Question Summary:
A 20 year old girl looking to go into Pardah and concerned about her family’s reaction

Question Detail:

A 20 year old girl looking to go into Pardah and concerned about her family’s reaction

Answer :

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
As-salāmu ʿalaykum wa-raḥmatullāhi wa-barakātuh
Your family’s reaction to your decision of adopting Pardah (face veil) would depend on how religiously conscious they are. If they are religiously conscious, it will be easy for you, and you should go directly into Pardah without any apprehensions as it is most likely that they will not react negatively and might even show a positive reaction.
If your family is not very religiously conscious, you should still not fear, as you are doing a good act and it is only for the Pleasure of Allah Taʿālā. By dispelling the fear within your heart, you will find more courage to remain steadfast.
Since you have mentioned that you are concerned with your family’s reaction, it would be better for you to gradually phase into adopting the Pardah on a full-time basis. You can do this by firstly expressing your intention to go into Pardah when your family has informal discussions. You should continue this for a while. Once they are aware of your intentions, even if they are not happy with your decision, their reaction will not be as much as if you suddenly just wore the Pardah one day.
When you feel that they are well-informed of your intentions, you may go forward and wear it. Even if they show some negativity to your decision of wearing the Pardah, soon it will be something normal for them to see on you. Therefore, any negative reaction at first should not deter you from your goal of permanently wearing the Pardah one day. What would keep you steadfast in the beginning is to remember that for every difficulty you experience in your path towards this good action, you will be rewarded greatly for the sacrifice you endure in the face of the difficulty.
Once you start wearing the Pardah on a full-time basis, you will naturally find it awkward to expose your face in front of strange men. The less apprehensions and worries you have, the easier it would be for you to go into full-time Pardah. Therefore, remain steadfast and do not worry about what expectations there are from one who wears a Pardah or what people will say about you wearing a Pardah. Just keep the Pleasure of Allah Taʿālā in front of you when you begin wearing it and remain steadfast by not leaving it after you have worn it.
And Allah Taʿālā Knows Best
Mahmood Patel
Student, Darul Iftaa
Azaadville, South Africa
Checked and Approved by
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
www.daruliftaa.net