Marrying a Woman Who Wears the Hijab but Not the Niqab
Question: Peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be upon you. I have been actively searching for a righteous wife who adheres to the complete Islamic dress code, including the niqab, for about six months to a year. Despite my sincere efforts, I have found it difficult to find such a woman. I am physically and financially capable of marriage, praise be to Allah. Is it permissible for me to marry a woman who wears the jilbab and hijab only that is, modest clothing without the niqab if I cannot find one who wears the niqab?
Summary:
The niqab, according to the stronger opinion, is obligatory when fitnah exists and recommended when there is no fear of it.It is permissible for you to marry a woman who wears the jilbab and proper hijab without the niqab, if she is upright in religion and character.If Allah facilitates for you a righteous woman who wears the niqab, that is more complete and better.Allah said: “Then marry those that please you of women.” [An-Nisa: 3]We ask Allah to grant you a righteous wife who pleases you when you look at her, protects you when you are absent, and assists you in obedience and righteousness.
Answer:
In the name of Allah, all praise is due to Allah, and may Peace and Blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ)
And peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be upon you. May Allah bless your eagerness to obey Him and your desire for a righteous wife who helps you in your religion and worldly life.
The required clothing for a Muslim woman is that it must cover all of her body, not be tight or transparent, and not display her adornment before non-mahram men.
From the Qur'an:
- [An-Nur: 31]
And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their chastity, and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof.
- [Al-Ahzab: 59]
O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments.”
From the Salaf:
- (Tafsir At-Tabari)
Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said: “Allah commanded the believing women, when they go out of their houses, to cover their faces from above their heads with their jilbabs, and to show only one eye.”
From the Scholars:
- Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“A woman is commanded to cover her face from men and should not be recognized except from behind her garment.”
However, scholars have differed on the ruling of covering the face: The majority of scholars the Malikis, Shafi‘is, and Hanafis held that it is recommended but not obligatory if there is no fear of temptation (fitnah). The Hanbalis and many of the early scholars held that it is obligatory for a woman if there is temptation or she is beautiful and may cause fitnah, and this is the stronger and safer opinion in this era.
From the Scholars:
- Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“Concealment for a woman is obligatory, and the face is among the greatest sources of temptation for men, so covering it is safer and further from fitnah.”
If you are able to marry a woman who wears the niqab and is righteous in her religion and character, that is better, more complete, and of greater reward,
From the Sunnah:
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5090as the Prophet ﷺ said:
“Seek the one who is religious, may your hands be covered in dust (i.e., may you prosper).”
However, if you cannot find a woman who wears the niqab along with piety and chastity, and you find one who adheres to proper Islamic covering without the niqab and is righteous, upright, and modest, there is no harm in marrying her for the main purpose of marriage is righteousness and good character
From the Salaf:
- Al-Hasan al-Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
“Marry for religion, for a woman is sought for her religion and beauty; if she combines both, that is the bounty of Allah.”
And Allah knows best.
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