Choosing a lenient ruling for Niqaab
| Fatwa #2245 | Category: Miscellaneous | Country: Zambia | Date: 6th February 2026 |
| Fatwa #2245 | Date: 6th February 2026 |
| Category: Miscellaneous | |
| Country: Zambia | |
Question
Assalmwalykum
According to the majority of scholars, is wearing the niqab obligatory (fard/wajib) or recommended (mustahabb)?
If a woman follows the opinion that niqab is recommended but not obligatory and chooses to wear hijab without niqab while observing modest dress and Islamic boundaries, is she committing a sin?
There is alot of misunderstanding regarding what is virtuous vs about obligation (fard/wajib) versus permissibility. Please explain.
JazakAllahu khayran.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.
In principle, according to the Hanafi madhab, it is wajib (necessary) for a woman to cover her face when she ventures out of the home or is in the presence of non-mahram men. There is no difference of opinion within the Hanafi school.
The basis for the ruling from scholars as early as 300AH was that the era and its people are no longer pure and pious, rather sin and lust is the order of the day. They said this in their times, over a thousand years ago, so one can imagine what the situation ought to be for our world today.
There are a few benefits for a woman covering herself fully. Firstly, it protects her own chastity when she knows that she is not being seen by any non-mahram male. Secondly, given that she is not attracting the attention of vulgar men, she remains protected from harassment and assault. Lastly, by covering herself, she reduces the overall obscenity and lewdness in society.
Some people may think that this means Islam is not blaming men, rather blaming women for something that is not their fault. This is a naïve approach as it assumes that men will always control themselves when it is well known that this is not the case. Islam provides a strong deterrent against men who have ill desires by putting forth strong punishments for charges or rape, assault and the like. However, at the same time, it acknowledges that it is not possible to police every single man in society. Therefore, a woman ought to take measures of her own to protect herself too.
Covering the face when there is a fear of fitnah and temptation is considered obligatory by all four schools of thought. The notion that todays world is ‘free of fitnah and temptation’ is a denial of the sky being blue. Therefore, it remains wajib for a woman today to cover her face whenever she exits her home or is in the presence of non-mahram men according to all four schools of thought.[1]
For a detailed fatwa on the topic, refer to the link below.
https://daruliftaazambia.com/fatwa/?id=47
And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Mufti Bilal Pandor
Concurred by
Mufti Muhammad Patel
Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah
Lusaka, Zambia
الموسوعة الفقهية الكويتية (2/ 156) [1]
67 – اتَّفَقَ الْعُلَمَاءُ عَلَى أَنَّهُ يَحْرُمُ عَلَى الْمَرْأَةِ فِي الإِْحْرَامِ سَتْرُ وَجْهِهَا، لاَ خِلاَفَ بَيْنَهُمْ فِي ذَلِكَ.
وَالدَّلِيل عَلَيْهِ مِنَ النَّقْل مَا سَبَقَ فِي الْحَدِيثِ: وَلاَ تَنْتَقِبُ الْمَرْأَةُ الْمُحْرِمَةُ، وَلاَ تَلْبَسُ الْقُفَّازَيْنِ. (2) وَضَابِطُ السَّاتِرِ هُنَا عِنْدَ الْمَذَاهِبِ هُوَ كَمَا مَرَّ فِي سَتْرِ الرَّأْسِ لِلرَّجُل (3) .
وَإِذَا أَرَادَتْ أَنْ تَحْتَجِبَ بِسَتْرِ وَجْهِهَا عَنِ الرِّجَال جَازَ لَهَا ذَلِكَ اتِّفَاقًا بَيْنَ الْعُلَمَاءِ، إِلاَّ إِذَا خَشِيَتِ الْفِتْنَةَ أَوْ ظَنَّتْ فَإِنَّهُ يَكُونُ وَاجِبًا.
وَالدَّلِيل عَلَى هَذَا الاِسْتِثْنَاءِ حَدِيثُ عَائِشَةَ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهَا قَالَتْ: كَانَ الرُّكْبَانُ يَمُرُّونَ بِنَا وَنَحْنُ مَعَ رَسُول اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مُحْرِمَاتٌ، فَإِذَا حَاذَوْا بِنَا سَدَلَتْ إِحْدَانَا جِلْبَابَهَا مِنْ رَأْسِهَا عَلَى وَجْهِهَا، فَإِذَا جَاوَزُونَا كَشَفْنَاهُ أَخْرَجَهُ أَبُو دَاوُدَ (1) .
وَعَنْ فَاطِمَةَ بِنْتِ الْمُنْذِرِ قَالَتْ: كُنَّا نُخَمِّرُ وُجُوهَنَا وَنَحْنُ مُحْرِمَاتٌ، وَنَحْنُ مَعَ أَسْمَاءَ بِنْتِ أَبِي بَكْرٍ الصِّدِّيقِ. أَخْرَجَهُ مَالِكٌ وَالْحَاكِمُ (2) . وَمُرَادُهَا مِنْ هَذَا سَتْرُ الْوَجْهِ بِغَيْرِ النِّقَابِ عَلَى مَعْنَى التَّسَتُّرِ (3) .
الموسوعة الفقهية الكويتية (31/ 44)
عَوْرَةُ الْمَرْأَةِ بِالنِّسْبَةِ لِلرَّجُل الأَْجْنَبِيِّ:
3 – ذَهَبَ جُمْهُورُ الْفُقَهَاءِ إِلَى أَنَّ جِسْمَ الْمَرْأَةِ كُلَّهُ عَوْرَةٌ بِالنِّسْبَةِ لِلرَّجُل الأَْجْنَبِيِّ عَدَا الْوَجْهَ وَالْكَفَّيْنِ؛ لأَِنَّ الْمَرْأَةَ تَحْتَاجُ إِلَى الْمُعَامَلَةِ مَعَ الرِّجَال وَإِلَى الأَْخْذِ وَالْعَطَاءِ (1) لَكِنْ جَوَازُ كَشْفِ ذَلِكَ مُقَيَّدٌ بِأَمْنِ الْفِتْنَةِ.