THE TRANSLATOR’S VIEWS

10. Hijab in Islam ~ 233 ~ Ibn Mas’ud, Hasan, Ibn Sirin, and Abul Jawza’ have interpreted this verse as referring to the kind of beauty which depends on clothes, ornaments, etc. They are of the opinion that when a woman goes out, she should not display these deliberately. However, if any part of such adornment is unintentionally exposed, for instance, if a gust of wind displaces the covering sheet momentarily, this is deemed excusable. The other point of view finds support from ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas, ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar, ‘Ata’, ‘Ikrimah, Sa’id ibn Jubayr, Abu ash, Sha’tha’, Dahhak, Ibrahim Nakh’i, etc. They infer from the phrase ‘such as are normally displayed’ the exemption of face and hands. This interpretation is based on the tradition recorded by Abu Dawud in his Sunan: ‘Aishah says that once Asma bint Abu Bakr came wearing a thin garment. The Prophet turned his face away from her and said: “Asma, it is not proper for a woman after having reached puberty to expose any part of her body except these.” Then he pointed to his hands and face.202