: Dress

 

مقاييس اللغة

اللام والباء والسين أصلٌ صحيح واحد، يدلُّ على مخالَطَة ومداخَلة. من ذلك لَبسْتُ الثَّوبَ ألْبَسُه، وهو الأصل، ومنه تتفرَّع الفروع.
واللَّبْس اختلاط الأم

 

رِيشًا is a collective noun and is conjunct with Waw. Therefore, it shows that the dress functions to veil the body as feathers. Hence beautification are not the meaning but inference. Today, we need to study what feathers do for a bird. Birds are warm blooded and we know the heat is something constantly in flow. Warm blooded birds and we human need to maintain a certain body temperature.

"Feathers perform a number of functions for a bird. Firstly, they provide insulation, this is very important in a warm blooded animal (body temperature of most birds is maintained at around 40C). It is believed by most scientists that this insulating effect was the primary force driving the evolution of feathers, i.e. ancestral birds developed feathers to keep themselves warm. Feathers also protect birds from UV light.

Secondly, feathers allow for flight. Scientists believe that flight evolved in birds as a result of their possessing basic feathers and that this added selective pressure to the evolution of feathers making them larger, stronger and refining their structure. Thirdly, feathers control what a bird looks like. A plucked chicken or pigeon looks very different to a fully feathered one. Feathers supply the bird with colours allowing for camouflage and secondary sexual characteristics and sexual display. Consider the tail feathers of a peacock."

The purpose of wearing is also given in 16:81 where heat phenomenon is specifically mentioned. Let us read Qur'aan while remaining in 21st century and forget about inference of beautification, and literally take it as functioning like feathers. This will also show that dress code for women and men is different and is reflective as third sexual characteristic. Beard and bosoms being the secondary sexual characteristic.

The word ريشا is plural and is used after the verb with conjunction defining/explaining the basic purpose of the dress.
O You the posterity of Adam! We have indeed sent for you dress/clothing that covers/hides/conceals/secludes your bodies/contours and additionally integumentary/feathers like protection [from heat discharge/outflow-retention of body temperature-16:81].

Heat always remains in flow. Feathers help retain the body temperature in addition to giving a glimpse of beauty and attraction. 

Dress is human's distinction. It is symbol of honor, dignity and sanctity. Let us reflect on the reaction of the first man and woman when they became nude and naked for the eyes of each other. They felt perturbed and disturbed and in haste started to take themselves into the position in which they were before violating the advice of not eating/tasting fruit of that female tree. They hastened to cover their bodies. No one had asked them to do like that. It was their own instant action. We must be proud of our father and mother. Our respects and salutes to both of them. And see the tragedy of the "progressive" posterity of Adam. We have nude clubs today and stupidly perceive that since man is born nude therefore to remain nude in the group is a natural phenomenon. This is what we call man is at loss in time.

"And He is the One Who has made/prescribed night for you people as/like garment {source of comfort/seclusion from others} {Refer 25:47}

"And We have made/prescribed night as/like garment {comfort/seclusion from others}"{Refer78:10}
Dress is like the night which spreads darkness and makes the things non visible, obscure. Any dress that makes the contours/figure more prominent, does not qualify to be called dress. The dress is stitched one which is worn on the body. But the stitched dress may not hide those parts of the body which are raised above the skin which serve as secondary distinction/identification of sex/gender of human beings. Any thing which is raised above the ground level is called ?????? , evident, visible, conspicuously perceivable; outer and upper portion of anything. My Lord, the Last Messenger ??? ???? ???? ???? was advised to direct women: