When the pain overtakes you, reach inside. Gather the broken pieces, and hand them to God. Ask Him to remake your heart. Different, this time. Stronger. More beautiful. This is how we are made, and remade by the Maker.
God tells me to cover myself, to hide my beauty and to tell the world that I’m not here to please men with my body; I’m here to please God. God elevates the dignity of a woman’s body by commanding that it be respected and covered, shown only to the deserving - only to the man I marry.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the importance of self-respect and divine guidance over societal expectations regarding beauty.
Yasmin Mogahed's quote conveys a powerful message about the dignity and respect owed to women's bodies. It highlights the idea that a woman's worth is not determined by her physical appearance or how she is perceived by men, but rather by her relationship with God and her own values. By choosing to cover herself, the speaker asserts her autonomy and recognizes that her beauty is sacred, meant to be shared only with the deserving partner she marries, thus elevating her self-worth and spiritual integrity.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about self-worth and body image, this quote could serve as a reminder to prioritize values over societal standards.
More from Yasmin Mogahed
All quotes →Tawwakul is not an act of the limbs-it is an act of the heart. And so while the limbs are striving hard, the heart is completely reliant on Allah. This means whatever the outcome of the limbs' striving, the heart will be completely satisfied, knowing that it is the flawless decision of Allah. But in order to reach this level, one must hold on to hope, strive with the limbs, and let go with the heart.
So often we think that Allah only tests us with hardships, but this isn't true. Allah also tests with ease. He tests us with na`im (blessings) and with the things we love, and it is often in these tests that so many of us fail. We fail because when Allah gives us these blessings, we unwittingly turn them into false idols in the heart.
Do not say that every day you spend on this earth is a day closer to dying. Every day you spend on this earth is a day closer to finally living.
Many years ago, our father Ibrahim (AS) made a choice. He loved his son. But He loved God more. The commandment came to sacrifice his son. But it wasn't his son that was slaughtered. It was his attachment to anything that could compete with his love for God. So let us ask ourselves in these beautiful days of sacrifice, which attachments do we need to slaughter?
Sigh... I have learned that *everything* is so hard...except what Allah makes easy. So we must *beg* Him to make it easy on us.
Similar quotes
The work is the work. The work is not me.
Needing to talk badly about others indicates low self esteem. That means, 'I feel so low that instead of picking myself up, I have to cut others down.' Letting go of negative things quickly is healthy.
Without dark clouds in our lives, we would never know the joy of sunshine. We can become callous and unteachable if we do not learn from pain.
Lost wealth may be replaced by industry, lost knowledge by study, lost health by temperance or medicine, but lost time is gone forever.
In regards to this great Book [the Bible], I have but to say it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this Book. But for it we could not know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man's welfare, here and hereafter, are found portrayed in it.
I know what it means to go to the stream to fetch water... what it means when people are poor and don't have enough to eat. It's not enough to say you know about poverty. You have to live it.