Islam is not just hijab

[UmmNRZ]

Assalamalaikum

I just remembered watching the Islam 101 episode on Oprah sometime back, and I noticed that 70% of the show was about the Hijab and the real essence of Islam - like Tawheed, Imaan etc were not dealt with in depth.

Even in mainstream media today often when Islam as a faith is discussed, the conversation usually digressses to the hijab and women's right in Islam.

What would be a good way to combat this type of shallow analysis of Islam?
Will having a lecture on islam not equating to the Hijab work? Or is it better to distribute pamphlets?

What are you're thoughts and ideas on conveying to the non-muslim audience the true spirituality and essense of Islam beyond the tabloid issues such as hijab and women's rights?

Wassalaamualaikum
Umm Nusaybah

[Musa]

Wearing 'hijab' not 'a hijab'.

You can't wear a hijab as its not a physical object.

A khimaar (scarf) of course is something physical, I think thats what you are referring to.

And a khimaar by itself is not proper hijab of course!

[Al Baitel 'ateeq]

Meme ... i think i found over the years that people expect muslims to be perfect in their obedience to Allah and avoiding all haraam. We are not perfect nor are we expected to be. Allah Ta'aala is perfect, not us.

You don't see people going around and asking that why does a Christian commit adultery when that is forbidden. Do followers of other religions follow their faith to the letter? No. So why do people focus so much on Muslims?

Islam/Muslims are under the microscope and we are criticised for every little act we do due to the bad press coverage.

[Al Baitel 'ateeq]

Mecca Cola is right. Hijab means a screen/cover.

[Al Baitel 'ateeq]

i know that :)

Yes sis you're very smart alhumdulillah.

The post wasn't aimed at anyone specifically.

[mhussain]

Meme ... i think i found over the years that people expect muslims to be perfect in their obedience to Allah and avoiding all haraam. We are not perfect nor are we expected to be. Allah Ta'aala is perfect, not us.

True


You don't see people going around and asking that why does a Christian commit adultery when that is forbidden. Do followers of other religions follow their faith to the letter?

They are not our teachers. What and how they follow their religion should not concern us :)


So why do people focus so much on Muslims?

Because we are cool :)


Islam/Muslims are under the microscope and we are criticised for every little act we do due to the bad press coverage.

Let the dogs bark sister. That's what they do :)

Mujtaba

[UmmNRZ]

hmm I was expecting more responses to this... :(

Don't tell me the 'idea' dosent appeal to anyone?!

[UmmNRZ]

i think individual da3wa is the way to go.. when ppl see a muslim woman wearing a hejab and see how beautiful her character is and how content she is with her religion then they wud see past the head cover insha allah..

That's a good point sis, but I dont see how its going to work when we want to aim at a larger audience, if you know what I mean.
By doing this, we will be limiting ourselves to the few who do come up to us and talk. And trust me, 90% of those out there just smirk at you and look past you like you dont exist when they see the 'headcover'.
If you really want to get the message across, and show them that we too can be 'humans' then I think it will be best for US to make the first move, rather than wait for them to walk up to us and talk to us and realise how beautiful our religion is.
That's my personal opinion, and its purely based on what I have experienced this far.

[case]

so, what project/event is this?

[Alquddsu*Lana]

Could be a lecture regarding wearing the Hijab but directed at the audience in a different way..

Anyone heard Dr. Tariq Suwaydaan before about how he helped so many sisters cover up themselves without talking about Hijab??

He spoke beautifully about the creation of allaah swt, he went on about it to a level where you could imagine yourself somewhere else!!........etc...

Is that what you are trying to say sis, to not just mention us Women is Islam under a hijaab only?? and ofcourse there must be a target, so to convince non-muslims to accept us or whatever, it should be through Allaah swt great blessings..

So if they get convinced about it, there as a conclusion, the speaker can add us as the obedients to Him swt for His blessings....etc
Or may be talk about it as a last point?? there they can see why we are "different"?

[UmmNRZ]

so, what project/event is this?

Its not a 'project' yet its an 'idea' and I was expecting for us to build up on it and inshaAllah make it a successful project.

What I was trying to say is, whenever Islam is mentioned, people conveniently re-direct their minds to the hijab/veil and the real message of Islam is lost.

So how do we 'resolve' this thinking? Should we have a lecture highlighting that Islam does not equate to hijab or distribute pamphlets about the 'real' message?

[UmmNRZ]

Individual da3wa may affect the life of one person entirely and then that person can help another person etc like a chain reaction.. but when u try to acheive too much too soon u may end up failing miserably.. u cant teach ppl about islam in a lecture or two.. ppl wud learn more through interaction

Well said, mashaAllah

That is true, but I think to get the one on one interaction going, we need to have a start somewhere, and whats better than aiming it at a bigger audience, and the few who get influenced will be encouraged to ask more questions, and inshaAllah then we can establish regular contact and make a difference.

[compLicated]

sorri i didnt go thru the whole thread but if u decide to do something...do not do the pamphlets!! it's so annoying when u have people standing in a corner of a street/or the middle...and handing out those pamphlets aboput religion or wotever

[Taliban Princess]

Agreed.

We have never needed to 'sell' our deen.

We have our Prophet sAw as the perfect example. People flocked to Islam because of his sAw character and demeanour. His sAw own wife Khadija RA, [the first revert to Islam], embraced this deen without doubt, simply because she *trusted* him, Al-Ameen. And trust is something that is part of a person's character, and the only way a person will trust you is if you *show* [though your actions and words] that you can be trusted.

I think it was Sheikh Khalid Yassin that once said that the best da'wah you can do is through your own [exemplary] actions.

[Musa]

sorri i didnt go thru the whole thread but if u decide to do something...do not do the pamphlets!! it's so annoying when u have people standing in a corner of a street/or the middle...and handing out those pamphlets aboput religion or woteverYou mean the same type of pamphlets which helped me embrace Islam???

One day I found a pamphlet lying in the gutter entitled 'The Amazing Qur'an'. It renewed my interst in Islam... The rest you can guess.

[Al Baitel 'ateeq]

Basically, we should not undermine what we peceive to be fruitless. Mecca Cola is an example of that. May Allah Ta'aala reward you with all that is good in both worlds - aameen.

I heard this story that there was this guy handing out translations of the Quran. Ok, so maybe more than 80% of them ended up in the trash, but one guy sat and started reading it on the bus cause he had nothing better to do. He skipped the first chapter cause he thought it was just the introduction [Surat al-Fatiha]. So he starts off with the second chapter and reads;
A.L.M. This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear Allah.

The reader becomes intrigued, as authors usually begin a book by apologising for their errors and their short comings, but here we have an author who says that in this book, without doubt, there is guidance. So sure, so positive. The reader looks at the front of the book to find the author. Flips through the back, nothing. He's intrigued and reads on, realising that this book must be from God. One thing lead to another and he became a Muslim.

A small task of handing out the Quran led to one attaining guidance, and just think that all of the good deeds of this new muslim will pass onto the one who handed out the Quran translations to begin with.

[aussiemu]

assalamu alaikum,

This is a common problem actually. I remember having the same problem after Sept 11 during our Uni Open Days when people would discuss the Sept 11 attack s and the Taliban for 2 hours and the non-Muslim would leave and actually hadn't learnt a thing about what the essence of Islam is. I'm not saying that the talk had no value because it probably helped the person to get past those issues about Muslims, but it's also important that when we speak to non-Muslims that we don't spend hours on one issue i.e. hijab, terrorists and then forget about tawheed or Allah. Infact, when they understand the concept of God etc better, the hijab issue becomes clearer for them because we wear our Hijab because Allah commanded it of us (and all those benefits of modesty/not being judged etc are great benefits).

Not too sure what could be done though because if we had a lecture 'Islam is not only about Hijab' it'll probably become about Hijab :)

wassalamu alaikum

[aussiemu]

assalamu alaikum,

One thing you'll realise is that you'll NEVER know what can lead a person to Islam. Allah can guide anyone through anything. Sometimes we look at someone's efforts and think they are not going to be useful and infact they can help someone to be guided and become Muslim. So you never know!

wassalamu alaikum

[Musa]

I found most of the answers I asked about Islam were best answered when I was taught about the fundamentals of Islam.

Tawheed itself answers most questions if you present it right. Br. Bilaal Assad gave a great example of it during Islamic Week at VU (the audio is available somewhere).

[Precious-Muslimah]

Salam folks,
I honestly believe, as Muslims we don't try our utmost best to convey and spread the message of Islam to the Non-Muslims and to those who lack Islamic knowledge. I mean, logically, if we were spreading the message as thoroughly as some of us claim we do, would there be such a sterotype? It's understandable that a Muslimah is recognised by wearing a Hijab, but the concept of Islam solely revolving around Hijab,Polygamy, Shariah and other small aspects of Islam just proves that the media choses to focus on the supposedly negative and segregational aspects of Islam? Why? Because that's the image they want to portray.
I wish we could stick together as Muslims, not as Arabs and/or Africans, Not as black and whites, but one nation who all share one thing-Islam. However, these are the things which prevent us from giving a good impression to the Non-Muslims.
I think we need to have peace within our Ummah and fully adopt the Islamic law without implementing new age laws (Western laws) and then after that focus on give the media and non-Muslim public the true essence of Islam.
When I say Western Laws, I understand we live in Non-Islamic countries, which sometimes may clash with our believes, but Allah (Azaa wa jal) has made everything easy for us,Alhamdulilaah.
One thing I'd like to add Insha'allah, is that we are constantly struggling to segregate religious beliefs from cultural beliefs. We need to differentiate the two because if we wish to convey the message, Insha'allah, we need to give a clear message, hence confusing the reader/knowledge seeker.
Insha'allah, we will be that nation who shows that Islam is what everyone needs and Islam is all we need. May Allah create peace, love, mercy and harmony among Muslim so that they convey the message without any brawls, brutality or arguements, Ameen. May Allah guide us all before it's too late. Ameen yaa Rabbal Calamiin.

Salam.

[UmmRasheed]

assalamu alaykum

really...u can focus on hijab and thats really beautiful mashallah..however I think we need to get back to basics, pillars of eman explianed in detail which i can say as I have studied aqeedah under a sheikh in London, most people do not understand. Eman has the heart, the speech, and the action and if u understand and have correct eman if will show in your actions inshallah mashallah.

Umm Rasheed

[UmmNRZ]

Alhamdulilah looks like we're getting somewhere.


it's also important that when we speak to non-Muslims that we don't spend hours on one issue i.e. hijab, terrorists and then forget about tawheed or Allah. Infact, when they understand the concept of God etc better, the hijab issue becomes clearer for them because we wear our Hijab because Allah commanded it of us

This is exactly what I was trying to say. We need something that will explain the fundamentals of Islam, like an introduction covering all the major topics which can make a difference. Others such as hijab, women's rights etc will fall into place once the basics have been taught.

[aussiemu]

assalamu alaikum,

Obviously, doing da'wah through your own example/actions/behaviour/manners is the first thing that needs to be concentrated on but that doesn't mean events/other means can't also be employed to do da'wah as well :)

I'm not sure how you would do an event/project that leaves out the issues of hijab etc (or lessens them) without actually targetting the Muslims since we're the ones that go on about the subjects without mentioning the other topics.

Personally, I think by doing events and not focussing it on ourselves (except obviously if someone asks directly then we do have to answer it) it'll be good. For example, us women are not just about hijab and if we did more events that let us speak about other issues rathar than *just* women's issues it'll be a good example I feel. wallahu 'alam.

I hope I'm making sense :)

wassalamu alaikum

[aussiemu]

assalamu alaikum,

Personally, I think one point that is very important that we might forget to say is that we do things because its a command of God. Because generally when you only list the benefits, people always want to try to poke holes into it for e.g. 'well why do you have to wear it infront of this 14 year old boy? Do you think he's going to be sexually attracted to you? and so on..' and 'What if it's a really ugly girl does that mean she doesn't have to wear it'? and so on.. and you just go around in circles. If you say 'I wear it because it's a command of God and I get all these extra benefits from it', I reckon it's stronger. But that could be just me so people can disagree :)

I think something should be setup for non-Muslims in general who want to learn about Islam so they can go through some kind of structured type class and sit down and speak to someone who knows how to answer questions. Lectures are great for motivation and also for basic introductions etc but a more indepth follow up is something that I think is lacking currently. The same goes for indepth followup for reverts as well because reverts revert and we all cheer but there tends to be a lack of basic classes/help for them on a regular basis. There may be stuff out there some people are doing but I haven't heard of much.

wassalamu alaikum

p.s. sorry sis! I have a tendency to go off in various tangents!

[Yazz]

I skimmed the responses!!! what do u think of doing an interfaith dialougue between women regarding religion in gereal before anything. I can relate to this on two levels because I know of two individuals one who is scarved and the other who is not and the response from people towards them was amazing. They questioned the woman not wearing the hijab as to why she wasnt wearing it if she was a muslim when in fact both msulim women beleive in the same thing. I hope I havent confused any of u!!! A lecture would be great but dialogue would be better or perhaps a muslim womans day where u could invite people from different org. backgrounds etc. Tomorrow in melbourne there is a women's forum regarding women in islam and inshallah it will be very effective.

[UmmNRZ]

Those are some good ideas. mashaAllah.
Will you be attending the women's forum thingee? let us know how it went, inshaAllah.

[Yazz]

The womens human rights forum was excellent and I wish many more women had attended. We discussed stratergies regarding human rights of muslim women etc. We did not discuss religion but rather the australian legal system. There were guest speakers and the workshops were enlightening. Inshallah there will be some upcoming projects that inshallah many of you girls and women can get involved in. There more of us there is the better it is. Islamic Girls Womens Group is organizing at interfaith camp in December which I will post details for when its organized inshallah. There are also a number of interfaith dinners mashallah for women. There is an iftar on October14th at Laila Receptions...Tickets are $25 however there will be alot of people insallah including the federal police, council, government mps etc... aswell as other muslims and non muslims. All are welcome men and women, different religions etc to share in the spirit of ramdan. I have alot more info with regard to alot of these matters. If anybody is interested in getting involved further let me know.:D