Modesty is defined differently in different cultures, societies and countries. At its core, modesty usually refers to not drawing excessive attention to oneself—especially in appearance, behavior, or self-promotion. When it comes to matter related to modesty, women figure out more than men for their revealing and inviting attires and knocking high heels on the floor attracting attention of the onlookers. It may not be wrong to say that most of the crimes take place due to revealing attire of women than men who generally wear clothes not exposing their bare flesh.
In Islam, there is much stress on the chastity and modesty -for both men and women. Surah An Nur, The 24th chapter of AL Qur'an gives special importance to modesty and commands both men and women to lower their graze with respect to opposite sexes, thereby protecting their modesty. Herein under we share verses 30-31 which command both men and women separately to protect their modesty:
Surah An-Nur (24:30)
“And O Prophet, enjoin the Believing men to restrain their gaze and guard their private parts. This is a more righteous way for them: Allah has knowledge of what they do..”
- Context of the Verse
- Surah An-Nūr deals with purity of society—not just outward rules, but also Inner discipline, Social boundaries and Protection of dignity.
- Importantly: This command comes first to men (24:30) and then a parallel command comes to women (24:31)
- Both these verses act as a comprehensive set of social regulations designed to protect the chastity, honor, and purity of the Muslim community by controlling unlawful sexual desires and the means that lead to them.
- This shows that Responsibility begins with self-control, not blaming others
- What Does “Lower the Gaze” Mean?
- Some may think that men should never look and glance at a woman and living in isolation.
- Remember there are two things: Looking and gazing. Looking is only meant to recognize someone and greeting with good intention.
- But gazing is often with lustful looks or inappropriate looking. Gazing leads to desires, which can lead to zina. Thus, the restriction is a preventative measure.
- Therefore, men are warned to avoid staring, objectifying, consuming indecent imagery in order to “Guard their as well as that of the females' chastity.”
- Guarding modesty means to protect actions, thoughts, and desires from corruption and not letting evil thoughts coming close or entering one's thoughts.
- The Deeper Meaning
- This verse is about inner اخلاق (character):
- The eye is a gateway to the heart
- What you repeatedly look at shapes, these effect thoughts, desires and behavior.
- That is why Islam addresses the problem at its root - to lower gaze
- Ibn Kathir emphasizes that this is a direct command from Allah to restrain the eyes from looking at prohibited things, particularly women who are not permissible for them (non-mahram). If a person's gaze falls upon something prohibited unintentionally, they should immediately look away. The transgression is looking intentionally and repeatedly. Ibn Kathir quotes a Hadith explaining that the eyes, ears, tongue, and hands can commit their own form of "adultery" (zina) by engaging with forbidden things before the private parts act on it.
- Another enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi explains:
- It is not lawful for a man to cast a full gaze at the other women except at his own wife or the mahram women of his family. The chance look is pardonable but not the second look which one casts when one feels the lure of the object. Prophet Muhammad ﷺ has termed such gazing and glancing as wickedness of the eyes. He has said that man commits adultery with all his sensory organs. The evil look at the other woman is the adultery of the eyes; lustful talk is the adultery of the tongue; relishing the other woman's voice is adultery of the ears; and touching her body with the hand or walking for an unlawful purpose is adultery of the hands and feet. After these preliminaries the sexual organs either bring the act of adultery to completion or leave it incomplete. (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Da'ud).
- "Guard their private parts": Abstain from illicit sexual gratification and from exposing their satar before others. For males, the satar is the part of the body from the navel to the knee, and it is not permissible to expose that pan of the body intentionally before anybody except one's own wife.
Surah An-Nur (24:31)
And tell the believing women to lower their glances and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment [i.e., beauty] except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their women, that which their right hands possess [i.e., slaves], or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allāh in repentance, all of you, O Believers, that you might succeed.
While verse 30 restricts men to lower their gaze and protect their modesty, women in the next verse are asked one added thing: not to expose their adornment. Those who can reflect on these two verses would know that the exposure of body parts of women are more attractive to men and in fact all ills of the society commence from the exposure of women. Let us dwell on this post as explained by eminent Muslim scholar Ibn Kathir:
- Tafsir of Ayah 31: Modesty and Veil for Women And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their private parts..."
- Women's Responsibility: Similar to men, women are ordered to guard their modesty and avoid gazing at men with desire.
- Adornment (Zinah): Women are commanded not to display their beauty or ornaments except for what appears naturally (such as the outer garment or hands/face according to different interpretations).
- Covering the Chest: The verse commands women to draw their veils (khumur) over their chests (juyub) to cover their neck and bosom.
- Exceptions (Mahram): A woman may display her adornments only to close relatives (mahram) who are forbidden to her in marriage (e.g., father, son, brother, etc.), or other women, servants, and small children.
- Walking Modestly: Women are instructed not to stamp their feet to attract attention to their hidden beauty (such as ankle bracelets).
- Tafsir Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi
- The Commandments of restraining the gaze for women are the same as for men. They should not glance intentionally at the other men, and if they happen to cast a chance look, they should turn their eyes away; and they should abstain from looking at the satar of others. However, the Commandments relating to the men's looking at women are a little different from those relating to the women's looking at men. On the one hand, there is an incident related in a Tradition saying that Hadrat Umm Salamah and Hadrat Umm Maimunah, wives of the Holy Prophet, were sitting with him when lbn Umm Maktum, a blind Companion, made his appearance. The Holy Prophet said to his wives: "Conceal your faces from him." The wives said, "O Messenger of Allah: Is he not a blind man '? Neither will he see us nor recognize us." Thereupon the Holy Prophet remarked: "Are you two also blind? Do you not see him?" While it is forbidden for women to sit face to face with men, it is not unlawful if they cast a look at men while passing on the way or see a harmless performance by them from a distance. There is also no hams for women to see the other men in case of real need.
- They should abstain from illicit gratification of their sex desire as well as from exposing their satar before others. Though the commandments for men in this respect are the same as for women, the boundaries of satar for women are different from those prescribed for men. Moreover, the female satar with respect to men is different from that with respect to women.
- The Female Satar ( that is to "concealer," "veil," or "cover")
- The female satar with respect to men is the entire body, excluding only the hand and the face, which should not be exposed before any other man, not even the brother and father, except the husband. The woman is not allowed to wear a thin or a tight fitting dress which might reveal the skin or the outlines of the body.
- The boundaries of female satar with respect to women are the same as the boundaries of the male satar with respect to men, which is the part of the body from the navel to the knee. This does not, however, mean that a woman should appear half naked before other women. It only means that while it is obligatory to keep the part of body from the navel to the knee duly covered, it is not so in case of other parts.
- "Adornment" includes attractive clothes, ornaments and other decorations of the head, face, hand, feet, etc. which the women usually employ, and is expressed by the modern word 'make-up'. The injunction that this `makeup' should not be displayed before others
Relevance Today: Social Media Reality
Let’s be direct—this verse is extremely relevant today. Today, the access to open ended social media, where men and women can easily interact and converse, which often results in closeness and getting into acts unbecoming. Following matter:
- Constant Exposure
- Social media promotes: (1) Body display, (2) Sexualized content, and (3) Attention through appearance.
- What used to be occasional is now constant and normalized.
- The Culture of Objectification
- Women (and increasingly men) are reduced to appearance and judged by physical attraction.
- This creates: (1) Unrealistic standards, (2) Insecurity, and (3) Loss of dignity.
- Addiction to Visual Stimulation
- Endless scrolling trains the mind to seek stimulation - to lose self-control.
- This weakens: (1) Focus, (2) Discipline, and (4) Spiritual awareness
What the Verse is Addressing
This verse is not just about “looking”: It is about: (1) Respecting human dignity, (2) Protecting the heart from فساد and (3) preventing society from becoming morally chaotic.
How to create a Balance (Very Important)
- This verse does NOT mean: (1) Blaming women for men’s behavior, (2) Ignoring male responsibility, and (3) Policing others while ignoring نفسك
- Instead it starts with: “Tell the believing men…” You are responsible for your gaze first
- The verses apply to both genders, recognizing that both men and women have responsibilities in maintaining a decent society.
Practical Application Today
- Digital Discipline: (1) Unfollow harmful content, (2) Filter your feed, and (3) Be intentional, not passive.
- Lowering the “Digital Gaze” Not just in real life, but also What You (1) Watch, (2) Scroll or (3) Linger on.
- Respect Over Objectification See people as Humans and not as Objects of Desires.
- Internal Awareness:
- Remember: “Allah is aware of what they do”
- That is even in Private browsing and hidden habits.
A Deeper Reflection
- The verse ends with: “That is purer for them”. Which means it protects your heart, mind and relationships.
- That is what seems like restriction is actually protection and purification
A Powerful Way to Understand It
In today’s terms, this verse is saying: Don’t let your eyes be controlled by a culture that profits from your ضعف (weakness). Take control of what you consume.
In a world where exposure is normalized, modesty is mocked in the name of freedom and desires are constantly stimulated, this verse stands as a counter-cultural principle:
Final Reflection: Real strength is not in seeing everything… It is in controlling what you allow yourself to see. The Divine commands are clear with respect to gazing other sexes and more so on women not to show their adornment openly for it has very negative fallout. All Muslim men and women must adhere to these commands lest we unknowingly commit sins that are unpardonable, unless sincerely repented.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life. from Al Qur'an:
You may refer to more Selected Verses from Surah 24. An Nur (The Light), already published.
Following referencces may also be consulted for more selected verses from Al Qur'an:
- Selected verses from selected Surahs of Al-Qurʾān for compiled verses from other surahs.
- Selected Verses from Al Qur'an about a Specific Subject (Reference Page) to know more about what Qur'an says about specific subjects
- Selected Verses from the Qur'an.
You may also refer to our Reference Pages and Understanding Al Qur'an for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.
An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs and selected verses of Al-Qurʾān from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that the exegesis of the chapters of the Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi.
In addition, other sources which have been explored and views of other scholars have been incorporated while explaining meaning of a verse. Those desirous of detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to these sites. For expansion of meaning and themes / contextual background help from ChatGPT is also taken.
Disclaimer: The material for this post has been collected from the references given above. If anyone differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors. If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.
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