Nakedness/Awra of a woman

Reposted

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As-salamu alaikum

Dear Brothers,

i hope you are fine and you had wonderful ´id days!
I wanted to ask what the opinion of the early (or actual) zaidy scholars is,
on the hijab. Especially on the ´awra and the showing of the face.
Their opinions on the quranic verses and the ahadith.

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as salaamu alaykum

Thank you for your question.

Regarding the awra of a woman, the Zaydi opinion is that it is wajib for a woman to wear hijab; however, it is not obligatory to cover the face. This is based on the ruling that it is permissible to look at a woman's face that you intend to marry. according to the majority of the imams, all of a woman's body is awra except the face and hands. The feet are to be covered. This is based upon a report by an early Zaydi authority Allama Abu Abbas from Umm Salama (ra) in which she asked Allah's Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him and his progeny, whether a woman could pray in a cloak and head covering without a sarong, and he said: ((Yes. As long as her
thighs and feet are covered)). This proves that a woman's arwa includes her feet.

The verse in Sura Nur:31 says: {And do not display their ornaments except what appears thereof}. Since the ornaments are worn on the hands and face, the scholars say that this verse proves that they are not a part of the awra. There is a narration from Imam al-Qasim ar-Rassi (as) that the feet are not a part of the awra and are therefore permissible to display. This is because a woman's ankles are another place for ornaments in the verse. However, another narration from Imam ar-Rassi (as) says that the feet should be covered. The latter opinion is the most relied upon in the madhhab. This is because the tafsir of the verse that states that the place of the ornaments are the hands and face is more well-known and established and not the tafsir that it includes the feet.

If you need more detail, please let us know.

And Allah knows best!

IRS

Thank you for your question!

As for what a woman is allowed to show in front of a mahram, the minimum is the arms to the shoulders, the legs to the knees, the chest, breasts, the head and her hair. (Ref: At-Taj al-Mudhhab).

As for another woman, she is allowed to see everything except what is between the navel and knees. (Ref: Al-Bahr az-Zakhkhaar).

As for a non-believing woman, I'm not sure. So far I haven't found anything that distinguishes her from a what a Muslim woman can see..

And Allah knows best!

IRS