I'm a Non-Muslim and I love Hijab.

 

Disclaimer/ Trigger Warning: The following blog includes a documented personal experience of wearing a Hijab. It includes my opinions and thoughts on it and relevant topics. I do not intend to offend anyone or promote violence and hate among any sort of communities. I have done enough research and asked my Muslim friends whether wearing the Hijab as a Non-Muslim was apt and have received a positive affirmation. Viewer’s discretion is advised.

Hijab is an Arabic word that literally means barrier. The Quran says that believing women should lower their gaze and only show their hands, feet and face in order to guard their private parts; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their khimar (a head covering or veil worn in public by some muslim women) over their bosom and not display their beauty. But Hijab is not just that. It is also rather a beautiful sign of modesty. Quran doesn’t just suggest women to do this. It also asks the believing men to lower their gazes and guard their private parts. It clearly asks the men to lower their gaze when a woman who is not his mother, sister, or wife, passes by.

Hijab is wholly a person’s choice. Women have the right to dress up according to their choice and their pick can include a Hijab too. No one likes to give the power to make their life decisions to someone else; not even closed ones, let alone the society or the government who are complete strangers! We have bigger issues to deal with, but the society is more concerned about telling its women what to wear. JUST LET HER DECIDE FOR HERSELF. 

While a lot of people consider Islam or wearing Hijab to be oppressive to women, it is not. Wearing a Hijab does not mean you’re living in a closet. Islam does not take away anybody’s freedom but grants women equal rights as men. Hijab is so much more than what people misconceive it to be. There are numerous reasons why people prefer to wear the Hijab. Some wear it as a sign of modesty- not just in clothes but mainly in character, some say wearing Hijab makes them behave more kindly and better since they are representing something they love- their religion, some wear it to particularly represent their religion. For some it is a medium that brings them closer to God and some have their personal struggles with the fallacy most people have about Islam and want to change that by wearing a Hijab. Women take pride in wearing it.

I myself have forever found the Hijab beautiful. It has always intrigued me, maybe because it was my forbidden fruit. I had always wanted to wear it and see how it feels. But having it on was a big deal for me. Coming from a conservative Hindu family, I was scared to try it on, not wanting to invite conflicts with my family for obvious reasons. So when I moved to Bangalore for my graduation, I wore it for the first time. That day, I had one of the most preeminent experiences of my life. I had watched a lot of tutorials on how to wear the Hijab and what I felt after having it on is difficult to depict in words. It didn’t just make me look beautiful, it made me feel beautiful. It aroused a certain kind of grace within me. How Hijab made a difference in my actions that day is what I’ve wanted to be familiar with. I’ll narrate one of the many changes I noticed in me the day I had the Hijab on. When I left for my internship that day, I received a call from home on the way. The network on one of our ends was bad which led to unclear exchange of sentences between my mom and me. I got vexed at the situation in view of the fact that I was running late. “Ma I can’t catch what you’re saying, man. I’ll text you when I reach, bye” I stated in anger and hung up and continued walking. I passed by a car and happened to see my reflection in its window and saw the Hijab wrapped around my face. I suddenly felt sorry for hanging up on my mom like that. The Hijab made me feel more connected to God and I realised I shouldn’t have done what I did because parents don’t deserve that kind of treatment. I immediately called her up again and apologised. “It’s okay chinna, I didn’t even mind”, she replied but I knew she was pleased. I felt good to be forgiven. Hijab did make me conscious and responsible for the way I react with people. It made me a better being in that moment. I realised how it does make people behave better. I was so delighted to have witnessed how it graced my conduct. Maybe that's what it does with the others too, it alerts them from doing something wrong because they are representing their religion and they wouldn't want anyone to think wrong of it in any way. 

Having had such a heart-warming experience with how a religious veil can bring significant changes in a person’s behaviour, it breaks my heart to see people who are ignorant, fighting over it. Hijab is a choice and forcing someone to wear it or to not wear it is taking away their freedom of religion, I believe. It is something very sacred and divine. It’s similar to wearing Black Sacred Threads, Lockets with Pendants of God, Bindis, Turbans, Rosaries and many other sacred objects. Restricting a person from any sort of access to the society due to these expressions of their belief is objection to their identity. When one loves and respects something with all their heart, they can’t see it being disrespected, can they? So why should they disrespect something that others’ love and respect the same way?

Hijab is just one of the many things I am keen on in Islam. I started admiring Islam soon after I started owning my thoughts; from the day my beliefs about certain things became independent and couldn’t be easily influenced by others. Islam has never failed to amuse me. I have undying respect for people who follow it and I don’t think anyone can ever change that. Love has always been more powerful than hate, you see. If God is who has created us and this universe, we need to respect him and protect his creation. That is what God has taught us right? Love, respect, empathy and compassion? Who are we to fetch the exact opposite- hate, disrespect, apathy and indifference? Religion is man-made. Why would someone let something that is man-made come in between God’s creations- us? Let me put it this way, God wouldn’t appreciate his children fighting over which of their parent is better let alone kill people to prove that. Love your religion and your beliefs but also respect others’ alongside. If someone manipulates you against someone just because he/she is of a different caste/community/religion, call them out. You know better than hate. Stand up for what is right. Remember- God would NEVER want you to pull someone down just to put yourself up. If a person is wrong, acknowledge it, maybe even give him a chance to rectify. But never blame his religion whatsoever. No God would teach violence or hate to his children. The world would be a better place if two people had flowers for each other and not swords.

Love for all, hate for none- there is peace in love and unsettlement in hate.