Voice of British Muslim Women

Fateha Khawaja, Tilford.

When I decided to write on this topic, it took me a while to determine a coherent stream of thought, an idea to focus on because this topic, this notion is so multifaceted. What initially comes to my mind is the beauty of the natural world that God has created for us. In the Holy Qur’an, Allah the Almighty states: ‘Have they not looked at the sky above them, how We have made it and adorned it, and there are no flaws in it? And the earth — We have spread it out and placed therein firm mountains; and We have made to grow therein every kind of beautiful species,’. (Chapter 50 Verses 7-8)’.

During the current coronavirus quarantine, I have had the opportunity to witness some of the most beautiful and colourful skies I have ever seen. Every morning I wake up before sunrise for my morning Prayers. Once I have completed them, I open my blinds and just lie in bed and observe the sun rising, the sky turning the most brilliant shades of orange and pink. This is the true beauty, the beauty God has created, the beauty that surrounds us in every moment of our lives. We so easily forget the beauty of the natural world stuck behind our screens and so caught up within our fast paced and overwhelming lives. That’s why although this quarantine period is so turbulent and, in many ways, so damaging, we have to appreciate the positives – this has given us the chance to go on walks and immerse ourselves in nature to appreciate what God has given us, an activity many of us just would not have the time to in our daily lives.

The second type of beauty, a beauty that is always the main societal focus, is aesthetic beauty. We live in the age of Instagram and Snapchat, always being inundated by post after post of women who have the ‘perfect’ body and beautiful features. I’ve found that especially within the teenage years, these images of models who have been photoshopped and Facetuned, lead to growing insecurities regarding the self-worth of the individual. So many young people base their self-worth on their aesthetic beauty. Why do we strive for perfect bodies, glossy hair, pristine skin? Why has society stigmatised just being comfortable within yourself? Why can’t we just accept ourselves? The notion of beauty is so convoluted and so incredibly flawed – it is difficult to even grasp the concept completely and understand why we are so obsessed with this abstraction of aesthetics.

I started wearing my hijab properly when I was 8 years old. Although I was so young, I just knew that this was something that would make me feel whole, something that would make me feel beautiful. There was a time in the UK when Islamophobia was so prevalent, the majority of my family experienced some sort of offhand racist comment – at such a young age I really questioned myself, doubted how even this hijab, a modest covering, this vital part of my identity, could be sexualised and made seem so wrong. This was a time when I doubted my outward beauty to the people I saw and met in my daily life because of my hijab. I went through a period of such intense insecurity because everyone around me was doing the same – the hijab was the easiest thing I could fixate on because I was wearing it by choice. It was a brief period of time and I required little clarity to why I was wearing my hijab – it is such a major part of my identity. But it happened, it was still there, and it showed me that insecurity was a part of personal growth.

One thing that gives me hope and provides me comfort when feeling self-conscious is that I was created by Allah. Everything was created by Allah and what He creates is beautiful.  Beauty is within the eye of the beholder they say but true beauty, real beauty, lies within your morals, your values, the energy and message you put out into the world. You can never define beauty because it is indescribable, but you are able to appreciate the beauty of the world, of God’s creation.