Arab Societies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Arab Societies - Essay Example l-Ziyy Al-Islami or Islamic dress is something that distinguishes them from others because such dress should reflect the cornerstones of the Islamic belief system of privacy, humility, piety and moderation. Such simplicity of dress reminds them that luxury and leisure await them in the next world. Thus, embellishment of one’s dress or body is not seen positively unlike in other cultures. The qur’an, it says that the Prophet Muhammad admonished men’s clothing should be modest especially during worship and women’s clothing, not attracting any attention and men’s lustful desire to themselves. The Qur’an gives specific rules as to socio-moral behaviour of Islamic believers. It tells men and women to â€Å"lower their gaze and cover their genitals† when they interact so that any sexual tension will not build up. Islam accepts sexuality as normal for humans but it restricts it to matrimony. Outside marriage, behaviour between men and women in interaction should be desexualized. There should be control and regulation body and interactive space and all interactions should be in public. The Islamic dress is one kind of desexualizing control. In more contemporary times, the Islamic dress code for men and women were full-length opaque and austere-colored gallabiyyas which are loose-fitting clothes that conceal the body. In addition, men wore trousers and sandals and grew beards and women wore al-khimars, headcovers which cover the hair and extends low to the forehead, goes under the chin to conceal the neck and falls down over the chest and back. In some Arabic societies, wearing of such traditional garb has become quite controversial. The government has discouraged the wearing of such clothes in an effort to westernize their culture. However, some Islamic revolutionists want to keep the tradition going and insist on wearing it. It came to a point where the wearing of â€Å"the veil† which represents Islamic dress was seen to be a rebellious action. It