He is only worth it if he respects your obedience to your Lord ❤

Hijab seems to be a very controversial topic nowadays and though I have posted on this topic before I think it is important to address certain issues that constantly come up. I have recently read something and been asked to talk on the topic of "will he like me if I wear hijab" and a friend made an important point to me which was that we need to love ourselves before wanting someone to love us. I think one needs to be confident enough to adorn the hijab and remember that it is to please the Creator of the creation that you are trying so hard to please. If the Creator is happy with you then HE will open the hearts of those around you and if a brother comes along and has a problem with what the Creator has ordained for you then is he really worth it?

we are indoctrinated by the norms of today and made to believe that beauty has a criteria when really, the only criteria beauty should have is love for the Creator. I strongly believe that beauty is manifested through character and knowledge because if someone is beautiful on the inside, has a beautiful heart and mind then their outward form becomes beautified by that.

Islam came to change the norm of society and bring it back to its default position and the default position of mankind is good character, modesty and most importantly love and consciousness of the Creator. We have allowed our animalistic natures to manifest so much to the point of forgetting our humanity and allowing ourselves to drown in worldly desires. 
This unfortunately is the root of where the above mentioned question stems.

Coming from a niqabi's perspective, I think that if things are done the right way then it is more than just possible for 'him to like you with hijab' because traditionally as well as religiously, a boy and girl's family usually knows they are ready and of marrying age and look for someone suitable and they meet and can see from there if they want to pursue the relationship. Nowadays however, it seems that we have 'westernised' or 'modernised' the way in which we find partners and hence we find sisters having difficulty in adorning the hijab due to worry that they will be unable to find a suitor but let me assure you all, there is definitely a way because if you please the Creator, He will grant you someone who can help you in attaining His pleasure and someone who appreciates your effort.

As a niqabi, I have realised that it is possible for someone to fall for you by looking at your character first but yes, at the same time we all know males were created as very visual beings so though it is possible, it may get complicated, however, I don't think that any hijabi or niqabi should allow societies norms to dictate her dressing and being especially if It goes against shari'ah because what the Lord Himself obligates us to do can never be to our detriment or to make us unattractive but rather more attractive and to safeguard us because HE Knows what we NEED and He created beauty and loves beauty so may we all find the strength to please Him and may He help us to rediscover ourselves and find HIM and be directed to our default position in shaa Allah!

My Journey As a Student Of 'Ilm

Growing up I was always exposed to the traditional saying that is attributed to our beloved Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) which states "SEEK KNOWLEDGE FROM THE CRADLE TO THE GRAVE" (though a weak chain of narration) and I grew up having firm belief in this statement and here I am today doing exactly that In-shaa-Allah. I sit today in the company of such esteemed scholars and have the opportunity of being taught by these most knowledgeable people alhamdulillah and I have no one else but Allah ta'ala to thank for that. 

The knowledge I am exposed to now forces me to think and analyse and not just accept everything that is thrown at me.

I have learnt that islam is not a religion of mere acceptance but filled with challenges to the mind. Yes there are things which are explicitly and clearly indicated but there is room for understanding as well and if this wasn't the case then there would not be so many different opinions on one issue. This room for different interpretation isn't there for us to change the deen but rather to facilitate ease for us and to make us realise that the deen and the Book is there for all eras and all ages! We should never change the deen to fit our lives but change our lives to fit the deen because the deen is made for all times and ages. Also, we should not make it hard upon ourselves because Allah ta'ala doesn't love extremism and wants ease for us! 

Most importantly, through this journey I am on I have learnt that whatever one learns, one should pass on, as it is so beautifully stated in a poem by abi ishaaq al biri on the virtues of knowledge:

يزيد بكسرة الانفاق منه    و ينقص ان به كفا شددتا

This line of poetry can be translated as "(knowledge) increases the more you spend of it and it will decrease the more you keep it to yourself" 

so my intention in-shaa-Allah is to share whatever little I do know because I am no scholar and neither do I claim to ever be one because I have a long way to go but in-shaa-Allah I am a student of ilm and hope that the little I do know can be of benefit and ignite something in the heart of even one of you reading this and I hope that with your dua and prayer I am able to be successful in fulfilling my intention ♡ 

Ameen

My Niqab Experience...

Alhamdulillah a few years ago Allah had granted me the hidayah to adorn my hijab and though I may have started off not adorning it in the completely correct manner, we all have to start off somewhere and now when I look back, I realise hijab was the best thing that could have happened for me.

Many think that hijab is covering the hair but hijab is covering ourselves completely in a beautiful manner that pleases Allah Ta’ala. This means not wearing tight or revealing clothes and staying away from being too extravagant.

A year ago I made a decision to adorn niqab and many around me were rather sceptical but Alhamdulillah a year later and Allah ta'ala has given me the strength to persevere and manage through many circumstances. I had many people try to discourage me and the usual concerns were that I am young and need to enjoy life and niqab may inhibit that and also how I would cope in a secular world or a working environment because there may be a situation in which I may be refused a job due to my dressing but Alhamdulillah I never allowed that to stop me and I chose to do it anyway.

I cannot describe the feeling that overwhelmed me on that day, a year ago, because it was one of the most amazing feelings ever. It was the beginning of a new chapter, something that illuminated my heart with happiness. I had never felt so liberated, so free, so confident…

People may wonder how something that covers you can make you feel so free but as I said, it’s a feeling that I cannot describe because for some reason I felt as if I was looking at the world with an entirely new perspective. I felt like a new person and ready to take on the world and I had it all planned out..

Obviously we can have all the plans we want but Allah ta'ala has the best of plans for us and whatever I was faced with as the year progressed, I am ever grateful to Him for that because I know it was the best for me and I know that everything and every situation that I have faced this year has made me stronger and helped me to find my way.

I have realised that hijab (and niqab) make a muslimah so much more conscious of Allah ta’ala. It makes you think thoroughly before doing something because you are a representative of your deen. You need to be an example and one that others look up to إن شاء الله. A friend once said that we may sometimes be the only Qur’aan another person reads. We should manifest the beauty of our deen. Unfortunately nowadays people judge the deen based on the people who make no effort to correctly portray the deen in the first place. May Allah ta’ala save us and guide us all ameen.

However, we should never judge another but rather pray for our fellow sisters and advise them quietly because remember that we all started somewhere and we aren’t all saints. We forget that this is a process we all go through especially living in the morally corrupt society that surrounds us, nevertheless hijab is still a fard and this is only because Allah ta’ala loves His servants and wants the best for us. We should look most beautiful in His presence and save our beauty for our husband because if we are to show our beauty to every man around us then the person we’re made to be with will never truly appreciate it and won’t be able to see our true beauty because it has been shared to so many others already.

My advice to my fellow muslimahs is:

If you are in a situation of extreme heat and tempted to remove your hijab or niqab, remember that the heat of hellfire is worse!

If you are in a situation where you are surrounded by males in a working environment, school environment or sometimes even a student accommodation environment, remember to persevere no matter how hard or tempting it may be because you shall be rewarded for it and nothing is better than gaining the pleasure of your Lord.

Also, always carry an extra niqab when going out to eat or for coffee (I speak from experience with coffee) because it can sometimes be a task depending on what you eat but eventually you will get used to it, I assure you, and it becomes so easy… and there are some advantages to eating with niqab, that I can tell you for sure! ;)

May Allah ta'ala safeguard and guide us all ameen.

ma'assalamah