Proud to be Muslima

Last week we organized a trip to Jordan and Turkey, two Muslim-majority countries where we thought the majority of the women wear the veil.

We arrived at Jeddah’s King Abdul Aziz Airport at dawn, ready to temporarily leave the daily routines of our lives, excitedly imagining the wonderful trip we were going to undertake.

Arriving at the airport, we found that the majority of the woman passengers were wearing the hijab, the beautiful hijab covering our nakedness like a crown. There were only 1 or 2 female passengers not wearing the hijab. Our first destination was Jordan, a small country which is still very faithful to the Islamic teachings. This was proven when we arrived to find that there were still historical sites remaining showing that Islam had flourished there and the muslims then were able to drive away the Roman army. There were also some historical relics from the times of the Khalifah who had also spread the teachings of Islam in Jordan.

It was mid-morning when we arrived in Amman, Jordan, around 11 o’clock local time. All were ready to disembark the plane and leave the airport for the hotel. But …. the women who were veiled along with me at the airport in Jeddah were gone…. instead, they were replaced by women with colorful looks with beautiful flowing hair and tight clothing that accentuates the curves of the body.

Where were their hijab? What was the use of them wearing the hijab in Jeddah?
As we know, the wearing of the hijab is mentioned in Sura Annur (24: 31) and Sura Al Ahzab (33: 59).

From Jordan, we continued our trip to Turkey, the country with many very beautiful mosques. Istanbul, the city which before the Islamic era was called Constantinople, has a lot of Islamic heritage. There, we can visit the museum that holds the relics from the early history of Islam, like the sword of the Prophet and his companions. This is a country that respects the history of Islam.

But …. I was quite shocked when I wanted to pray in a big restaurant that we had gone to for lunch. The restaurant did not empathize with the situation by providing a space for Muslims who wish to perform their prayers. Even prayer rugs were not provided. However, Alhamdulillah, I was allowed to pray in a corner of the restaurant for my Dhuhr and Asar.

Why were they ashamed to show that they were Muslims? Islam is a religion, rahmatan lillaalamin (blessings for the whole world) – Al-Anbiya:107

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