The hijab, the veil, the burqa. Whatever name you give, a great portion of the modern world regards it as backward. But before explaining its beauty and practicality in today’s world, the veil must be viewed in its historical context. It may be surprising to some that the institution of the veil is by no means peculiar to Islam. Ancient Assyrian and Persian societies both considered the veil a practice symbolizing purity, particular to the upper class. Judeo-Christian tradition also practiced this noble tradition far before the advent of Islam. We read that when Rebekah saw Prophet Isaac (pbuh), she too covered herself with a veil (Genesis 24:64-65). The New Testament also states that modesty and reverence demanded a woman observe the veil (I Corinthians 11:5-6).

For many centuries Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Norman women donned a veil entirely covering their hair. In modern times, Christianity has still held on to this practice. It is no coincidence that Mary, the revered mother of Jesus Christ (pbuh) and model female for all time, is always depicted with a head covering. Church-going women commonly observed this practice until the 1960’s. Liturgical, tabernacle, ciborium, chalice, and chancel veils are still observed in many religious ceremonies. The veil is a practice common amongst today’s nuns, and a few Protestant and Eastern Orthodox factions exist who also observe the veil.

But enough of history – why has Islam maintained that the institution of hijab is incumbent upon women? Islam regards chastity as a fundamental moral and social value, thus directing its injunctions against ultra-modern forms of dress. Donning a head covering is only the first step in observing veil. Its true and full observance is achieved when ‘veiling’ extends to a person’s mind and heart – when one shields their mind and heart from impure and immoral thoughts when in contact with the opposite sex. Women who cover their head behave with dignity, talk in a formal manner when addressing men, and are not harassed by hooligans. Islam maintains, apparent from real-world experience, that one’s dress heavily influences one’s ideals and sense of self-respect; that something as material as a simple cotton head covering can influence the ethereal – morality. Thus, the veil liberates Muslim women from some of the problems that women in Western society are facing today. Muslim women are not regarded as ‘sex objects,’ nor are they exploited or harassed.

In closing, I furnish the model set forth by Her Holiness Mother Mary. Does one ever see Her Holiness Mother Mary ever depicted without her head covered? No, never. It is because of her pious nature that the Holy Quran has mentioned her as a model for all women and an example of the beauty and practicality of the observance of veil: “And sets forth as an example Mary … who guarded her chastity - so We breathed into her of Our Spirit - and she fulfilled the prophecy conveyed to her in the words of her Lord contained in His Books and she was one of the obedient” (66:13).