No. It is not necessary. We do not find anything in the Holy Qur'an or the Sunnah which makes it necessary for female Muslims to cover their heads while reciting the Darud or the Holy Qur'an.

It however seems to be a cultural tradition instead. Muslim ladies do wear shawl or scarf while offering Sal'ah or while reciting the Holy Qur'an. Cultural traditions have their own relative importance though these do not fall within the purview of religious instructions.

Perhaps, if you could quote the Ahadith which you have read, I would be better able to respond to your question.

Anyhow most Muslim scholars believe that Ahadith do not make anything obligatory in the religious sense of the term. The fundamental sources of Islam are two, namely, the Holy Qur'an and the Sunnah. When these are devoid of any obligation on the part of Muslim ladies to cover their heads while reciting, we should not assert that this specific practice of covering the head falls under Fardh (obligatory) duties.

Nevertheless any cultural practice does have its own importance. Why? Because culture is a broad manifestation of the set of divine directives which have been given to mankind. Allah has given certain commandments and the Muslims, under the influence of these commandments, have adopted certain practices, attitudes etc. While these practices are not obligatory, they nonetheless have evolved under the influence of the divine commandments.Seen in this perspective, cultural practices do have some importance and adherence to them is a noble act. Again, we must be very clear that these practices are not divinely ordained.

I thank you for your comments. I would request you to please also respond to the following question:

In this period in which intellectual anarchy pervails and religious values and commandments are being forsaken, what can we do to help Islamic civilization to perpetuate?

What I mean is: during these times, it is hardly possible to induce people to stick to the religiously ordained practices, how can we exhort them to also adhere to their culture?

My view point is that a culture is the ultimate manifestation of the principles on which it is based, that is, the divine decrees of Islam. The religion translates into a culture and as the religion becomes a cutural value to adhere to, almost all people stick to the religion--because it becomes a social value to stick to the religion not to mention the reward in the Hereafter. When deterioration ensues in religiosity, the culture of a people first vanishes. First, the cultural value of cherishing deep love for parents and kids and providing for them vanishes, then it kills the family institution, then freedom for every kind of filthy relationship...

Therefore, at the root, preservation of Islamic civilization is crucially important. But how to preserve?

Cultural traditions have their own importance in every religion and these should not be sacrificed except when a person feels himself helpless and he finds there is no other way out. The objective of Islam is the purification of soul. Cultural traditions help a lot towards the fulfillment of this objective.

None can deny the improtance of cultural traditions in culturing one life. But I am unable to understand how the cultural traditions of the pagan Arabs could have helped a lot in fulfilling the objective of purification. Did Islam change them all and replaced them with better ones which are helpful in attaining purificatoin? A study of early history and growth of Islam would reveal that there is not much that was replaced in cultural traditions except for purely religious traditions. Is not some new cultural values able to bring betterment in currect state of affars. For example Muslim women have come to know some of their rights which were not being given to them previously expecially in indian societies. You can no more beat your wives when you feel like and youcannot force your daughters into marriage without their free consent. Should these positive elements from new cultural values be condemned merely because these are imported?