يَٰبَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ قَدْ أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكُمْ لِبَاسًا يُوَٰرِى سَوْءَٰتِكُمْ وَرِيشًا ۖ وَلِبَاسُ ٱلتَّقْوَىٰ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ ءَايَٰتِ ٱللَّهِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَذَّكَّرُونَ
Important Words:
ریش (elegant dress) is the substantive from راش. They say راشه i.e. he feathered it, namely an arrow; he fed him and gave him drink and clad him; he strengthened and aided him; he helped him to obtain his subsistence; He (God) restored him from a state of poverty to a state of wealth or competence; he did good to him. ریش means, feathers; plumage of birds; clothing; or superb or fine clothing; wealth; the means of subsistence; household goods or furniture (Lane & Aqrab).
Commentary:
This verse mentions two objects which our dress is meant to serve, viz. (1) to cover our nakedness and (2) to serve as a decoration and embellishment and make us look elegant. With these two objects of clothing before us it is indeed regrettable that clothing has continued to be progressively discarded by women in the west and this moral disease is now fast spreading in the east as well.
The words, the raiment of righteousness, explain the real significance of the words ریش (elegant dress). We are told that the apparel of piety is, in fact, the really fine raiment for man. Ordinary dress covers our physical nakedness, while the apparel of piety covers our spiritual and moral nakedness, and it was with this very apparel of piety that Adam covered his "nakedness" in the garden. He prayed to God Who heard his supplication and turned to him with mercy and forgiveness (7:24).
The verse beautifully reminds us that when we consider it to be so necessary to have good clothing to cover our physical nakedness and use elegant dress to look graceful, we should all the more be anxious to cover our moral and spiritual nakedness, which can only be done by prayer and by asking God’s forgiveness and mercy as Adam did.
It was with the apparel of piety that Adam covered his "nakedness" in the "Garden".