ISLAMIC EXAMINATION OF AMINA WADUD’S WORKS ON GENDER DISCRIMINATION: A FOCUS ON THE HIJAB

Hijab is regarded as the symbol of a Muslim woman in modern time. The wearing of the hijab, Niqab and other forms of Islamic dress has been in the news for quite some time. Some events in the world, such as the destruction of the World Trade Centre on the 11th September 2001, the Iraq conflict in 2003, the London bombings on the 7th July 2005 and the French legislation banning the wearing of the hijab in 2004 have not only questioned the place of Hijab in the Muslim world but turned it into a controversial issue and debate in the society at large. The study examined the meaning of Hijab. It traced the historical usage of Hijab as a veil for Muslim Women. It explained the thought of Amina Wadud on Hijab. It analysed Wadud’s view from an Islamic perspective. The study employed both primary and secondary sources of data. The primary source comprised oral interviews, YouTube, audio and video recording lectures and intellectual discussions which were transcribed and analysed. The secondary source included books, journal articles, theses, dissertations and the Internet. The results showed that the word “Hijab” historically first appeared five times in the Qur’an in five different places but was never used for women’s dress (Q7:46, Q19:16-17, Q33:53, Q41:5; Q42:51). The results also found out that Wadud’s position is very clear that the Qur’an's primary concern is modesty, not the specific style of dress (Hijab) which forms the basis for the dressing style in the Islamic world today; for Wadud, the hijab is a choice and not obligatory. The result showed that all the scholars agreed that Hijab was never used for clothing in the Qur’an. The findings also confirmed that Hijab is the way of dressing in Islam, the significance of which can vary depending on cultural and social contexts. The study concluded that the issue of Hijab has generated so much controversy in the world among the Muslims and non-Muslims. However, Hijab is unanimously agreed by the scholars as a mode of dressing for Muslim females in Islam.