What is the ruling on placing the Mus'haf (Quran) at the level of the feet while they are extended, and what is the validity of the statement that the niqab (face veil) is not a fundamental part of the religion, and that the face is not awrah (private parts that must be covered)?

The questioner mentioned several opinions about the niqab, starting with the statement that wearing the niqab is not a fundamental matter in religion. He clarified that this statement is general: if it means it is not one of the pillars of Islam, then it is correct; but if it means it is an innovation in religion, then it is false. He refuted the argument that if the niqab were obligatory, most women on earth would be sinful, by demonstrating that this is not a valid argument. He also explained that Al-Albani's book "Jilbab al-Mar'ah al-Muslimah" supports the view that covering the face is not obligatory, and that Al-Albani himself stated the desirability of covering the face, not that the niqab is not a fundamental matter in religion. He denied the existence of dozens of hadiths showing women with unveiled faces and responded to the hadith of Jabir and Asma bint Umays, clarifying that Jabir's hadith does not indicate the Prophet's (peace be upon him) approval of unveiling the face, and that Asma's hadith does not mention her face. He affirmed that the opinion of the niqab being obligatory when there is fear of fitna is correct, emphasizing that jurists have made it obligatory for women to cover their faces and hands during times of moral corruption and fear of fitna, referring to the statements of jurists from different schools of thought. He concluded by refuting the justification for not obliging face covering—that men are a source of fitna for women—explaining that women are the locus of fitna and are commanded to wear the hijab, and that a woman should lower her gaze if she fears fitna from a man.