and silver utensils.

Finally, economic considerations also carry some weight here. Since gold is a universal medium of exchange, using it to make household utensils or ornaments for men does not make sense in economic term.

Why Gold and Silk are Permitted to Women
Woman has been exempted from this prohibition out of consideration for her feminine nature, as the love of jewelry and ornaments is quite natural and becoming for a woman. However, she is not to use her adornments to attract men and arouse their sexual desires. According to a hadith, When a woman puts on perfume and goes among people so that its scent reaches them, she is an adulteress, and any eye which is attracted to her is that of an adulterer. (Reported by al-Nisai, and also by Ibn Khazimah and Ibn Hayyan in their respective Sahih’s.)

And Allah Ta’ala warns women …that they should not stamp their feet in order to make apparent what is hidden of their adornment…. (24:31)
(to be cont.)