He—may Allah have mercy on him—was asked:

“What is the ruling on women wearing a kūfiyya cap with a dā’ir and a farq? And on their wearing farājī robes? What determines whether clothing constitutes imitation of men? Is the criterion what was worn during the lifetime of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, or the customs of each respective age?”

He replied:

“Praise be to Allah. The kūfiyya cap with a farq and a dā’ir, worn without covering the loose-hanging hair, is boys’ attire, and a woman wearing it is imitating them. The first woman to adopt this style may have intended to imitate beardless youths, just as some prostitutes deliberately braid their hair into a single plait hanging between their shoulders, let locks hang down the sides of their faces, and wear turbans, so as to resemble beardless youths in their turbans, sideburns, and hair. A free woman may subsequently adopt some of these practices without that intention; nevertheless, she is thereby imitating men.

“Numerous reports from the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, transmitted in the collections of authentic hadith and elsewhere, state that he cursed women who imitate men and men who imitate women. One narration states:

‘He cursed effeminate men and those who imitate men among