I have no doubt that people are continually wondering why it is that women adorn hijab. I can't speak for all Muslim women but I know I can speak for myself. One day a friend of mine that I went to college with asked me these questions and I gave her the following answers.
June 23, 2003
Question 1: What is the personal importance you place on wearing a Hijab. Basically why do you wear it?
Answer:
I personally find that adorning Hijab is the way I state who I am and what I stand for. I wear it to preserve who I am physically and spiritually. There are many different ways that adorning Hijab can be looked at and there are different reasons we adorn Hijab. Hijab in the full meaning is to cover – for girls it is to cover all except hands, face, and feet (and these depending on different regions of the world can be debated upon) for boys it means to cover from navel to knees. For me to cover myself is in essence saying that my body is my business.
Islam places the utmost importance on education – it is stated in the Qur’an to “seek knowledge from cradle to grave.” Yes, we are to take care of ourselves and our bodies – they are vessels for our soul to reside in while on this earth and that vessel as well as our soul belongs to God and He requires of us to take care of ourselves. Hijab allows me to branch out more than some can even imagine. Hijab strikes intrigue to those who are open minded and have a desire to learn about others. I wear it most of all to please God. He requires this of me therefore I follow and try my hardest to live up to it.
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Question 2: How do you feel about yourself when you wear one? Do you experience any form of discrimination because you wear one?
Answer:
I feel that I have more self esteem and that I have more to live up to. Yes, I have experienced discrimination, but at the same time so do many other people just because of the fact there is still ignorance in the world.
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Question 3: What made you decide to wear one?
Answer:
The main reason I started wearing it is because of the fact that it is a requirement of Islam through my own understanding. I know that there is a huge debate on whether or not it is actually required but when I look at it and analyze it – it is stated through the Qur’an and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (May peace be upon him) that we are to cover. I also know that some people will say that it is a personal choice, and at the same time that is an aspect of life – we are created as humans with free-will. That is what differentiates us from Angles. They are the ones that have no choice but to obey the commands of God. It is an aspect of faith just like prayer. We don’t say we’re not ready to pray and that we don’t feel as if we’re “good enough” to pray but we pray so that we may become “good enough” and that much closer to God. The same philosophy can be applied to Hijab. Hijab is something that grows with a person and through the obstacles that are placed becomes a part of that person. I can’t say that I was truly ready to wear Hijab at the age of 13, but I do know now that it is an integral part of who I am and who I want to be.
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Question 4: When you first started wearing it, how did you feel and how did people react (friends, family, and the public)?
Answer:
As I stated earlier I started wearing Hijab when I was thirteen – I didn’t have much of a hard time because of the fact that most of the people around me were Muslims, and those that were not they asked me questions and got to know more about Islam and got to know me better as well. I believe that I also had the upper-hand because of the fact that I lived in a diverse area. Yes, of course I ran into those who were ignorant about Islam and ignorant of what it means to wear Hijab.
I personally felt good about myself and in a way I felt safer. I was happy that I was able to fulfill a command of God. My Hijab is my identity and a part of life.
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