Hadith on Women with Head Like a Camel Hump (follow up: why self interpreting a hadith?)
Question:
Sir why you self interpret this Hadith and in a way you encourage women folk to style hair like hump of camel ..plz you aren't an authority to interpret such hadiths and presenting a distorted and self styled interpretation. By not adding references of those scholars you are just misleading people. Stop propagating wrongful information
Answer:
The tone of your question is an indication of your sincere concern for Islam and for Islamic knoweldge. I appreciate this and respect you for that. May God always keep you under His blessing.
I normally do not comment on or answer such questions, however since your question seems to be an honest one, I would like to take this opportunity to make a few points that may be of interest or benefit for other readers as well.
The above question is with regard to my answer to the famous hadith on women who have a style of hair similar to a camel hump. The original question and answer can be found here.
Let me fist assure you that what I wrote was not that different from what some of the traditional scholars (and those who you may consider to have ‘authority’) have written about this hadith.
I wrote:
"First, the hadith, as you can see, has nothing to do with any kinds of innocently covering a long hair in any fashion. The hadith is clearly referring to women who have inappropriate behaviour … . Second, 'heads like humps of camel' can have many meanings, as the scholars have explained. To interpret it to mean covering a long, ponytail like hair, is only an interpretation. The wording itself does not say that."
http://www.exploring-islam.com/hadith-on-women-with-head-like-a-camel-hump.html
In the popular islamqa.com website that represents a traditional juristic understanding based on the fiqh of ahl-al-sunnah we read:
"There is nothing wrong with a woman gathering her hair beneath the hijab in a manner that will prevent it from spreading, if she thinks this is more appropriate and safer. Gathering the hair in a bun is not haraam in and of itself … what is prohibited … as was explained previously … is gathering the hair in the shape of a camel’s hump, and it is obvious that this refers to a remarkably large formation that makes the head appear visibly bigger and attracts attention, and that would lead people, on the basis of their customs and traditions, to think that there is something very dubious about the way this woman looks because of the manner in which she has done her hair. It is in this manner that the scholars explained this hadith when talking about enlargement or going to great lengths to make the hair appear bigger by adding other material such as cloth and the like, that makes the woman’s head look like the hump of a camel. …"
https://islamqa.info/en/244348
The above answer in islamqa then goes on to quote a number of different interpretations of what being similar to camel’s hump actually means in this hadith. You will see that (as I wrote in my original answer), there is no agreement on what this actually means.
I would like to take this opportunity to address a few points in the question that in my view are based on an understandings that can cloud our mind from thinking rationally:
1. "Why do you self-interpret a hadith?"
This depends on what you mean by self-interpretation. If it means I impose my opinion on a hadith, then to the best of my knowledge this was not my intention and I didn’t do this. If you look at the answer again you will see that I have tried to provide reasons and evidences.
If by self-interpretation you mean that instead if quoting someone else’s interpretation I am making my own interpretation, then my answer to your question is because I am a Muslim. As a Muslim I only have to submit myself to the truth, I am not allowed to submit myself to any individuals. If I understand what the truth is, I have to follow it, no matter who agrees or disagrees. This is what the Qur’an wants from us.
2. "in a way you encourage women folk to style hair like hump of camel"
Firstly, as a student of Islam when I am explaining a ruling, I am not allowed to think who will be encouraged to do what by reading my views. I am supposed to simply express my understanding of that ruling.
Second, as I wrote in my response, a style of hair like hump of camel per se is not the concern of the hadith under discussion. So while encouraging this was not my intention, even if someone was encouraged to do, as per my understanding there is nothing wrong with this.
3. "You aren't an authority to interpret such hadiths"
If I was announcing that my interpretation of this hadith was the official interpretation of the hadith and all Muslims or all Muslims in a certain group have to follow it, then I needed an authority to do so.
However no one needs an ‘authority’ to interpret a hadith. What a person needs is knowledge, skills and experience. You may consider me to be not qualified enough to make and share my views on a hadith like the one under discussion. This is totally fine. However this website is for those who are interested in reason itself, and their concern is not to judge whether the person who provides the reason is qualified or not. I guess this was the reason that a person cared to submit the question here.
4. ... "and presenting a distorted and self styled interpretation"
While the style by which I interpret hadith is by no means a self-styled, I can assure you that all styles of interpreting hadith are self-styled with regard to the person/s who originally developed them. We do not have any divine guidelines on what style we need to adopt in order to interpret a hadith. The only relevant guideline that we have is to use our rationality (in both testing the reliability of a quote and in interpreting it) and this is what I have tried to do.
As for my interpretation being distorted, please give me an opportunity to correct myself or clarify, by pointing the distortion to me.
5. ... "by not adding references of those scholars"
At the start of this writing I have provided reference to those respected scholars whose style you may appreciate more and as I wrote you will see that my understanding of the hadith is not that different from their understanding. As I wrote you also find in their answer some of the references to differences of interpretation of this hadith, as I mentioned in my original answer. In my original answer I also provided reference for scholarly views about one of the narrators of the hadith.
6. "stop propagating wrongful information"
I did not propagate, it was not an information it was interpretation, and in my understanding it was not wrong.
*************
My dear brother. If we were supposed to simply quote and copy the views of the scholars of the past instead of using our own brain while also benefiting from them, then the door of thinking in Islam was closed (as it is closed for some Muslims!). How this attitude would then be any different from the attitude of those who rejected the truth simply because they found it to be different from what they had inherited from the past?
I suggest good Muslims like yourself should encourage thinking and new ways of thinking instead of expecting all to think the same way, because, my dear brother, it is ‘not thinking’ that makes us suffer.
-------
Related Topic:
- Hadith on Women with Head Like a Camel Hump
--------
April 2018
Sir why you self interpret this Hadith and in a way you encourage women folk to style hair like hump of camel ..plz you aren't an authority to interpret such hadiths and presenting a distorted and self styled interpretation. By not adding references of those scholars you are just misleading people. Stop propagating wrongful information
Answer:
The tone of your question is an indication of your sincere concern for Islam and for Islamic knoweldge. I appreciate this and respect you for that. May God always keep you under His blessing.
I normally do not comment on or answer such questions, however since your question seems to be an honest one, I would like to take this opportunity to make a few points that may be of interest or benefit for other readers as well.
The above question is with regard to my answer to the famous hadith on women who have a style of hair similar to a camel hump. The original question and answer can be found here.
Let me fist assure you that what I wrote was not that different from what some of the traditional scholars (and those who you may consider to have ‘authority’) have written about this hadith.
I wrote:
"First, the hadith, as you can see, has nothing to do with any kinds of innocently covering a long hair in any fashion. The hadith is clearly referring to women who have inappropriate behaviour … . Second, 'heads like humps of camel' can have many meanings, as the scholars have explained. To interpret it to mean covering a long, ponytail like hair, is only an interpretation. The wording itself does not say that."
http://www.exploring-islam.com/hadith-on-women-with-head-like-a-camel-hump.html
In the popular islamqa.com website that represents a traditional juristic understanding based on the fiqh of ahl-al-sunnah we read:
"There is nothing wrong with a woman gathering her hair beneath the hijab in a manner that will prevent it from spreading, if she thinks this is more appropriate and safer. Gathering the hair in a bun is not haraam in and of itself … what is prohibited … as was explained previously … is gathering the hair in the shape of a camel’s hump, and it is obvious that this refers to a remarkably large formation that makes the head appear visibly bigger and attracts attention, and that would lead people, on the basis of their customs and traditions, to think that there is something very dubious about the way this woman looks because of the manner in which she has done her hair. It is in this manner that the scholars explained this hadith when talking about enlargement or going to great lengths to make the hair appear bigger by adding other material such as cloth and the like, that makes the woman’s head look like the hump of a camel. …"
https://islamqa.info/en/244348
The above answer in islamqa then goes on to quote a number of different interpretations of what being similar to camel’s hump actually means in this hadith. You will see that (as I wrote in my original answer), there is no agreement on what this actually means.
I would like to take this opportunity to address a few points in the question that in my view are based on an understandings that can cloud our mind from thinking rationally:
1. "Why do you self-interpret a hadith?"
This depends on what you mean by self-interpretation. If it means I impose my opinion on a hadith, then to the best of my knowledge this was not my intention and I didn’t do this. If you look at the answer again you will see that I have tried to provide reasons and evidences.
If by self-interpretation you mean that instead if quoting someone else’s interpretation I am making my own interpretation, then my answer to your question is because I am a Muslim. As a Muslim I only have to submit myself to the truth, I am not allowed to submit myself to any individuals. If I understand what the truth is, I have to follow it, no matter who agrees or disagrees. This is what the Qur’an wants from us.
2. "in a way you encourage women folk to style hair like hump of camel"
Firstly, as a student of Islam when I am explaining a ruling, I am not allowed to think who will be encouraged to do what by reading my views. I am supposed to simply express my understanding of that ruling.
Second, as I wrote in my response, a style of hair like hump of camel per se is not the concern of the hadith under discussion. So while encouraging this was not my intention, even if someone was encouraged to do, as per my understanding there is nothing wrong with this.
3. "You aren't an authority to interpret such hadiths"
If I was announcing that my interpretation of this hadith was the official interpretation of the hadith and all Muslims or all Muslims in a certain group have to follow it, then I needed an authority to do so.
However no one needs an ‘authority’ to interpret a hadith. What a person needs is knowledge, skills and experience. You may consider me to be not qualified enough to make and share my views on a hadith like the one under discussion. This is totally fine. However this website is for those who are interested in reason itself, and their concern is not to judge whether the person who provides the reason is qualified or not. I guess this was the reason that a person cared to submit the question here.
4. ... "and presenting a distorted and self styled interpretation"
While the style by which I interpret hadith is by no means a self-styled, I can assure you that all styles of interpreting hadith are self-styled with regard to the person/s who originally developed them. We do not have any divine guidelines on what style we need to adopt in order to interpret a hadith. The only relevant guideline that we have is to use our rationality (in both testing the reliability of a quote and in interpreting it) and this is what I have tried to do.
As for my interpretation being distorted, please give me an opportunity to correct myself or clarify, by pointing the distortion to me.
5. ... "by not adding references of those scholars"
At the start of this writing I have provided reference to those respected scholars whose style you may appreciate more and as I wrote you will see that my understanding of the hadith is not that different from their understanding. As I wrote you also find in their answer some of the references to differences of interpretation of this hadith, as I mentioned in my original answer. In my original answer I also provided reference for scholarly views about one of the narrators of the hadith.
6. "stop propagating wrongful information"
I did not propagate, it was not an information it was interpretation, and in my understanding it was not wrong.
*************
My dear brother. If we were supposed to simply quote and copy the views of the scholars of the past instead of using our own brain while also benefiting from them, then the door of thinking in Islam was closed (as it is closed for some Muslims!). How this attitude would then be any different from the attitude of those who rejected the truth simply because they found it to be different from what they had inherited from the past?
I suggest good Muslims like yourself should encourage thinking and new ways of thinking instead of expecting all to think the same way, because, my dear brother, it is ‘not thinking’ that makes us suffer.
-------
Related Topic:
- Hadith on Women with Head Like a Camel Hump
--------
April 2018
