Women's taking off her Hijab in a ladies only gym

25-12-2005 | IslamWeb

Question:

If a female is attending to a female gym to do exercise, normally wears Hijaab, no men at all. Is it ok to take the Hijaab off during exercise?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

 

It is permissible for a woman to take off her Hijab provided the place where she is practising sport is free from the presence of men, or them looking at her or taking her pictures with a camera.

However, if there are non-Muslim women in that place, it is not permissible for a Muslim woman to reveal any part of her body to them except what usually appears when she is at work, like the neck and the arms and the like; this is the view of the Shaafi'i School in one of their opinions.

Most of the scholars are of the view that the 'Awrah of a Muslim woman in front of a non-Muslim woman is all her body except her face and hands. So, it is better for a Muslim woman to cover herself in front of non-Muslim women as they do not follow or practise any religion, and they may describe her to their husbands.

Finally, you should know, dear sister, that it is not permissible to abandon or neglect a religious obligation, like the five daily prayers, for the purpose of practising sport. Moreover, it is not permissible for a woman to reveal her beauty in an attractive way, and in a manner that contradicts religious etiquettes and bashfulness, as it is the case of many women who practise sport.

It should also be noted that if a woman is married, she should seek the permission of her husband as she is not permitted to go out of her home without his consent.

Allaah Knows best.