Jilbab al-Mar'a al-Muslima fi al-Kitab wa al-Sunna
- Author died
- 1420 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Salām lil-Nashr wal-Tawzīʿ
Jilbab al-Mar'a al-Muslima fi al-Kitab wa al-Sunna (The Jilbab of the Muslim Woman in the Book and the Sunna) is a legal and hadith treatise by Nasir al-Din al-Albani (d. 1420 AH / 1999 CE) that delineates the Islamic legal rulings and specific conditions governing women's attire when leaving the home.
Background and Title
The work was initially published under the title Hijab al-Mar'a al-Muslima (The Hijab of the Muslim Woman). Al-Albani altered the title in later expanded editions to Jilbab al-Mar'a al-Muslima fi al-Kitab wa al-Sunna to maintain linguistic and legal precision between the concepts of jilbab and hijab. Citing Ibn Taymiyya, he noted that verses concerning the jilbab pertain to women going outside their homes, whereas verses concerning hijab govern addressing women within dwellings. In the updated edition, the author incorporated substantial additions, including hadiths and reports from early generations regarding the rulings on the face and hands.
Contents and Core Thesis
The work establishes that a Muslim woman is required to cover her entire body when outside her home, with the exception of the face and hands, which are permissible to expose though covering them remains recommended (mustahabb). Al-Albani deduces from the Quran, prophetic sunnah, and traditions of the early Muslims eight conditions for a woman's outdoor attire:
- Covering the entire body except what is explicitly exempted (the face and hands).
- Not being an adornment in itself.
- Being thick and non-transparent.
- Being loose-fitting and not form-revealing.
- Not perfumed or scented.
- Not resembling men's garments.
- Not resembling the garments of non-Muslim women.
- Not being a garment of ostentation or vanity (libas shuhrah).
Al-Albani notes that some of these conditions, particularly the prohibitions against resemblance and ostentation, apply both inside and outside the home and encompass clothing rules applicable to both men and women.
Reception, Refutations, and Related Works
Al-Albani's conclusion permitting the uncovering of the face and hands stirred widespread scholarly debate and generated numerous rebuttals from authors who deemed face-covering obligatory. Rebuttals included Raf' al-Junnah Amama Jilbab al-Mar'a al-Muslima fi al-Kitab wa al-Sunna by Abd al-Qadir ibn Habibullah al-Sindi, al-Sarim al-Mashhur 'ala Ahl al-Tabarruj wa al-Sufur by Hammud al-Tuwayjiri, critiques by Salih al-Fawzan, and remarks by Abu al-A'la al-Mawdudi in his book al-Hijab.
In response to his critics, al-Albani initially wrote an extensive introductory rebuttal for the revised edition of the book. Due to its length, he detached the polemical material and issued it as a standalone volume titled al-Radd al-Mufhim (The Decisive Rebuttal).
An abridgment of the work was prepared by Hussam al-Din 'Afana under the title Mukhtasar Kitab Jilbab al-Mar'a al-Muslima, which removed the polemical prefaces and technical discussions of isnads.
Publication History
The book was published in Amman by al-Maktabah al-Islamiyyah under Nizam Sakijha, the author's brother-in-law. A fourth edition appeared in single-volume format (260 pages) through Maktabat al-Ma'arif in Riyadh (1423 AH / 2002 CE).
Answer updated