Is it allowed for a woman to wear half sleeves shirts in front of mahrams?

The Islamic Dress Code%0D%0A%0D%0AWhat would you think of a home that provided no shelter and no privacy? What%0D%0Awould you think of a meal that provided no nourishment and no energy? It%0D%0Adoes not take much to realize that if one were in the business of selling%0D%0Aany of these he would go bankrupt very quickly. Yet, amazingly the rules%0D%0Aseem to be different when it comes to another basic need: clothing,%0D%0Aespecially women's clothing. Every year fashion centers in Europe and%0D%0AAmerica come up with the latest designs. And what have they designed?%0D%0AAnother way of not covering the body; the dress equivalent of the home that%0D%0Aprovides no shelter and no privacy.%0D%0AOne might ask, if a person did not want to cover themselves why would they%0D%0Abuy anything, least of all expensive fashions, to achieve that? If we think%0D%0Aabout it, we may see the tension between two forces. All human beings%0D%0A(except for the handful of deviants who call themselves naturalists) have an%0D%0Ainborn sense of shame. People of all religions agree on the need to cover%0D%0Athemselves in public. Yet we also find a force that promotes nudity. Large%0D%0Asegments of humanity are caught between two impulses: to cover or not to%0D%0Acover. Our clothing designs reflect different levels of compromise between%0D%0Athese opposing forces.%0D%0AWhy? What is going on?%0D%0AScience cannot answer the question. It cannot trace the origins of forces%0D%0Athat take place deep in our mind. In addition, most of the scientific%0D%0Aestablishment is still dominated by the followers of Mr. Darwin and%0D%0ADarwinism is a system of belief not science. Their beliefs keep them from%0D%0Adealing honestly with a simple fact: while all other animals have a skin%0D%0Athat provides them protection against the elements, human beings don't.%0D%0AMonkeys can live without clothing, human beings cannot.%0D%0AThe Qur'an answers the question. Our bodies did not develop our skin--- so%0D%0Athin and fur free that it requires external covering for%0D%0Aprotection---because of some unexplained evolutionary accident. Our Creator%0D%0Adesigned it this way so we will always need clothing. He also put in us the%0D%0Asense of shame that forces us to cover ourselves. On the other hand, the%0D%0Afirst act of Satan was to cause Adam and Eve to expose themselves: "So by%0D%0Adeceit he brought about their fall: when they tasted of the tree, their%0D%0Ashameful parts became manifest to them, and they began to sew together the%0D%0Aleaves of the Garden over their bodies." [Al-A'raf 7:22]. This is the source%0D%0Aof the tension we see. Two opposing forces. Good and evil.%0D%0AWith that background we can understand the importance of clothing. "Oh%0D%0AChildren of Adam! We have bestowed raiment upon you to cover your shame as%0D%0Awell as to be an adornment to you. But the raiment of righteousness---that%0D%0Ais the best." [Al-A'raf 7:26]. The address here is to all humanity,%0D%0Aemphasizing thereby the universal human need to cover ourselves properly.%0D%0AThe Qur'an then warns that Satan was not finished after his first attempt:%0D%0A"Oh Children of Adam! Let not Satan seduce you in the same manner as he got%0D%0Ayour parents out of the Garden, stripping them of their raiment, to expose%0D%0Atheir shame." [Al-A'raf 7:27].%0D%0AOnce we realize the nature of the dress issue, it is natural that we should%0D%0Aturn to our Creator to seek guidance for the proper dress code. Qur'an and%0D%0ASunnah have provided ample guidance on the subject which can be summarized%0D%0Ain four essential principles.%0D%0A1. Our dress must cover our body adequately. Again we cannot determine what%0D%0Ais adequate coverage on our own, as any witness to the misery of those who%0D%0Ahave tried it can readily ascertain. Shar'iah, as always, takes us out of%0D%0Athis misery by defining it for us. For men, it is the middle part of the%0D%0Abody from navel to knee. For women, it is the entire body except hands and%0D%0Aface. These parts must never be exposed to any other person (except in case%0D%0Aof genuine need e.g. medical treatment). In addition, the cloth must be%0D%0Aneither see-through nor tight fitting.%0D%0A2. Our dress should provide adornment. It should provide for decent%0D%0Aappearance. Our appearance should not be an eyesore for decent human beings.%0D%0AFor men, this extends the coverage requirements to include most of the body.%0D%0AFor women, the essential requirement is that their dress should identify%0D%0Athem as respectable ladies who would be honored not harassed. Additionally,%0D%0Ahijab rules aim at protecting them from the gaze of other men.%0D%0A3. Our dress should establish our Islamic identity. At the least it should%0D%0Anot identify us as followers of another religion. But, additionally it%0D%0Ashould positively identify us as Muslims.%0D%0A4. The design of our dress must avoid three deadly sins: show off,%0D%0Aarrogance, and self indulgence. These are very serious diseases of the heart%0D%0Ain their own right that we must avoid at all times. Our garments provide an%0D%0Aeasy opportunity to nurture them. Hence the need to be extra cautious. One%0D%0AHadith states "Eat what you feel like and wear what you feel like. But avoid%0D%0Atwo things: extravagance and arrogance." [Bukhari]. At the risk of stating%0D%0Athe obvious one should be reminded that this Hadith establishes an%0D%0Aoverriding concern that limits our choices within the realm of what is%0D%0Aconsidered halal. It does not do away with the distinction between halal and%0D%0Aharam.%0D%0A%0D%0AAs one implication of this general requirement, men are also required not to%0D%0Awear their lower garments below the ankle. (Many well-meaning Muslims today%0D%0Ahave been persuaded that this is a petty issue. This misgiving can be put to%0D%0Arest in a hurry if we just refer to the Hadith of Jabir bin Sulaym,%0D%0ARadi-Allahu anhu, in Abu Dawood. He asked the Prophet, Sall-Allahu alayhi wa%0D%0Asallam for some advice when leaving him after his very first meeting. Of the%0D%0Asix pieces of advice given him one was: "Never let your lower garment go%0D%0Abelow the ankles because that is arrogance. And Allah does not like%0D%0Aarrogance." Another was "Never belittle a good deed.")%0D%0AIslam has not prescribed a particular dress style, giving us ample room to%0D%0Aaccommodate our needs, circumstances and tastes. However, these principles%0D%0Aare for everyone and forever. Any garment that accommodates these principles%0D%0Awill be Islamic dress. This is Islamic formula to dress for success. Eternal%0D%0Asuccess.