The Rulings of
Hijab............continued
In the Tasif of Ibn Kathir 33.59 book 8 page 45:
(Oh Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks all over their bodies. That will be better, that they should be known, so as not to be annoyed) 33:59
Here Allah tells His Messenger ( sallallaahu ’alayhi wa sallam) to command the believing women- especially his wives and daughters, because of their position of honor- to draw their Jilbabs over their bodies, so that they will be distinct in their appearance from the women of the Jahiliyyah and from slave women. The Jilbab is a Rida, worn over the Khimar. This was the view of Ibn Mas'ud, Ubaydah, Qatadah, Al Hasan Al Basri, Sa'id bin Jubayr, Ibrahim An Nakha'i, Ata Alkurasani and others. It is like the Izar used today. Al-Jawhari said: "The Jilbab is the outer wrapper."
Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn Abbas said that Allah commanded the believing women, when they went out of their houses for some need, to cover their faces from above their heads with the Jilbab, leaving only one eye showing. Muhammad bin Sirin said, "I asked Ubaydah As Salmani about the Ayah:
(to draw their Jilbab over their bodies.) He covered his face and head, with just his left eye showing.
(that will be better that they should be known so as not to be annoyed)
means, if they do that, it will be known that they are free, and that they are not servants or whores.
