Written by: Ayinla Rofee’ah Yeketi (Ummu Miqdaad)
A few months back, I was sitting with one of my lovely sisters, and our discussion took a turn that stayed with me. She said how happy she felt seeing so many veiled women showing up across social media, running businesses, creating content, teaching, and breaking stereotypes. She said it made her proud that the old narrative of veiled women being backward, uneducated, or dull was fading away. She smiled as she proudly explained how “The evidence is everywhere now on how empowered Muslim women are.”
I listened, and then I gave her my counter-response: “That’s the problem. Who exactly are we trying to prove a point to?”
It’s true, there are many Muslim sisters online doing amazing things. Some are teaching beneficial knowledge, some are offering services that help people, and others are building businesses. But along the way, in trying to prove to the world that a veiled woman is just as capable, many have begun to strip themselves while still appearing covered.
Some dance in front of cameras, some laugh openly for strangers, some reveal their private lives in ways that were once unimaginable, all under the banner of being “empowered” and “breaking stereotypes.”
And I ask again: to what end exactly?
Social media has eroded ḥayā’ so much that what was once shocking has now become normal. The abnormal is now regular. What our mothers and grandmothers would have considered shameless, we now call confidence. And what is truly confidence, quiet strength, self-restraint, dignity we label as dullness.
Our Prophet ﷺ told us clearly:
“Every religion has a distinct characteristic, and the distinct characteristic of Islam is ḥayā’.” (Ibn Mājah)
This means, my sister, that ḥayā’ is not a side quality, it is the mark of our faith. Lose it, and we lose a core part of what makes us Muslim women.
Allah says in the Qur’an:
“And tell the believing women to lower their gaze, guard their modesty, and not expose their adornment except that which is apparent.” — Sūrat an-Nūr, chapter 24, verse 31.
These words are not to cage us, but to protect, honour, and elevate us.
If it is money you seek, Allah is the Provider. If it is fame or recognition, He alone grants it. But He does not put His barakah in things that displease Him. I personally know veiled sisters who have never once appeared online, never once showed their faces for strangers, yet they are making millions, breaking boundaries in business, and Allah has blessed their efforts. They preserved their dignity and Allah increased their success. Look back at the women of the Salaf. They were not hidden in the sense of being useless or uneducated.
They were scholars, nurturers of nations, and women of strength. But they moved with dignity that left no doubt about their modesty. Their knowledge did not come at the expense of their ḥayā’. Their influence did not require them to parade themselves before strangers. And their reward with Allah is eternal.
I am not saying do not work. I am not saying do not study, or contribute, or build, or lead. Islam never asked you to bury your talents. What I am saying is: do not lose ḥayā’ in the process. Do not let a world that thrives on exposure and spectacle convince you that modesty is backward. Do not let your need for likes, followers, or sales convince you to trade away the very essence of your faith.
Your strength is not in competing with men. Your strength is not in proving the world wrong. Your strength is in remembering that you are a servant of Ar-Raḥmān, a woman honoured by her ḥayā’, not despite it.
When the filters are gone, the followers vanish, and the cameras are switched off; what will remain of your ḥayā’? Until we meet in the next reminder if Allah wills, keep your heart soft, your duʿā sincere, and your eyes on Jannah.