Is Wearing a Shawl (Chadar) a Sunna?
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
I wanted to know if wearing a cloak on top of your garments, or what is known as a “chadar” in the Indian subcontinent, is considered sunna.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.
It is established that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) wore a shawl. As such, it is a sunna; one would be rewarded if one followed him with intention.
Striped Shawl
A’isha (Allah be pleased with her) reports that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) came out one early morning wearing a long wide, striped shawl made of black fur (mirt). [Tirmidh, Shama’il al-Tirmidhi]
“Mirt” is a long, flowing, striped garment made from fabric, wool or animal hair, or linen, which is wrapped around.
Hibara Yemeni Shawl
Anas bin Malik (Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace), out of all clothing, preferred to cover himself with a “Hibara” shawl (a cotton-edged Yemeni shawl). [Tirmidhi]
Hibara Shawls are Yemeni shawls with red or green stripes.
It has been reported by Abu Rimtha (Allah be pleased with him), he said, I saw the Messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace), and he had worn two green shawls. [Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Nasa’i]
‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Abbas (Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) wore a Hibara shawl every ‘Eid. [Tabarani, al-Mu‘jam al-Awsat; Shafi‘i, al-Umm] [Yaqubi, Shama’il al-Habib al-Mustafa]
Covering the Head (Taqannu‘)
Anas (Allah be pleased with him) says that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) practiced “taqannu‘” with consistency. [Tirmidhi, Shama’il al-Tirmidhi]
Ibn Hajr al-Haytami (Allah have mercy on him) said, taqannu‘ is to place a sheet of cloth on top of the headgear or turban, which would be used to cover part of the face. It would then be wrapped under the chin and thrown onto the shoulders.
The act of covering the head with a shawl is sunna. This act is known as taqannu‘, which is the covering of the head and a portion of the face with a scarf, shawl, or similar item of clothing. Several hadiths about taqannu‘ have been narrated.
Related:
- Is It a Sunna to Wear a Turban?
- What Type of Clothing Can We Label as Sunna?
- Prophets, Messengers, and the Sunnah
- Sunnas Archives
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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.
