Unveiling the Myth of the Muslim Woman

Good work. Hope to read more!

The past is the past and should be judged by relevant standards. But what about the present? Are educated hindu women obsessed about covering their entire bodies in a large black sack? Why do educated indian muslim wear such nonsensical garments?

The point is this is 2006. Just using long words from Said or any other left-wing author is bakwaas and evasion. Rajasthani hindus have a horrific tradition of sati for women and everyone should condemn it. I dont care that it originated from turkic conquests or whatever. That was 500 years ago.

So the question remains: why is islam so obsessed with degrading women by hiding them in large black sacks? In no other culture does this emphasis remain among educated people of the 2000s. Do you have the courage of an irshad manjit or the many true islamic liberals who have condemmed this as retrogressive? I dont think so.

dear ms. rana, excellent article. i dont like the veil and all that but you are so right that religion is connected to politics. it is also menfolk who decide. strong woman will come to the fore if they make decisions. then there is question of why will strong woman want to wear veil? we must ask these questions.

Anniqua Rana
Well written article.
My whole point is, why we empahsise on being muslims or non-muslims??
Religion is totally one`s personal issue. Why to advertise infront of whole wide world and repeating this mantra like a parrot ,``excuse me , I am muslim, hi, I am muslim, oh, well, I am muslim. I won`t do this,b/c i am muslim. I want to set a good example,b/c I am muslim.``

Well, no other religious cult advertises it self like that. That is the main reason, muslims sound stupid, when they involve every action in to their religion. Why can`t they say, i am a good human and want to set a good example of a good human. That is the main dilemma with muslims or so, called muslims.

When I came to USA, no one cared about any religion. They don`t advertise themselves as, hi, i am christian, hi i am jew or so and so religious cult. While muslims they do. That is the main reason, they are facing problems in todays world, which are absolutely self created.

I don`t care, who wears veil or who doesn`t. All i am saying is, do not use Islam for your own selfish excuses or for your own culture. All this wearing veil or not and doing this or that in your daily living has absolutely nothing to do with religion. It is a culture that everyone of us represent.

At the end, all religions represent humanity and doing good for human beings with practicing your own culture, which you choose for your selves.

An interesting paper on the intersection between (1) occidantalism versus this mythical orientalism, (2) men versus women and (3) islam and umm others. Not sure it came out clearly on what is the reason behind veiling. Let me ask the author another question. If Islam didnt ask the ladies to do the veil, would the same number of women have veiled? If you explore the answer to that question, you can split out the impact of religion versus men/women versus orientalism :).

If you wanted some more details, here`s a slightly different take on what I had written on this subject some time back.


The veil is a fascinating piece of clothing. It seems to be present in almost all cultures throughout the centuries. I grew up seeing women draped in veils and saw them in more than 40 countries around the world while working. Sometimes it was funny when I saw a veiled lady in Anne Summers, sometimes it was a bit of a fright when me and my friend AJ saw this lady completely veiled, top to bottom in black, but having a pair of spectacles perched over the veil (something like cousin Itt in the Adam`s Family Values). Sometimes it was pity when I saw a woman wearing very tattered, therefore, revealing clothes, carrying a load of bricks on her head, but still amazingly very conscious of her veil down to her shoulders. Then again it was religious awe which struck me in Eastern Europe, looking at veiled women pouring into church. Wondering about it, I decided to take a bit of a deeper look at what drove women to hide their faces. continued on at:
http://www.countercurrents.org/gender-gupta281003.htm

I agree with you -- Hijab is not an original idea invented by the Muslim women....it`s an old antiquated practice revived by the `New` emancipated Muslim woman....living in an un-emancipated Western society....

if not -- then what are you advocating Ms Rana -- Muslim women should or should not wear Nun`s Hijab around their pretty faces -- should or shouldn`t wear dog collar around their pretty necks.....

should the choice be driven by the fashion of the day by the religion of the day...?

talking about the identity of Muslim women -- why it is so important for Muslim women to look different from other women in the West....?

what`s is so special about the Muslim Women that they must look different from other women -- that they should stick like a sore thumb in western bazaars -- or should force fit like a square in a circle......

do the Muslim women have horns that they need to cover with a scarf -- or do the Muslim women have to advertise that they are more pious and more chaste -- ie they are closer to American or Canadian Nuns -- THAN they are to the Non-Nun averafe Western women.....

my view is that there are unnecessary hype and misinformed exaggerations about the anomalous character Muslim Woman in the West -- and there is ALSO too much unnecessary hype -- exaggerations -- -- self indulgence and self-importance about their Islam and Muslimness from the Muslims themselves.....

lighten up my co-religionist brothers and sisters.......you are just like any other community -- they don`t have horns -- you don`t have horns....

Muslim men or WOMEN are no better or no worse than any of their Western or Eastern counterparts.....it`s pure delusion to think that somehow or other Muslim Women are superior to -- or holier than -- most Western women.....

.....there is no NEED for the Muslim Women to look like an ugly mole on a rather pretty face of Western womanhood..just to prove a point..... of identity!

my suggestion as a father who has raised four successful career women -- follow the old adage -- in Mecca do as the Meccans do -- in Rome do as the Romans do...

in the West do practice your Eastern YOGA by all means -- but also DO practice the Western GAGA -- that is -- Go Along to Get Along........

otherwise check the airfare from Rome to Mecca -- if the Meccans will let you become the permanent citizen of Mecca....

#6 nasah
{{do the Muslim women have horns that they need to cover with a scarf -- or do the Muslim women have to advertise that they are more pious and more chaste -- ie they are closer to American or Canadian Nuns -- THAN they are to the Non-Nun averafe Western women.....}}}
exactly..........
Why Muslims act so stupid to mix their own cultures with their religion, called Islam?
And, who on the earth will give a second look to these pale veiled or un-veiled muslim women?
who cares in today`s world, if, you`re muslim, non muslim, kafir or momin etc, etc, etc.?
Who cares , if, you wear niqab or if, you wear shorts with sleeveless tee-shirts?

Another habit of so, called muslims is, they start advising their own muslims, God knows why?
And, that is so, very annoying.

``Another habit of so, called muslims is, they start advising their own muslims, God knows why?
And, that is so, very annoying. ``(Zeena)

your point is well taken -- Ms. Zeena ....it IS annoying.....that`s what I was always told.....:)

#8 nasah
yes, this is the dilemma of muslims and specially Paki muslims, they meet with eachohter and start bundle of advises. I always ask them, why do you think, we need your advises?
What exactly do you wish to preach and why you wish to preach ? Their answer is NOTHING. On, this question, they just start looking at my face as if I am from other planet.

I tell them ,if, you wish to preach, why don`t you go to criminals and start preaching. Even, those criminals won`t listen to your senseless discussions about Islam, Islam, Islam.

I mean, they should restrict their sermons to their mosques, if, someone really wish to refresh their minds with those advises, he/she can attend. But, they open up mosque everywhere. And, weird thing is, they act opposite of what they preach.

and on side note:-
If, we take Islam and being Muslim is the best thing, that can happen to any human on this earth, then in that case, Pakistan is the #1 country to need Islam and Muslims with all those advises. B/c Pakistan is #1 in corruption. Pakistani culture is just corruption and corruption.

Also, Paki women living in Pakistan need this VEIL , the most. B/c Paki men always stare at women , even in veils and try to touch them , while passing dirty remarks. Majority of them harrass women veil or unveil. So, for those Paki women , who get un comfortable with these MANLY attitudes, they are the most suitable candidates for a thing, called VEIL.

The veil makes perfect sense in socieities where there is no respect for women. This is particularly true of desiland, both Pakistan and India. Sometimes I wish there was a custom of wearing veils in Delhi. Delhi guys are such perverts that they will harass 60 year old women on the streets and indulge in eve-teasing. We have seen spectacular cases of rapes happening every few days in Delhi, with women being abducted from the streets and getting raped in cars. In such societies, where the men are like animals who are out of control, the veil is the only way to protect women.

In western societies where men are much more civilized, the veil is useless. When people are not perverts and behave normally with women, there is no need to cover women all the time.

``In such societies, where the men are like animals who are out of control, the veil is the only way to protect women.

In western societies where men are much more civilized, the veil is useless. When people are not perverts and behave normally with women, there is no need to cover women all the time.``(Ranjit)

ranjit -- respect for women comes when men know the women -- when boys and girls are not segregated -- when they are allowed to mingle, interact normally with each other since childhood...

....`animal like` behavior comes from gender deprivation -- ( btw most animals do not indulge in sex whenever they get to graze together or hunt together).....

...that is -- treating women as strange, forbidden sex objects -- that arouse unacceptable un pious sinful thoughts -- for which these guilt ridden chauvinist pigs would rather punish the woman -- the OBJECT of their sinful sensuality -- the breakers of their Wazoo -- the ruiners of their Nemaz -- the spoilers of their rozas -- making her disappear in a sack .........than themselves.....

a woman might ask -- why don`t THEY disappear....or gouge their own eyes -- nu ruhay ga baaNs nu baje gee baNsuri....

they are afraid of purdahless women -- because they are afraid of their own uncontrolled deprived wahshiness.....on which they have no dominion -- that they certainly have over a woman.......

btw -- still Delhi or Islamabad are not the rape capitals of the world -- but certainly one of the two is the capital of a country whose president personally defends and frees the rapists -- and personally house arrests or exiles the victims.......

Anniqua:

I think there should be freedom for the woman to dress as she desires. Otherwise, what is an acceptable dress is relevant to a society. For example, pmishra at # 2 asks why is Islam so obsessed with degrading women by hiding them in large black sack. I would like to ask a question of my own i.e. why do Indian women wear restrictive dresses? They should be wearing skirts and even bikinis and bras when on the beach. As it is, only few of them, even if they live in the USA / Canada, have the courage to do so.

Ranjit,
I have lived in Delhi, can say eve teasing is extremely minimal. Yes, women have been raped in cars etc and most of the rapers charged.

Challenges faced by Muslim women are somewhat unique – on top of plain gender inequality prevalent in the Muslim world, there are additional challenges mainly a result of the barbaric and outdated religion practiced in those lands. In Afghanistan under the Taliban, the nation’s favorite sport was soccer played with freshly chopped female heads. In Saudi Arabia they are not taught to drive (the argument is that because they are fully covered, they might ram the car into some camel). In Iran they must not dance in public. In Lahore, they are forbidden from competing in a road race. In Jordan, it is unlawful to prosecute a man who kills a woman to protect his honor. Just a small sample of some minor challenges faced by Muslim females living in the Muslim world.

Saying that Muslim women should make their own decisions is kinda comical. How do you tell Saudi or Iranian women to make their own decisions, when Allah himself has already made the decisions affecting them.

The Hijab issue is quite old. We need to move on people.
Overall this is an ok article, but most of your references are quite old.

Bottom line is the Hijab is required by practicing muslim women. It says so in the Quran. Whether or not they chose to wear it, is another matter entirely. The fact of the matter is, most muslim women don`t wear it. There is no compulsion in religion...every muslim knows that. No one should force any woman to wear it. If she choses to or not, is between her and God...and not for not for anyone else, muslim or non-muslim to judge. IF you feel they are trying to put forward a `holier than thou` image, then you really should take a look at yourself and your own insecurities.

I think when we talk about hijab we should also mention that in the Quran right along the passage about modesty, it mentions that believing ``men should lower their gaze`` as well. Now how many of us see men lowing their gaze whenever a women, veiled or not, passes by??? Everyone is at their own level of piety, and so it is regarding the hijab as well. When a muslim woman does chose to wear it, it should be for religious reasons not any other. I know of many sikh girls in Toronto that wear something similar to a hijab, and its for their own religious reasons. How many religions are you going to try to suppress?

OK, forget about religions, take a look at different lifestyles. Go to any downtown city in the US or Canada, and you`ll see numerous colourful, different looking, punk, ganster, and religious zealots, etc. (even the Hari Karishma`s in Toronto). Should we all conform to look like one another?? No, we are all individuals, with different ideals. That is the beauty of the human race in the cosmopolitan world we live in today. Yes it does get annoying if one groups tries to enforce its values on you...but, its great to be able to learn from one another. I`ve been approached by many different people, and I think its amazing that we are able to smile and talk to one another and often even share similar values.

Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. And most of the people converting are educated. So go figure. :)