al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Musharakat al-Mara lil-Rajul fi Maydan Amalihi

Al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Musharakat al-Mar'a lil-Rajul fi Maydan 'Amalihi (Unveiling and the Danger of Women Participating alongside Men in their Work Fields) is an Islamic legal treatise by the Saudi scholar Abd al-Aziz ibn Abd Allah ibn Baz (d. 1420 AH / 1999 CE) addressing modesty, the obligation of the veil (hijab), and the prohibition of gender mixing in the workplace al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Mus…+1.

Subject and Arguments

Ibn Baz opens the treatise by warning against the prevalence of tabarruj (the public display of adornment) and sufur (uncovering), characterizing them as major religious offenses that bring divine punishment and moral corruption into society al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Mus…. He cites Quranic passages, including verses from Surah al-Ahzab and Surah al-Nur, to establish that women are commanded to stay within their homes, cover their beauty and faces from non-mahram men with the jilbab, and avoid softening their speech in interactions with men al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Mus…+1. Drawing on interpretations attributed to early authorities such as Ibn Abbas and 'Ubaydah al-Salmani, he argues that the veil represents purity for both men and women, whereas uncovering fosters illicit desires and leads toward unlawful acts al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Mus…+1.

The second part of the treatise focuses on calls for women to enter the workforce alongside men al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Mus…. Ibn Baz rejects the argument that women's participation in male fields of work is a requirement of modernization or civilization, asserting that it contradicts textual evidence requiring women to remain primarily in their domestic sphere al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Mus…+1. He contends that removing a woman from her home violates her innate disposition (fitrah) and that workplace integration causes gender mixing (ikhtilat), which he classifies as a primary avenue toward adultery Dalil Maktabat al-Mar'a a…+1. He also highlights what he views as societal damages observed in societies permitting mixing, including the breakdown of family units, marital dissatisfaction, and the neglect of children who are deprived of maternal care al-Tabarruj wa Khatar Mus…+1. He concludes that if both parents fulfilled their prescribed domestic and financial duties, women would have no need to seek employment in male domains Dalil Maktabat al-Mar'a a….

Publication History

The treatise was published as an independent booklet by Markaz al-Da'wah al-Islamiyyah in Lahore in Rabi' al-Thani 1399 AH (March 1979 CE) Izhar al-Haqq wa al-Sawab…. It was subsequently printed by the Center for Da'wah Affairs at the Islamic University of Madinah in 1405 AH as a 16-page tract, and released again by the university in 1408 AH, after which it went through multiple printings Al-Ifham fi Sharh Umdat a…+1. It was also published as an article in Majallat al-Jami'ah al-Islamiyyah and Majallat al-Buhuth al-Islamiyyah, and included within Ibn Baz's collected writings (Majmu' Fatawa wa Maqalat Mutanawwi'ah) Majallat al-Jami'a al-Isl…+1.