How Islam Reformed Pre Islamic Practices of Tawaf and Modesty

 حديث ٥٢٨

عَنْ عُرْوَةَ رضي الله عنه، قَالَ: كَانَ النَّاسُ يَطُوفُونَ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ عُرَاةً إِلَّا الْحُمْسَ، وَالْحُمْسُ قُرَيْشُ وَمَا وَلَدَتْ، وَكَانَتِ الْحُمْسُ يَحْتَسِبُونَ عَلَى النَّاسِ، يُعْطِي الرَّجُلُ الرَّجُلَ الثَّيَابَ يَطُوفُ فِيهَا، وَتُعْطِي الْمَرْأَةُ الْمَرْأَةَ الثَّيَابَ تَطُوفُ فِيهَا، فَمَنْ لَمْ يُعْطِهِ الْحُمْسُ طَافَ بِالْبَيْتِ عُرْيَانًا (وَلِمُسْلِمٍ مِنْ حَدِيثِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ رضي الله عنهمَا قَالَ: كَانَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ تَطُوفُ بِالْبَيْتِ وَهِيَ عُرْيَانَةٌ، فَتَقُول: مَنْ يُعِيرُنِي تِطْوَافًا؟ تَجْعَلُهُ عَلَى فَرْجِهَا، وَتَقُولُ:

الْيَوْمَ يَبْدُو بَعْضُهُ أَوْ كُلُّهُ                **     فَمَا بَدَا مِنْهُ فَلَا أُحِلُّهُ

فَنَزَلَتْ هَذِهِ الْآيَةُ: خُذُوا زِينَتَكُمْ عِندَ كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍ).

 

Hadith 528

Narrated by ʿUrwah (may Allah be pleased with him): He said, "During the pre-Islamic era of ignorance (al-Jāhiliyyah), people would circumambulate the Kaʿbah unclothed, except for the Ḥums. The Ḥums were the Quraysh and those descended from them. The Ḥums would impose religious strictures upon the general populace. A man would lend another man a garment in which to perform ṭawāf, and similarly, a woman would lend another woman a garment for the same purpose. Whoever was not granted clothing by the Ḥums would circumambulate the House entirely naked."

    In the narration of Muslim, reported from Ibn ʿAbbās (may Allah be pleased with them both), it is stated: "A woman would circumambulate the House while naked, and she would cry out:
‘Who will lend me a covering for ṭawāf?’ —She would place it over her private parts and recite:

‘Today part of it, or all of it, appears;

Yet what appears thereof, I do not deem lawful.’

Thereupon, the following verse was revealed: {Take your adornment at every place of worship} [Sūrat al-Aʿrāf, 7:31]."

Key Lessons from the Hadith:

1.     Pre-Islamic Moral Deviation: The hadith highlights the extent of moral and religious deviation during the pre-Islamic period, including the practice of performing ṭawāf around the Kaʿbah in a state of nudity.

2.    Religious Elitism of Quraysh (Ḥums): Quraysh (the Ḥums) claimed special religious privileges and imposed arbitrary regulations upon others, including denying garments for ṭawāf, thereby creating unjust hierarchies in religious practice.

3.    Modesty as a Divine Principle: Islam corrected pre-Islamic customs by mandating modesty and clothing during acts of worship, emphasising human dignity and the sanctity of religious rites.

4.  Revelation in Response to Practice: The verse {Take your adornment at every place of worship} was revealed to abolish the indecent practice and to establish a divine standard of decorum in worship.

5. Islam’s Reformative Role: The hadith exemplifies how Islam reformed cultural traditions through divine guidance, aligning public behaviour with moral and spiritual integrity.

6. The Role of Women in Pre-Islamic Rites: The narration sheds light on the vulnerability and objectification of women in pre-Islamic society, which Islam sought to rectify by restoring honour and dignity.