Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
It should be noted that the general rule is that all types of clothing are lawful except that which is forbidden in religion. Al-Bukhārī documented two hadīths establishing this general rule, the first of which is that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “Eat, drink, wear clothes and give charity without showing off and being extravagant.”[70] The other one is that which Ibn Abbās said, “Eat all that you wish and wear all that you like, so long as you are neither showing off nor being extravagant.”[71]
The Prophet (peace be upon him) pointed out a number of issues to be avoided in clothing, some of which are:
· Isbāl: It is letting the garment come below the ankles and according to some scholars it is considered from the major sins.
· Men wearing clothes made of natural silk.
· Wearing something that makes the person distinguished from others. It is for this reason that one should wear the clothes that are the norm in the society where they live, provided that such clothes are lawful.
· Wearing clothes that are known to be worn only by disbelievers and by which a disbeliever is recognised.
Al-Bajūrī said,
Clothes are subject to five rulings: (i) Clothing that covers the ‘awrah from being shown in the presence of others is obligatory, (ii) It is preferable to wear one’s best clothes on Eid and white clothes on Friday, (iii) It is forbidden for men to wear silk clothes, (iv) It is disliked for the rich to wear old clothes constantly and (v) It is lawful to wear anything else.
54. Umm Salamah said: “In regards to clothing, the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) liked wearing the qamīs the most.” [72]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
Qamīs refers to the well known long robe with sleeves i.e. the thoub.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
It was his preference as this kind of garment is more concealing than the izār (lower wrap) and ridā’ (upper garment). Al-Hafidh al-Dumyatī narrated a hadīth stating that the qamīs of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was made of cotton, short in length and had short sleeves. This hadīth indicates that he preferred the one made of cotton because the one made of wool harms the body, makes one sweat and it has a smell that harms others.
Alī al-Qārī said,
It was said that the Prophet (peace be upon him) liked wearing the qamīs because it is lighter than other types of clothing, it conceals more of the body than other clothes and thus the one who wears it is displaying humility.
55. The same report from Umm Salamah through a different chain of narrators.
56. The same report from Umm Salamah through a different chain of narrators.
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The same hadīth from Umm Salamah has been reported three times but the last of them has the chain of narrators that al-Tirmidhī believed to be the most authentic. This is why he mentioned the three different routes for the same text.
57. Asmā bint Yazīd narrated: “The sleeves of the qamīs of the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) would reach his wrists.” [73]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
This shows that his sleeves did not exceed his wrists.
Al-Bajūrī said,
The reason behind the sleeves not exceeding the wrists is because if they do exceed them, they hinder the movement of the hands, and if they are too short, they expose the arms to heat and coldness. Therefore, the Prophet (peace be upon him) preferred to be moderate in the length of his sleeves, and moderation is indeed the best of all things.
Al-Jizrī said,
This hadīth is evidence that the Sunnah is that the sleeves of the qamīs do not exceed the wrists. As for other clothes, they (the scholars) said that the Sunnah is that the sleeves should not exceed the tips of the fingers.
58. Qurrah ibn Iyyas related: “I came with a group from the tribe of Muzainah to give the pledge to the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him). As I noticed the button of his qamīs was open, I inserted my hand into the collar of his qamīs and I touched the seal.” [74]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The general rule is that one should keep the buttons of the collar fastened unless there is a need to unbutton them. That being said, one should not think that unbuttoning the qamīs is a Sunnah because this hadīth does not indicate so in any form. This is because the reason why his (peace be upon him) collar was open was not specified and so it could have been for any reason such as attempting to cool down due to excessive heat. In fact, it is most likely that this is not an act of Sunnah. If the Sunnah was to keep the buttons of the collar unbuttoned, there would have been no use for having them.
Al-Bajūrī said,
The fiqh of this hadīth is:
· It is lawful to wear the qamīs.
· It is lawful to have buttons on it.
· It is lawful to unbutton them.
· It is lawful to have a wide collar that is enough for the hand to be inserted into it.
· The Prophet (peace be upon him) allowed others to enter their hands through his collar and touch his skin to seek barakah.
· It indicates the humbleness of the Prophet (peace be upon him).
59. Anas ibn Mālik reported: “Allāh’s Messenger (peace be upon him) came out of his house reclining on Usāmah ibn Zayd. He was wearing a qitrī wrap and proceeded to lead the prayer.” [75]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
“He was wearing a qitrī wrap”: It was placed on his shoulders.
Al-Bajūrī said,
The qitrī wrap is a Yemenī sheet with printed columns, made of cotton and it has some redness in its colour.
60. Abū Sa’īd al-Khudarī narrated: “When the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) would put on a new garment, he would recite the following supplication whilst also identifying the garment (be it a turban, a sheet or a wrap etc.), ‘Oh Allāh, all praise is due to You for clothing me with this [garment]. I ask You for the good of it and the good of what it was made for, and I ask Your protection from the evil of it and the evil of what it was made for.’” [76]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
This supplication reminds us that it is Allāh who blessed us with a new garment, and that we did not come to possess it due to our own efforts and power. In other words, it is to direct us to remember the grace of Allāh as was stated in the divine hadīth wherein Allāh says, “O My slaves! All of you are naked except those who I clothe them. Ask me to clothe you and I will clothe you.”[77]
Al-Bajūrī said,
The purpose of mentioning the name of the garment is to show the praise to Allāh for the particular grace that He has bestowed.
The supplication is recited after saying bismillah because saying it is an act of Sunnah before wearing the clothes.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
This is to say: “O Allāh you clothed us because of our poverty and need to You and not because You are in need of clothing us; therefore we praise You not because of what You have blessed us with but rather because You deserve it.”
61. A similar report was narrated from a different route from Abū Sa’īd al-Khudarī.
62. Anas ibn Mālik narrated: “The most beloved garment to the Prophet (peace be upon him), that he would wear, was the hibarah.” [78]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
A hibarah is a kind of cloth made of cotton or linen with patterns to make it more beautiful.
Al-Bajūrī said,
It seems that he liked this type of clothing due to its softness and nice design. Also, the fabric complimented his body as he possessed very soft skin and due to the softness of the fabric, it suited him perfectly.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
It has printed patterns on it and although it is disliked to wear a garment with patterns printed on it, the fact that he (peace be upon him) wore it shows that it is permissible to wear them.
63. Abū Juhayfah related: “I saw Allāh’s Messenger (peace be upon him) wearing a red hulla. I can see the radiance of his shins as if they are still before me.” Sufyān said, “I think it (his garment) was a hibarah.” [79]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
“I can see the radiance of his shins as if they are still before me”: This indicates that the lower wrap of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was to the half point of his shins.
Al-Bajūrī said,
“I saw Allāh’s Messenger (peace be upon him)”: This was during the farewell Hajj as stated in the hadīth documented in Sahīh al-Bukhārī.
“I can see the radiance of his shins as if they are still before me”: This indicates that it is permissible for the man to look at another man’s legs as there is no temptation in it. It indicates that it is recommended to shorten the robe or the izār to the mid-point of the shin, though it is permissible to keep its length to the ankles.
“Sufyān said, ‘I think it [his garment] was a hibarah”: As Sufyān (who is the one narrating this hadīth from the companion) holds the view that completely red garments are forbidden, he made the remark that he believes it was a hibarah as this would mean it had a pattern with another colour.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
“I can see the radiance of his shins as if they are still before me”: While it is recommended for the man to shorten his garment to reach the mid-point of his shin, and it is permissible to make its length reach the ankle, it is recommended for the woman to wear that which covers her and it is allowed to make it long to the point it is dragged on the floor. However, if what she intends with that is showing off then she will be sinful just like if they (men) drag their garments to show off.
64. Al-Barā ibn ‘Āzib narrated: “I have never seen anybody appear more handsome in red clothing than the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him). At that time, his hair reached his shoulders.” [80]
Mirak Shah al-Hanafī said,
Scholars differed on the permissibility of wearing fully red clothes; some scholars allowed it in all cases, some scholars forbade it in all cases. Some scholars disliked the wearing of clothes which have red prevailing over the other colours, and some scholars said it is disliked in all cases if it is worn for the purpose of adornment and to be known, but it is allowed to be worn inside the house and while working. Some scholars said it is not allowed if it is dyed with red after it was woven, and some scholars said only that which is tanned with safflower is forbidden. Some scholars said only that which is dyed red completely is forbidden, and so any garment with additional colours besides red is permissible.
65. Abū Rimthah Taymī said, “I saw the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) and he was dressed in two green coloured burdahs.” [81]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The colour of the garment was not plain green because a burdah always has multiple colours in its pattern design.
66. Qaylah bint Makhramah narrated: “I saw the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) wearing two well worn wraps that had been dyed with saffron yet there was no trace of saffron left upon them.” [82]
Al-Bajūrī said,
The fact that the Prophet (peace be upon him) wore something dyed with saffron does not contradict his order not to wear such garments. This is because his order is related to the case when the colour of saffron is evident and it prevails over other colours.
Alī al-Qārī said,
It is established that the Prophet (peace be upon him) wore nice clothes but he preferred to wear that which manifested his humility and humbleness before his Lord. The salaf followed his way in the type of clothes to wear i.e. wearing clothing that manifests humbleness. This is because they saw people showing off with their fancy garments and adornments; therefore they wanted to remind them of the triviality of what they were proud of. However, later on the heedless started wearing very old clothes as a means to receive worldly pleasures and to make the people like them; thus the Sunnah became to oppose them by wearing nice clothes. It was reported that a man who was wearing old clothes criticized Abū al-Hasan al-Shadhilī for wearing nice garments. To that Abū al-Hasan replied, “The clothes I wear reflect my state praising Allāh, whereas your clothes reflect your state asking people to give you some of their worldly pleasures.” In all cases, one must rectify their intention and avoid showing off whilst not refraining from wearing nice clothes due to stinginess, for indeed the beauty lies in the heart but still the body should reflect the beauty of the heart.
67. ‘Abdullāh ibn Abbās related: “The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘Wear garments of white colours. Let the living among you wear them and enshroud the dead therewith, for it is the best of your clothes.’” [83]
Al-Bajūrī said,
This is to encourage wearing white clothes as it is recommended to wear them when attending the Friday prayer, attending the masjid, events and sittings that the angels witness such as gatherings to recite the Qur’ān or to remember Allāh. As for Eid, it is recommended to wear the best and pricey clothes, even if the colour is not white, because the day is intended to manifest adornment and display Allāh’s grace upon us.
The best colours are in the following order: The white, the green and then the yellow colours.
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
It is the preferred colour for the shroud because the dead is about to meet the angels. This is why it is recommended, it is also why we are directed to perfume the dead.
Alī al-Qārī said,
In order for the garment to deserve being called the best of clothes in its absolute form, it has to be (besides being white in colour) pure, neat and not accompanied by pride, showing off etc.
68. Samurah ibn Jundub narrated: “The Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) said, ‘Wear white clothing for it is the purest and most beautiful of your clothing, and also enshroud your dead with it.’” [84]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
“It is the purest”: It is described as such because dirt or impurity can easily be identified [when wearing a white garment] unlike other colours that may have unseen dirt or impurity. This is why the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to supplicate, “O Allāh, purify me from my sins just like how a white garment is purified from dirt.”
Mirak Shah al-Hanafī said,
“Most beautiful”: It is described as such because white clothing indicates the humility of the one wearing it and negates the qualities of pride and showing off.
69. Aisha narrated: “One day, the Messenger of Allāh (peace be upon him) left the house early in the morning, wearing a long black garment made of hair.” [85]
Ibn Hajar al-Haytamī said,
The way of the Prophet (peace be upon him) was that he did not prefer wearing a particular type of clothing nor did he have an interest in wearing fancy and expensive clothing. This is because showing off with fancy clothes is from the qualities of women. However, the quality that is praised in men is to ensure that their clothes are clean, modest and decent; therefore he (peace be upon him) preferred wearing the type of clothing that he needed and encouraged others to wear the other types.
70. Al-Mughīrah ibn Shu’bah narrated: “The Prophet (peace be upon him) wore a Romanic jubbah which had tight sleeves.” [86]
Abdul Razzaq al-Badr said,
The jubbah is an outer garment that is worn over the qamīs (thawb).
The hadīths that the author included in this chapter show the variety of clothes that the Prophet (peace be upon him) wore, which indicates that clothing is not a restricted avenue, but rather all garments are lawful except that which is forbidden by evidence.
Al-Bajūrī said,
He wore it whilst travelling and it is reported that this was in the battle of Tabūk.
The fact that the garment was made by the Romans shows that the general rule is that all clothes are pure, even those made by disbelievers.
“Tight sleeves”: This means that when he wanted to pull his arms out of the sleeves it was difficult. Some scholars said it is recommended to wear narrow sleeved garments whilst travelling only. The sleeves of the companions were wide.
The beautification of appearance in terms of clothing is praised if it is done to help one in the worship of Allāh such as how the Prophet (peace be upon him) took care of his appearance and clothes when welcoming the delegates and it is dispraised when it is done for worldly benefits or to show off.