Do Muslim women have to wear veils?
In the Qur’an women are admonished to cover their heads and to pull their coverings over their bosoms. However the style and degree of veil varies according to the situation. The veil affords women modesty, respect and dignity and protects herself from harm and the evils of society by covering her beauty. In Chapter 33, verse 60 of the Holy Qur’an Allah says : ‘O Prophet! tell your wives and your daughters, and the women of the believers, that they should pull down upon them of their outer cloaks from their heads over their faces. That is more likely that they may thus be recognised and not molested. And Allah is Most Forgiving, Merciful.’ In light of this instruction some women choose to cover their faces whereas others prefer to cover their heads only leaving their faces uncovered and bare of makeup – both of which are valid interpretations according to various schools of Islamic jurisprudence. Some choose to adopt a compromise between the two by covering their faces when they apply
