Someone may say, "Wearing the Hijab (Islamic covering) approved by the Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation) while satisfying all its conditions in those countries where women do not wear the Hijab in this manner, or do not wear it at all, features seeking fame and this is disapproved under Sharee‘ah."

Refutation:

The essential reason behind this allegation is ignorance about the concept of Sharee‘ah rulings. Consequently, this allegation is refuted by clarifying the concept of the dress that is forbidden under Sharee‘ah out of seeking fame. It includes every garment that a person wears with the intention of becoming famous and reputable among people, whether this garment is precious and expensive for the sake of pride and arrogance, or humble and cheap for the sake of showing asceticism. In both cases, such a person intends that people look at him.

Given that, what is crucial to judge a certain garment that it is worn for reputation or not, is intention and purpose. Consequently, wearing Hijab in a community where such an act is not normal, necessitates that one has a righteous intention which is solely devoted to Allah The Almighty.

When we adhere to our Sharee‘ah-approved Hijab in a community where neglecting the Hijab is widespread, we do not intend to become famous, rather, we do so in obedience to Allah

The Almighty Who Says (what means): {O you who have believed, upon you is [responsibility for] yourselves. Those who have gone astray will not harm you when you have been guided. } [Quran 5: 105]

Likewise, a dress is not judged to be prohibited and intended for gaining good reputation unless people are obedient to Allah and His Messenger, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

Nevertheless, when their innate sound nature is corrupt and they have deviated from the straight path, we do not join them in their deviation under the pretext of avoiding fame.

It is really strange to consider the Hijab a dress for gaining fame and making that a means for abandoning it. How could adherence to the Quranic verses and the prophetic Hadeeths (narrations) be a form of seeking fame and an aberration, while imitating Westerners, non-Muslims and the negligent Muslims is seen as an ordinary and normal matter?
It is nothing but following desires of the Self. Allah The Exalted Says (what means): {And who is more astray than one who follows his desire without guidance from Allah?} [Quran 28: 50]

The sixth allegation:

They say, "The Jilbaab (outer covering garment) includes everything that the women of today wear when they go out including capes, ponchos and similar dresses. These are all called a cloak and they all serve the purpose of covering along with the modest head cover."

This is one of the widespread misunderstandings by women who are fond of wearing beautified, adorned clothes.

To them we say: Do not be deceived by names and slogans. Rather, you have to reflect on facts and realities. Nowadays, almost everything worn by women when they go out is called a "cloak". Nevertheless, can we consider all of them cloaks? This question is answered by comparing such a cloak to the conditions of the Sharee‘ah-approved Hijab. If all the conditions are satisfied, then it is really a cloak. On the contrary, if some of the conditions are not satisfied, then we cannot call it a cloak; rather, it may be called “fashion”.

This calls upon us to mention the conditions of the Sharee‘ah-approved Hijab. But, before mentioning these conditions, we would like to ask every woman who wears a cloak: Are you convinced that this cloak which you wear brings you closer to Allah The Almighty?

If she indeed believes in this, then she has to satisfy all these conditions because they are pre-requisites of an act of worship to Allah The Almighty. On the contrary, if she says that it is just something that she is used to wearing, then the conditions of the Sharee‘ah-approved Hijab will not be important for her because she does not wear it as an act of worship and consequently she will be satisfied with every new innovation which enhances her beauty and adornment. This is evident fom the all-consuming race that we witness today among many foolish women in displaying new fashions of what they claim to be "cloaks".

Here are the conditions of the Sharee‘ah-approved Hijab:

1- It must cover the entire body without leaving any part uncovered.

2- It must not be an adornment in itself, as when it is decorated, embroidered and colorful.

3 – It must be thick so that it does not show the body or adornment underneath it.

4- It must hang loose so that the shape of the body is not apparent.

5- It must be neither scented with incense nor perfumed.

6- It must not resemble men's clothing.

7- It must not resemble the dress of non-Muslim women.

8- It must not be worn for the sole purpose of gaining fame or increasing one's status in society.

When one of these conditions is not fulfilled in the cloak, then it is a form of neglecting Hijab and this indeed violates the Sharee‘ah of Allah The Almighty.

According to the scholars, impermissible exposure of a woman's beauty includes all forms of adornment and beautification with which a woman appears attractive before non-Mahram (marriageable) men. It even includes the woman's veil when it is made of glittering colors and an attractive style in order to please the eyes of the onlookers. This is an aspect of the exposure of ignorant people.

Today we observe many features of temptation and disobedience in the so-called “cloak” that many women wear when they go out, showing their beauty and displaying their arms through the wide sleeves, besides decorating the cloak with glittering adornments, that constitute impermissible exposure of women's beauty.
If each Muslim woman adhered to the ideal Sharee‘ah-approved Hijab when going out, many temptations would not occur in our life and we would keep our honor and youth safe.

We remind our sisters who wear such cloaks of the Hadeeth in which the Prophet, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, says: "The best of your women is the affectionate, the fertile, the comforting, the agreeable, if they fear Allah. The most evil of your women are those who expose and display themselves, and those who strut (to show off) and they are the hypocrites. Those who enter Paradise of them are like the red-beaked crow." [As-Silsilah As-Saheehah] The simile of the red-beaked crow is to show that those who enter Paradise from among women will be as rare as this kind of crows is rare, due to their violations. We ask refuge in Allah The Almighty from this.

Let any woman who indifferently wears a tight cloak that shows the details of her body listen to incidents about the attitudes of the true believing women. One of them disliked that the garment would show her body even after her death. Therefore, she looked for a way to properly cover her body after her death. How keen do you think she was to maintain this during her life?

It was narrated that Faatimah, may Allah be pleased with her, daughter of the Messenger of Allah, sallAllahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said, "O Asmaa’, I hate how women are treated after death for one is covered with a garment which shows the details of her body." Asmaa’, may Allah be pleased with her, said, "O daughter of the Messenger of Allah, I will show you something that I saw in Abyssinia!" She brought some fresh palm branches, bent them and then covered them with a garment. Having seen that, Faatimah, may Allah be pleased with her, remarked, "How good and beautiful this is!"

We often encounter women who argue, "Bring forth evidence that it is impermissible to wear a shoulder cloak and that it must descend from over the head?"

This question is answered by another question, "Do you seek the truth or do you seek the impossible?" If she is a seeker of the truth, we say to her that the evidence is in the conditions and criteria of the Sharee‘ah-approved Hijab for Muslim women. There is authentic evidence behind each condition. Evidence is also concluded from Fatwas (religious verdicts) of the trustworthy and reliable scholars whom we are commanded by Allah The Almighty to obey. Allah The Exalted Says (what means): {O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you.} [Quran 4: 59]

If she is not a seeker of the truth, then she really seeks what is impossible, which is providing a Quranic verse or prophetic Hadeeth that explicitly state the permissibility of wearing a shoulder cloak. We say to her, a person who conditions his response to the command of Allah The Almighty upon the occurrence of an impossible thing, actually follows his desires and will never respond even if his request is fulfilled. That is because making the occurrence of an impossible thing a condition for responding to a ruling indicates that one has an untruthful will and that he turns away from the truth. This even marks stubbornness and rejection just like the habit of the Children of Israel with their prophets, as they used to ask for impossible and extraordinary things in return for their obedience. They used to do so out of stubbornness and reluctance. When such matters materialized, they declined to believe in them. In this respect, Allah The Exalted Says (what means): {But if they do not respond to you - then know that they only follow their [own] desires.} [Quran 28: 50]