WHY HIJAB IS IMPORTANT IN ISLAM:

It is important to understand several points related to hijab and modesty. The first point is that modesty had been the norm in history, up until the later part of the past century. If one were to peruse historical books of various times and ages, one would find modest covering of women in almost every society. The other point is that modesty is a component in several world religions, particularly in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It may come as a surprise to many that it was not Islam that invented modesty or hijab. This existed in the laws of religions revealed before Islam, and remnants can still be found in the altered books of those faiths. With the final message given to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the order for Hijab was confirmed and finalized. This is a reality since all of those revelations came from the same Source, Allah. Mary, mother of Jesus (may Allah exalt their mention), is rarely depicted without a traditional head-covering and one would assume her to be Muslim. (Which, of course, she was.) One can still find both Jewish and Christian women today who cover in much the same way as Muslim women. It is one of the common bonds that are shared by these three major faiths.

MORE THAN A RELIGIOUS SYMBOL:

Why hijab is important in Islam

Updated 02 December 2012ARAB NEWSNovember 23, 2012 03:0042650 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets/follow_button.4e067713e19d4fff483536ddc4df18b9.en.html#dnt=false&id=twitter-widget-1&lang=en&screen_name=arabnews&show_count=false&show_screen_name=false&size=m&time=1644416556783

Hijab, or veil, takes the center stage whenever there is battle between truth and falsehood. It has always been a sensitive issue, but it recently received a great deal of attention due to legislation and proposed legislation in several European countries (e.g., France, Germany) that ban its use in government institutions as well as educational institutions. For women who wear hijab out of religious conviction, the truth is obvious and indisputable. For others with limited knowledge or understanding of Hijab, it can be confusing.
It is important to understand several points related to hijab and modesty. The first point is that modesty had been the norm in history, up until the later part of the past century. If one were to peruse historical books of various times and ages, one would find modest covering of women in almost every society. The other point is that modesty is a component in several world religions, particularly in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It may come as a surprise to many that it was not Islam that invented modesty or hijab. This existed in the laws of religions revealed before Islam, and remnants can still be found in the altered books of those faiths. With the final message given to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the order for Hijab was confirmed and finalized.
This is a reality since all of those revelations came from the same Source, Allah. Mary, mother of Jesus (may Allah exalt their mention), is rarely depicted without a traditional head-covering and one would assume her to be Muslim. (Which, of course, she was.) One can still find both Jewish and Christian women today who cover in much the same way as Muslim women. It is one of the common bonds that are shared by these three major faiths.

More than a religious symbol

Hijab represents a woman’s submission to her Creator and her connection with the faith. While referring to it, Allah Almighty says: “That is more suitable that they will be known…” But, while hijab is a symbol, in reality it is much more than that. The following purposes and functions of hijab will clarify this point.
Hijab is a test for the Muslim woman. It is clear from the Qur’an and the Hadiths that hijab is a religious obligation, which a woman has to undertake. There is no scholarly difference on this point and the Muslim Ummah has applied it for over 14 centuries. When a Muslim woman wears hijab she is obeying and submitting to Allah. The following verses of the holy Qur’an refer to the obligatory nature of hijab: “And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which (necessarily) appears thereof and to wrap (a portion of) their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.” [Qur’an, 24:31)
Also Allah says: “O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be known and not be abused. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.” (Qur’an, 33:59)
A woman who wears hijab liberates herself from the vain and selfish desire to show off her beauty and to compete with other women around her.
This is an innate desire that is exacerbated by wanton display and tamed by modesty and covering. With the hijab, a woman does not have to live up to society’s expectations of what is desirable, and she no longer has to use her beauty to obtain recognition or acceptance from those around her.
In the chapter of Al-Ahzaab mentioned above, Allah Almighty Says what means “That is more suitable that they will be known and not be abused.” Thus, one of the functions of hijab is to protect women from abuse and harm. This particularly includes various forms of sexual abuse and harassment, which are prevalent in societies in which few women cover. Men often get mixed signals and believe that women want their advances by the way they reveal their bodies. The hijab, on the contrary, sends a signal to men that the wearer is a modest and chaste woman who should not be annoyed.

Published by Ayisha Shabana M….

THE IMPORTANCE OF SETTING IN YOUR STORY:

Setting is the context in which a story or scene occurs and includes the time, place, and social environment. It is important to establish a setting in your story, so your readers can visualize and experience it.

Whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction, it is critical to establish a setting in your scenes and story. If your readers don’t know where or when the action is unfolding, they will be lost. It’s on you to ground your reader by answering the journalistic questions of who, what, when, where, why, and how so your reader can visualize the events you’re conveying.

Setting is the context in which a story occurs. Just as a photograph has a foreground and a background, so does a story. The main characters and their actions form the foreground. The time and place of the events, and the social environment surrounding them, form the background. People exist in a particular time and place. Where your characters live may contribute to their personalities, values, attitudes, and even their problems. Your story’s setting can have great impact on the people in your story, how they react, and what they do.

DEVELOPING THE TIME AND PLACE OF YOUR STORY:

Time and place these two bedrock elements of your story must be developed in order to establish and maintain credibility. It wouldn’t make sense to include current-day surgical procedures in a tale set in the 1800s or have characters sending urgent messages by telegram in modern-day New York. Eudora Welty once said, “Every story would be another story, and unrecognizable, if it took up its characters and plot and happened somewhere else.”

TIME:

There are four kinds of time, each with a distinct role: clock time, calendar time, seasonal time, and historical time.

Clock time can create certain moods or feelings and even provide suspense. Think of the pressure of a looming deadline or a husband who sits by the phone, waiting for his wife’s kidnappers to call.

Calendar time grounds us in the year, month, and day and even a particular day of the week or time of the month. Calendar time can provide a societal understanding of what is taking place in your writing. If you mention July 4th, Americans will understand the implications of the national holiday. It might be more subtle, like Friday the 13th or April 15th. Other countries have different calendar days that infer significance, like Boxing Day in the UK and Bastille Day in France.

Seasonal time refers to the four seasons, though winter in Minneapolis is a vastly different setting than winter in Key West, Florida. January in Sydney, Australia is nothing like January in New York. Most of us have different lifestyles in different seasons: you don’t snow ski in Vail in July or water ski in Missouri in January.

Historical time can establish a psychological or sociological understanding of behaviors and attitudes and probably has the most impact on your story’s setting. People communicate differently, depending on the time in which they live. Americans in the 1950s communicated differently than Americans in the 2000s. We speak the same language, but the vernacular has changed, and Americans in the ’50s had different assumptions about the world and how to communicate based on the era in which they lived. Common words and phrases from the pre-Civil War era America might be completely outdated or downright offensive today. Historical time contributes to the mental, moral, religious, emotional, and social setting of a story.

PLACE :

Place includes the geographical location of a story, which can range from a country (even a planet) to a single room. I always loved introducing my university students to Franz Kafka’s “Metamorphosis,” which pretty much takes place in one bedroom as Gregor, the main character, literally turns into a bug. It’s one of the most riveting pieces of literature I’ve ever read, and most of it takes place within the same four walls.

When writing about a specific location, you might include physical details of the environment. What does it look and sound like? A subway station has its unique smells, sights, and sounds; as does a church.

But there’s more to it than that. We may find significance in the location where the action occurs, and there are physical and non-physical characteristics to consider. The non-physical environment can vary by geographic location. Cultural influences such as education, social standing, economic class, and religious beliefs certainly vary from location to location. The education system is different in Long Island than it is in Zimbabwe. It’s different in Catholic schools versus public schools in the same city. Social standing and wealth can set characters in different settings, whatever the year or city.

TAJ MAHAL:

ABOUT TAJ MAHAL:

Taj Mahal is one of the seven wonders in the world. Taj Mahal is one of the historic and most beautiful places in the world. The Taj Mahal is one of the most magnificent Indian historical monuments with complex visualization. The Taj Mahal is the materialized vision of love and marks a perfect indelible remark on it’s Mughal Architecture. The Taj Mahal is a white marble mausoleum built by the 17th century Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. This structure on the bank of the river Jamuna is constructed on a platform 6.5 meters high. The Mahal was built in the loving memory of the Emperor’s beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It also attracts thousands of tourists with no preference for religion or lifestyle. The words Taj Mahal means ‘ crown of the palace’ and is a symbol of eternal love. Taj Mahal is one of the main reasons why India is famous. Taj Mahal was declared as a Heritage Site by UNSECO in 1983.

ARCHITECTURE OF TAJ MAHAL:

The Taj Mahal is a perfect symmetrical planned building, with an emphasis on bilateral symmetry along a central axis on which the main features are placed. The Taj Mahal emits a sense of peace and harmony which is mainly caused by the structure’s near-perfect symmetry, the main dome and surrounding minarets, and the division of the gardens by four canals that meet at a raised central lotus pond. The building material used is brick-in-lime mortar veneered with red sandstone and marble and inlay work of precious/semi-precious stones. It is made of pure white marble with its special luster and fine texture. The marble was obtained from Makrana in Rajasthan. Inside the Taj Mahal, the cenotaphs honoring Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan are enclosed in an eight-sided chamber ornamented with pietra dura (an inlay with semi-precious stones) and a marble lattice screen. The interior octagonal chambers are connected by diagonal passages. Floors and walkways use contrasting tiles or blocks in tessellation patterns. The inlay stones are of yellow marble, jasper, and jade polished and leveled to the surface of the walls. The calligraphy on the Taj Mahal is beautiful. The beauty of the black inscriptions over the white marble is an attractive feature of the edifice. The walls and pillars of the monuments are also adorned with calligraphy written in Thuluth script. Most of the inscribed verses are from the holy book of Islam- the Quran. Taj Mahal reflects different colors depending on the light. In the morning, it looks a little pinkish, in the afternoon with strong sunlight it appears shimmering white, milky white in the evening, and golden at night. The main structure is surrounded by gardens, fountains, and pools. Another interesting aspect of the architecture of the Taj Mahal is the iconography of the plants engraved in the walls and floors of the mausoleum.

WHEN WAS TAJ MAHAL BUILT? :

The construction of the Taj Mahal took over twenty years. It was built in 1632, and in 1648, the mausoleum was finished. Another 5 years were spent on the building of the enclosure, the ancillary buildings such as gardens, so the whole complex was completed in 1653.

DO DALIT LIVES MATTER?

DO DALIT LIVES MATTER?

AUTHOR: ARIBBA SIDDIQUE

Introduction:

We witnessed the slogan ‘Black lives matter’ when it went viral all over social media in May 2020. The movement was in response to the death of an African-American citizen, America has been always known as the country which promotes ‘White supremacy’. Every Indian condemned the murder of George Floyd who lost his life because he was a black person not fit for America.

The hashtag ‘black lives matter’ has been used my many of us on our social media accounts. However, when this kind of discrimination happens in our own country, what do we do? We mute ourselves, politicize the issue and we condemn the government. This article analyses the hardships that the Dalit community in India has faced in recent times.

Recent cases regarding the discrimination with Dalits:

Privileged Indians often ignores the Dalits, their hardships, the atrocities that they face. Recently, on 6^th June 2020, a Seventeen -year-old Dalit boy named Vikas Kumar Jadav was shot dead by 4 upper caste men for visiting a temple in Amroha in U.

In June 2020, a Dalit activist, Arvind Bansod from Nagpur, was found dead. He was publicly assaulted with casteist slurs by a mob. The police refused to file an FIR & declared the death as a suicide.

No FIR. No Justice. No hashtag on social media. No protest. Why? The reason is that a Dalit is not considered as equal despite being a citizen of the same country and having the same rights.

Historical texts and legislations of India and the US:

The situation of Dalits in India is similar to that of African-Americans in the United States. Both are historically suppressed and treated as second class citizens in their own countries. Racial segregation is encouraged by legislations like “Black Codes” and [L5] “untouchability’’ made segregation in housing, education, public places; transport; parks, theatres, cemeteries, jails, and other public spaces legal in the US until only a few decades ago. This resulted in divided and hierarchical citizenship [L6] .

The Manusmriti in India, though not legally enforceable, has been the moral code that guides the upper caste community in their treatment and behaviour towards the Dalits in daily life [L7] . The Dalits were not allowed and are still not allowed in many areas to use public wells and enter temples. The Dalit children are boycotted, made to sit separately in many schools and drink water from separate utensils. Inter-caste marriages between a Dalit, and an upper caste are still leading to the honour killing of the Dalit person. The Dalits have been oppressed for cheap labour, forced to take up vigorous menial work with less than subsistence wages.

A report by Human Rights Watch states that:

“Discriminatory and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment of over 165 million people in India has been justified on the basis of caste… (caste divisions in India) are reinforced through the practice and threat of social ostracism, economic boycotts, and physical violence.”[2]

Dalits, the literal Sanskrit meaning “broken/scattered”. According to NCDHR, every fifteen minutes, a crime is committed against a Dalit, six Dalit women are raped every day and Fifty-six thousand children living in slums die due to malnutrition every year in India. Dalits, mostly landless, are forced to work on the fields of the upper caste Hindus at very low wages [L8] . The democratic polity and the Constitution of India, which assures equality and abolishes untouchability, have failed in achieving social and economic equality. Violence against the Dalits is in everyday news. The upper castes seek to control the person (through unpaid or lowly paid physical labour and sexual assaults on Dalit women), mind (through forceful cultural traditions and customs and denial of educational opportunities) and soul (through religious beliefs and Manusmriti) of the Dalits [L9] .

The NCDHR, along with NDMJ, analysed data from the past 10 years and released a status report on the implementation of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 (SC/ST Act) and Rules 1995. The report, called “Quest for Justice”, noted that during the years 2009-18, more than 3,91,952 cases of atrocities were reported against SCs and 72,367 against STs. As many as 12,750 incidents of rape were registered between 2014 and 2018. Attempt to rape increased to 677 in 2018 from 87 in 2014. There were 5 cases of acid attack against SC women in 2018. From 2014 to 2018 cases against SC women rose sharply by 42.63 per cent to 41,867 from 5,154.[3]

Conclusion:

Dalits are murdered, beaten and shunned, but the stories aren’t covered by mainstream media. Minimal reportage leads to privileged and ignorant people into believing that casteism doesn’t exist in India anymore. We need to say their names and know their stories [L10] .

[1]Aathira Konikkara, Dalit activist Arvind Bansod was murdered, not a suicide: Lawyer, Caravan Magazine, (October 03, 2020, 10:00 PM) https://caravanmagazine.in/author/1118

[2]Human Rights watch ‘Hidden Apartheid Caste Discrimination against India’s Untouchables(October 03, 2020, 10:04 PM) https://www.hrw.org/report/2007/02/12/hidden-apartheid/caste-discrimination-against-indias-untouchables

[3]National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights, (October 04, 2020, 02:00am) http://www.ncdhr.org.in

[L1]Source?

[L2]Source?

[L3]Source?

[L4]Describe the facts of the above two cases precisely or add such more cases to make it more informative.

[L5]Mention Voting right Act, 1965

[L6]Mention Art. 17 abolition of untouchability and yet the problems are faced by the Dalits.

[L7]Cite proper historical source.

[L8]Provide equivalent citation in the footnotes for the source.

[L9]Mention the Articles in the constitution regarding the protection of right, equality and life.

[L10]Make the conclusion more elaborate and remarkable.

Why hijab is important in Islam

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this:

Rate this: