Improper dress for women and intermingling between sexes

The greatest and most important of all the favors and blessings
bestowed by Allaah is Islaam and the honorableIslamic law, which is
derived from the Book ofAllaah and the Prophetic Sunnah. This Law has
outlined all that which is beneficial for mankind inthis life and the
Hereafter.
One of the virtues of this Law is that its rules and regulations have
clearly laid out preventions of allevil and immorality, and all the
roads that lead to it which is a protection ofthe truth and morality.
There are many issues forwhich this Law has laid out preventative
measures so that people will not fall into evil, for example on some
of the issues of faith, acts of worship and transactions.
However, the most obvious of all of these preventative measures are
those related to women and the limits that Allaah has defined for them
not to exceed. Islaam has clearly laid theguidelines for the
Muslimwoman to adhere to so that her personality remains distinct and
her safety, purity, and good conduct are assured.
The correct dress and covering for women and the prohibition of them
intermixing with men arethe two most important interconnected
preventative measures that Islaam has laid out. Muslims must submit to
the rulings which oblige women to properly coverin order to protect
their chastity and purity, maintain shyness and protect them from
being harassed or bothered, as Allaah Says (what means): "O Prophet!
Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to
bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is
more suitable that they will be known [as chaste believing women] and
not be abused. And ever is AllaahForgiving and Merciful" [Quran 33:
59].
In this verse, Allaah addressed the wives of the Prophet , who were
the furthest from immorality and evil actions; they were purestand
most pious women ever and were honored by the virtue of being married
to the Prophet .
Muslims must also adhereand submit to the rulings which prohibit
intermixing mixing between men and women. There are many Islamic texts
in this regard, such as the Hadeeth which is narrated by 'Uqbah Ibn
'Aamir that the Prophet , said: "Do not enter into the presence of
women." A man from the Ansaar then retorted: 'What about our in-laws'
- referring to the relatives of a woman's husband such as his
brothers, cousins, and their children, so the Prophet , replied: "The
in-laws are death" [Al-Bukhaari & Muslim] which means that they are
more harmful to women than death is to the soul. The previous evidence
came from the Prophet , whose words were nothing but revelation. So
how could anybody ever accept anyone else's opinion over this?
Why is it that the Prophet lined up the rows of men for prayers in the
mosque separate from the women, and described the rows, as narrated by
Abu Hurayrah by saying: "The best rows [in the mosque] are the first
rows, and the worst are the last, and the best rows [inthe mosque] for
women are last the rows, and the worst are the first." [Muslim]. This
affirmsthe obligation of separating men from women, and keeping them
far apart. If this is the way believing men and women should be during
an act of worship inside the mosque, then how much more so is it
necessary in places outside the mosques, where gatherings might
include evil and sinful people along with the good people?
The Muslim nation must not slight these texts because the evil
consequences which these texts are aiming to prevent society from
still very much exist, and there is nothing that would prevent such
evils from occurring in our time which did not exist at the time of
the Prophet
Moreover, the people whom the Prophet addressed in these narrations
were the best generation of the Muslim nation according to his own
testimony, as was mentioned in many narrations. So, has the need for
such texts and their warnings vanished in our time? Is it not a clear
fact that in fact we need these texts and warnings even more than that
generation did? This is especially so because of the dangers of evil
in our time becoming more widespread and its means being more diverse.
It is usually the case that people honor any set of laws which they
perceiveas being beneficial to them, especially when these laws
prevent evil orharm from befalling them when applied; moreover, people
do not mind if these laws include certain restrictions on their
freedom and impose penalties for those who disobey or transgress the
defined limits. Why is it the case that some of those who believe in
Allaah and His Messenger deal with Islamic Law with suspicion and
uncertainty. Some of these people even go as far as to demand that it
should be abolished, despite the fact that this Law includes all that
which is beneficial to mankind and prevents, or at least reduces, all
that which brings harm?
It is not permitted for anyone to discuss and pass judgment
regardingthis issue without having the proper Islamic knowledge to be
able to do so. Nor should they base their discussion and opinion on
unfounded claims with no evidence, or simply argue on the basis of
their base desires. Rather, one should be sincere and free themselves
from their base desires which will divert them far away from the
truth. In addition, one must have a broad knowledge of Islam and
possess the ability to differentiate between authentic and weak
evidences, possess a clear understanding of the relevant evidences as
well as the ability to properly extract Islamic rulings from these
evidences; only then can a person become eligible to discuss this
issue.
The outcome of what we say or write is the matter which we must fear
the most, and are extremely wary of its consequence, as the Prophet ,
clarified to Mu'aath Ibn Jabal after he had asked with
astonishment:"Will we be held responsible for all that we say?" The
Prophet , replied: "What do you think makes people land on their faces
or noses into the Hellfire more than the product of their tongues?"
[Ahmad, Abu Daawood & At-Tirmithi].