Indeed, that very ḥadīth itself refutes their exegesis, for even the most stringent among them—much less the qualified scholars—do not cite it to prove that covering the woman’s face is a condition for prayer; they use it only to require covering the head. “So ask them, if they can speak.” (Q 21:63)

Their error is reinforced by the way they interpret the verse concerning post-menopausal women—“that they may put aside their garments” (Q 24:60)—as referring to the jilbāb. On that basis they say that an elderly woman may appear before unrelated men wearing her khimār while leaving her face uncovered. One of their respected teachers has stated this explicitly, whereas Shaykh al-Tuwayjiri merely hints at it without saying so outright, as I have detailed in al-Radd al-Mufḥim.

I have examined the statements of scholars, early and late, across every field, and found them unanimous that the khimār is a head covering. I named more than twenty authorities—among them leading Imams and ḥadīth masters. One was Abū al-Walīd al-Bājī (d. 474 AH), who, may Allah reward him, added for clarity: “Nothing of her should be visible except the circle of her face.”

Fourth: Shaykh al-Tuwayjiri has claimed a consensus that a woman’s face is ʿawrah (something that must be concealed), and many who lack knowledge—including some holding doctorates—have echoed him. The claim is false; no one before him ever advanced it. The Hanbalī manuals on which he was trained, let alone other works, are sufficient to disprove it. In my reply I quoted many of their statements, such as the words of Ibn Hubayrah al-Hanbalī in his book al-Ifṣāḥ, where he says that, according to the three Imams, the face is not ʿawrah, adding: “This is also one of the reports from Imām Aḥmad.” Many Hanbalīs have preferred this report in their own writings, such as Ibn Qudāmah.