Reconciling Islamic Values and Secular Society: The Hijab and Qur'an

This essay examines the significance of the Qur'an as a holy book for Muslims, focusing on the practice of Hijab (veil) and its implications in a secular society. The essay explores the Islamic perspective on Hijab, emphasizing its importance for Muslim women and the cultural and religious values it represents. It then delves into the challenges and conflicts that arise when Islamic practices like Hijab intersect with secular laws and societal norms. The essay discusses the difficulties faced by Muslim women in maintaining their religious practices while navigating secular environments, including issues of discrimination, legal restrictions, and ethical considerations. It also analyzes the complexities of reconciling differing values, such as the emphasis on religious freedom versus the principles of equality and secularism. Furthermore, the essay highlights the debate surrounding the use of Hijab, including its impact on women's safety and the broader implications for law and policy, offering insights into the ongoing discussions about religious freedom, cultural identity, and societal integration.

The Qur’an
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CONTENTS
Contents...........................................................................................................................................2
ESSAY.............................................................................................................................................3
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................5
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ESSAY
The Qur’an is a Muslim holy book which they consider to be a revelation from god. It has great
significance in the literature of Arabic. It is inclusive of 114 surah’s (chapter) which are further
divided into two parts known as Makki (86 chapters) and Madini (28 surah’s) (Sherif and
Ngonga, 2015). The following essay will discuss the issue of Hijab considering wheatear it is
possible to reconcile the Islamic values with the secular society.
Hijab in English means veil. It is worn by the Muslim females whenever they go out or
there are chances of male presence around them (Byng, 2010). Quran gives emphasis on the
beliefs that women’s must hide their personal parts and do not show them to other person
excluding those who are directly in relation to them like her husband, son, father, father in law or
male servants exceptionally those who has no knowledge of gender and very small children
(Quran 2:24:31). Not only the physical parts but veil must be wearing over the ornaments too as
they are also a part of their beauty. This practice of wearing hijab is widely acceptable by the
Muslim society but still there are some who do not favour same and also lots of difficulties are
faced because of this belief to the Muslim women’s and also to the laws and legislations (Why
do Muslim women wear a hijab? 2019.). It is because of the strict practice which makes it
difficult for the females to walk confidently outside as they are gazed by other common people
and also sometimes humiliation is faced against the law in case of non-availability of males with
them.
It shows that there is a great difference in the values and ethics followed in the Muslim
community and in the secular living where the rules and regulations are made on the basis of
what is right and what is wrong. It does not give any preference to a particular religion as what is
believed in that and hence it is difficult to reconcile with the Islamic values.
It is not justified to keep the ethical values at priority while framing the laws as acts are
made to protect the people from miss happenings and unethical actions. It is not designed to
promote any culture or belief of a particular section of society. Small children wear hijabs and go
to school which makes them look different and also it affects their safety as they find it difficult
to manage with a long cloth wrapped around their face chin with which they manage to walk and
carry out their work too. Also there are cases when women are stopped to wear scarf in offices
considering it against the grounds of secularism. In this case it becomes difficult to decide what
party to support. Although there is no harm in this practice but when it comes to equality
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everyone has to be treated same. There are cases when hijab is used by people with wrong
intentions like fooling law or escaping from the security. This brings a big question on those who
says that the rights of Muslims are violated if they are not free to practice what their religion
says. In this case they must answer as what should be the best solution to the situation if
everyone starts practicing the beliefs of their culture and deny to the regulations or demand
constant modifications in same (DISCRIMINATION AGAINST MUSLIM WOMEN - FACT
SHEET, 2019). It would add more complications to the application and formulation of the laws
as to fulfil the demands and beliefs of all the culture is difficult and it do effect the quality of
results of the laws.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Byng, M.D., 2010. Symbolically Muslim: media, hijab, and the West. Critical Sociology, 36(1),
pp.109-129.
Sherif, M.A. and Ngonga Ngomo, A.C., 2015. Semantic Quran. Semantic Web. 6(4). pp.339-345.
Online
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST MUSLIM WOMEN - FACT SHEET, 2019. [Online]. Available
through <https://www.aclu.org/other/discrimination-against-muslim-women-fact-sheet>.
Why do Muslim women wear a hijab? 2019. [Online]. Available through
<http://theconversation.com/why-do-muslim-women-wear-a-hijab-109717 >
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