Why the Hijab?

I’m a kind of person who admires a world assembled by different cultures, for this reason living in New York city for two years has been a fascinating experience for me. Because here I had the opportunity to appreciate and sometimes meet with most of them.

Certainly, one of the better places to enjoy the encounter of the different culture is when you are on the train or subway. However, the people that had been attracting my attention is the females with something like a scarf that covers her head, and nobody can see her hair and sometimes even their faces. I always have the same question in my head, why they use that? And why even the girls who are very young have to use it? I also have seen from different nationalities like North Africans and Middle Eastern wearing this same type of garment.

One day I was sitting on the train next to a woman with a head cover. I felt this was my right time to less my curiosity for her culture; then I looked at her and smiled. Right way I let her know how interesting I was in part of her clothes, but especially her head cover, at the same time, I asked about it. I realize this has a name: ''hijab'' which in most cases used for religious beliefs like Muslim, where the name comes. For those women to wear hijab, means modesty, to attract a little attention and identity as a Muslim woman.

There is innumerable of reasons why, but the main answer is because they believe God has made it as an obligation for decency. The Quran tells them that men and females have to dress modestly. God specifically addressed women when say not to show off their embellishment except when they are with their family or relatives. (Quran 24:30-31).

I also talked with this woman about many different kinds of hijab and different colors and texture as well. Niqab, chador, and burqa are others kind of veil, each one has different characteristic, but at the end of the day, the religious meaning and interpretation are the same for everybody. They want to obey the Quran.

By the time she finally gets to her train stop I was amazed at everything that I was listening, and I finished our delightful conversation with a big smile, I never asked for her name, and she didn't ask for mines either. It was a pleasant experience and a piece of knowledge that I will keep with me forever.

WORK CITED

Arabs in America, “What is the Hijab and Why Do Women Wear it?”, arabsinamerica.unc.edu. ND. Web 27 Aug 2017.