A Letter

Growing up you read me the Ugly Ducking.
And for years I believed that was me.
For so long you taught me i was nothing more than a bad copy of the standard.
I could'nt run as fast or lift as much.
I did'nt make the same money and I cried too often.
I grew up in a man's world where I did'nt belong.
And when I could'nt be him,I wanted only to please him.
I put on you make up and wore your short skirts.
I gave my life,my body,my dignity for the cause of being pretty.
I knew that no matter what I did,I was worthy only to the degree that I
could please and beautiful for my master.
And so I spent my life on the cover of Cosmo and gave my body for you to sell.
I was a slave,but you taught me I was free.
I was your object,but you swore it was success.
You taught me that my purpose in life was to be on display,to attract,and
be beautiful for men.
You had me believe that my body was created to market your cars.
And you raised me to think I was an ugly duckling.

But you lied.

Islam tells me,I'm a swan.I'm different-it's meant to be that way.
And my body,my soul,was created for something more.
God says in the Quran:
"O mankind,We created you from a single (pair) of a male and female
and made you into nations and tribes,that you may know one another (not that you
may despise each other).
Verily,the most honored of you in the sight of God is the one who
is most righteous"(Quran 49:13)

So I am honored.
But it is not by my relationship to men.
My value as a woman is not measured by the size of my waist or the number
of men who like me.
My worth as a human being is measured on a higher scale: a scale of
righteouness and piety.
And my purpose in life-despite what the fashion magazines say is something
more sublime than just looking good for men.
And so God tells me to cover myself,to hide/protect 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 woman's body by commanding that it be
respected and covered,shown only to the deserving-only the man i marry.
So to those who wish to liberate me,I have only one more thing to say:

"Thanks,but no thanks."

I'm not here to be on display.And my body is not for public consumption.
I will not be reduced to an object, or a pair of legs to sell shoes.
I'm soul, a mind, a servant of God.
My worth is defined by the beauty of my soul, my heart, my moral
character.
So, I won't worship your beauty standards, and I don't submit to your
fashion sense.
My submission is to something higher.
With my veil I put my faith on display rather than my beauty.
My value as a human is defiend by my relationship with God,
not by my looks.
So I cover the irrelevant.
And when you look at me, you don't see a body.
You view only me for what I am: a servant of my Creator.
So you see, as a Muslim woman, I've been liberated from a silent kind of
bondage.
I don't answer to the slaves of God on earth.
I answer to their king.

By:Yasmin Mogahed.