Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

Assalam alaikum wa rahmatullahi wabarakatuhu

My question is can a woman offer salaat wearing only a single gown or as some say does she has to wear inner clothes too.

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Answer:

What is the dress of the woman in the Prayer?

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 7 Surah Aaraaf verse 31:

31   O children of Adam! Wear your beautiful apparel at every time and place of prayer: eat and drink: but waste not by excess, for Allah loveth not those who waste.

When one visits any of the sacred Houses of Allah, or one stands to worship the Lord in prayer, in light of the above absolutely clear guidance of the Quran, it is incumbent and obligatory upon the believers that they wear their beautiful apparel and present themselves in the audience of their Lord in prayer in their best and most beautiful manner.

Just as one dresses up appropriately if one were to visit a worldly King or President of a nation; one should dress even more appropriately and formally when one wishes to visit a sacred House of Allah (masjid) or intends to offer the rite of prayer; for when one stands for prayer, he/she indeed is as if in the audience of The King of all kings, The Lord of the Universe, Allah Subhanah wa Taala.

Ibn Abbas (r.a.), Ibn Umar (r.a.) and Aishah (r.a.) narrate that the Prophet (saws) said, "Allah does not accept the prayer of an adult woman unless she is wearing a head-covering (khimar, jilbaab, hijab)."

Brother it is only common sense that when one wishes to stand in prayer to the Lord of the Worlds, one must be dressed appropriately. Even if we cannot see Allah swt., we must be sure that He can see us.

The wearing of undergarments is not a prerequisite when making yourself available for prayers. If the outer garment is not of see through material then there is no need to wear any undergarments if one does not wish to. The only requirement is that the full body should be covered, ie: hijaab, just as one would go before a non-mehram.

For the prayer of a believing woman to be acceptable to Allah Subhanah, she must cover herself completely in her ‘khimaar’ or ‘hijaab’ or ‘jilbaab’, just as she would when in the presence of non-mehram members of the opposite sex, even if she were to pray absolutely alone…ie. other than her face, her hands (below her wrist) and her feet (below her ankles), all other parts of the body of the believing woman must be covered.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is only ones. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

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