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time, cautions her against anything that might abuse or upset that nature. The manner
in which women should dress up, beautify, walk and even look is a very delicate
question, and Islam pays special attention to the matter. The vision of Islam in this
respect is focused on the general welfare of women. Islam has served advice to both
man and woman to help women in particular to retain and develop their dignity and
chastity, safe from being the subject of idle gossip or vicious rumors and suspicious
thoughts. The advice is imparted in these Qur’ anic verses:
Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty;
that will make for greater purity for them. And God is well-acquainted with all that
they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard
their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what
(must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms
and not display their beauty except before their husbands, their fathers … . (and
certain other members of the household); and that they should not strike their feet in
order to draw attention to their hidden ornaments (24:30-31)
Islam is very sensitive to the manners of clothing and ornaments. It makes it crystal
clear that both man and woman should be confined to their respective natures to
safeguard their natural instincts and endow them with modesty and high morality.
Prophet Muhammad is reported as having said that God condemns those men who
behave or act in a womanlike fashion, and those women who behave or act in manlike
fashion. Nevertheless, it should be borne in mind that Islam lays no restrictions on the
harmless or proper items of clothing and ornaments. In fact, the Qur’ an calls such
things the beautiful gifts of God and reproaches those who look upon them as
forbidden (7:32-33)
Sports and Amusements
It is gratifying to notice that most of the Islamic forms of worship, e.g., Prayers,
Fasting, Pilgrimage, display some sportive characteristics, although they are basically
and by nature meant for spiritual purposes. But who would deny the constant
interaction between the physique and morale of man? Yet that is not all that Islam has
to say on the subject of sports and amusements. Anything that provokes sound
thinking or refreshes the mind and revitalizes the body to keep man in healthy shape
is encouraged and invited to by Islam so long as it does not anticipate or involve any
sin, or cause any harm or delay and hamper the fulfillment of other obligations. The
general precept in this matter is the statement in which the Prophet said that all
believers in God have good qualities but the strong one is better than the weak. It is
also reported that he approved of the sports and amusements which build up the
enduring physique and strengthen the morale
It is a regrettable mistake to associate with sports and amusements things which are
not really sportive or amusing. Some people consider gambling and drinking as sports
and amusements, but this is not the viewpoint of Islam. Life is worth living and is
granted to us for a definite purpose. No one is supposed to abuse it by letting it go
loose or become dependent entirely on luck and chance. So it is no intrusion on or
violation of the personal rights of man when Islam extends its Divine touch to
organize life even in its very personal aspects. Because life is man’ s most valuable
asset and is designed for noble purposes, Islam has shown man the way to live it
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