[Flickr] Expressive

[Flickr] Muslim women learning art at a local Muslim Art School (somewhere in South East Asia).

[Flickr] Vibrant Muslim woman sitting at a coffee lounge. 

fadumodiriye asked: salam.I have a question i have been wearing the hajab for most of my life but being a teen it;s hard to explain why i wear the hajab do you know how to explain to my friends why i wear the hajab with deatail instead of saying its part of my religion

Peace and many blessings,

we received a similar question like this, which you can read here. However, I don’t mind providing you with questions you can ask yourself as bullet points that can be used as some what of a starting point for some self reflection:

• does the physical hijab help me? can the physical hijab help me? 
• how does the physical hijab help me? what are some ways that it helps me?
• what are the dimensions that the physical hijab uplifts me? does it make me closer to Allah? to Allah’s message? Does it help me understand myself?
• who do I see when I see myself wearing the physical hijab? Do I find myself in the physical hijab?
• what are some good characteristics the physical hijab allows me to further exercise as a human being? charity? salah? peaceful behavior?
• Do I feel complete observing it? Do I feel incomplete when I neglect it?

When you answer these questions on a personal level for yourself, you begin to further investigate the physical hijab and what it means for you. And inshaAllah, I hope it enables you to be able to answer questions about it.

Much peace. — Dee.

csidgaf asked: assalamualaikum,how if a guy asks me "why do muslim girls weare hijab?" how can i answer it w/ a simple answer with a perfect explanation and he can understands it. tq

Peace and many blessings,

That’s the glorious thing about hijab, it can not be performed in vain. You need to find your own personal reasons to understand  why it is that you wear the physical hijab. When you come to explain it to yourself, and convince yourself that these are important reasons as to why I should continue struggling in upholding this physical hijab, then Allah allows you to be able to explain to others why it is that you wear it. 

Some reasons that many Muslim women have stated about wearing the headscarf is that it allows them to keep their modesty, ego, and faith in check. This is a really important concept because when you are aware that you physically cover your body with this entity called the hijab, it repeatedly forces you to assess your level of faith in God.

Another important reason I like to use is that it liberates me from this sexualized image of women that is compounded and continually stored by society. My physical hijab affirms that my sexual life is not suit for discussion, and that I do not permiss anyone to identify me as a woman that takes part in dehumanizing or demeaning women in any physical form. 

But most importantly, it allows me to detach myself from given areas of the dunya (or this worldly life) that would spiritually shackle me and cause much harm to my state of Taqwa, or God consciousness.

By being able to detach myself from the dunya, I am more focused in becoming an intellectual, modest, and wise being for the sake of Allah (so that I may educate my family and my community for His sake as well). Being able to detach oneself from the dunya is critical because when one recognizes that the hijab is an extremely important part of one’s spiritual and psychological development, one begins to understand how and what it means to depend solely on Allah for guidance and support.

I hope this helps inshaAllah. — Dee.

your-beeautiful-deactivated2013 asked: asalam o laikum, jumma mubarik! wanted to start wearing the abaya, I already practice the hijab..but i have this fear what if i take it off later on..I need good advice! please! Jazak'Allah Khairun

Salaam wa rahmatullah,

I wish there were guidelines I could give you, or in this case, steps that you can take that will strengthen your confidence about the purpose of wearing the full, physical hijab, but there aren’t. It’s all intuition, or ideals that you feel most personal and connected with. 

I don’t think there is one Muslim woman who would deny that the physical hijab does come with several struggles. It does, and I think it always will involve some form of struggle or hardship. 

But there are things that the physical hijab entails that I think many people fail to recognize. For one, it’s a physical reminder that you choose to identify as a practicing Muslim woman in front of hundreds of thousands of people you come across every day. Do you know how amazing that is? Do you know how hard that is for many? Do you know how much confidence that involves? It involves confidence in yourself, in your religion, in your practice, and in your understanding of the world. And not many people have that confidence.

Two, it is a physical representation of your identity — an identity you feel comfortable sharing. Sometimes when I sit down and remind myself why I should continue wearing the abaya and hijab, I come across an important point which never fails to uplift me. When I wear the hijab and abaya, I am presenting my values and my morals in a fashion that involves a lot of critical and unbiased thinking. The hijab and abaya repels ignorance, and it draws in the curious. I appreciate that; I value that. I don’t want to deal with people who do not understand nor care about my values, I want to work and talk to people who are curious and smart. 

Furthermore, the hijab and abaya excludes me from participating in society’s culture of sexualizing the female gender. I will not allow society to dictate to me what is glamorous and what is not, and because of my physical hijab, I disallow the discussion of my sexual life to be part of normal conversation. Coming from the West, this is a really important point, and I think that although the hijab is not a protection, it is a reminder to society, to my nafs, to my peers, and to ideals (that try to spiritually bring me down) that I choose this form of lifestyle.

InshaAllah this helps. — Dee.

struggledsurvival asked: my previous questioned wasn't answered, maybe i can word it differently. if i fasted because my period should have been over and seemed to be over but mid way thru the day and mid way thru the fast i notice blood should that fast be broken right there and then? or should i just keep it until maghrib that day and then make that fast up anyways??

Peace and many blessings,

We apologize for that misunderstanding. The point I was trying to make is that it depends on the type of that blood you notice. 

If it’s blood that isn’t related to your menstruation, then continue fasting inshaAllah. You don’t have to make up any days if that blood isn’t related to your menses, so yes, continue fasting.

— Dee. 

struggledsurvival asked: Salam, I have a very odd question I have gotten numerous answers for and was wondering if you can provide an authenticated response, I had gotten my period for 6 days which is normal, and the next day I fasted because it seemed to be over but mid-way thru the day around 3 o'clock I noticed some blood again, does my fast count? What is the ruling for such an incident? Jazakallah.

Peace and many blessings,

As a Muslim woman myself, I can tell you from experience — and from thoroughly analyzing several rulings regarding this issue — that is solely depends on the type of blood that it is.

If it’s your period blood (as in thick in texture) with a scent that is familiar, you should continue to avoid fasting. However, if it’s regular (I hope that makes sense) blood, then you should continue your fast. 

Most of the time, you should wait until your period actually simmers from its original nature to dark or light brown to a creamy or light white or yellow smear. After the white/yellow smearing (and do not confuse this with day to day regular discharge or white smearing, for this happens regardless of ones period), you are now obligated to continue fasting. If it comes back a day or two after as “regular” blood, then continue fasting. 

Also, I’ve been advised that anything that lasts more than or over ten days should be disregarded in that you should continue your regular fasting. 

What I would personally advise is trust your instincts and wait until its fully gone. Once you’re ready to fast again, and anything that comes back as discharge, should not break the fast.

But Allah is All- Knowing. Keep your intention as sincere as possible and inshaAllah Allah forgives us both. — Dee.

Swag! [x]

smilemerijaaan-deactivated20121 asked: As-Salamu Alaykum :] i recently converted to Islam and one of my closest friends (who's Muslim) has been very supportive but often i feel like she's a bad influence. when im with her i sometimes do what i know is wrong and then when i come home i feel bad, i question whether or not i should spend so much time with her but she's a great person and her family has been soo supportive (my parents don't know i converted and they've invited me to stay with them if things ever come to that)

Peace and many blessings,

I must say, it’s ultimately amazing to have people as brave as you sacrifice their safety and friendships to recognize the religion of Islam as a path of sincerity and truth. I feel that we should feel all obliged as Muslims to congratulate our sister for her conversion and try to make her feel very welcome here; let’s leave her messages in her inbox here!

With that said, it honestly depends on how you feel about the situation. If you feel that her family are awfully supportive, then don’t sacrifice that because she isn’t perfect. But at the same time, if you feel like she’s a really bad influence and not helping you in any form, then have her know what bothers you (or slowly walk away). Honestly, it depends on you and how you feel.

Much love. Dee.

esendoran asked: salam, i've been thinking of starting to wear a hijab. any suggestions where i can get one and/or how to tie/wear it? thanks.

Salaam!

Hijab giveaway on Facebook here & search for simple hijab tutorials here. InshaAllah this helps.

Dee.

niqabisinparis-deactivated20130 asked: Salam sisters :) I have a problem with the hijab...I live in a non-Islamic country and also I have never shown my peers myself with the hijab on so I am quite scared. Also, my parents are basically forcing it on me which makes me hate it, but I really want to start wearing it. Plus, I don't feel pretty enough for the hijab. I don't consider my face very attractive and I feel like I would have had more confidence to wear it if my face didn't look so awful in it. Help? :( Shukran jazeelan.

Salam wa Rahmatullah,

Glad you pointed out a few things about this; hijab isn’t supposed to be worn so you can look pretty or cute or nice. It’s just hijab. I wear hijab because I like to identify myself as a Muslim woman; also, even if I wanted to take it off, my parents would be highly against it. So you can say that to some extent, my parents have had a huge role in defining why I’ve kept it on. Sure, that’s based off of fear, and it’s how I felt for a while (and of course, it’s not the right reason for wearing it). But now, I’m learning to realize that a hijab is a part of me and I always want it to be. So I’ve been through several transitions myself from having it on because I couldn’t take it off to wearing it because I want to. 

Also, hijab is a big commitment; a huge sacrifice. It’s not only the covering of the hair, but the entire body. Its a means to humble ourselves from being drawn to flaunt what we find so beautiful about ourselves; or at least, that’s how I perceive it. I know so many Muslim women who are drop, dead gorgeous without hijab, but they find strength to wear it every day because they love it so much. 

It’s not easy; that’s the point, it’s not supposed to be easy. It’s for strong women. And when I say that, I mean both physical and mental hijab. I mean both piety and modesty from the inside and the outside; I mean hijab of the heart and hijab of the mind. So it’s not to suggest that women who don’t wear the hijab that covers the hair are weak women; oh, not at all.

It means that every single Muslim woman who strives to perfect her hijab is a strong woman. Every single woman that tries is a strong woman.

InshaAllah this helped; Dee. 

Going Out for the 1st Time in Hijab

Personal Anecdote of the Day