In Islam there is absolutely no difference between
men and women as far as their relationship to Allah is concerned,
as both are promised the same reward for good conduct and the
same punishment for evil conduct. The Qur'an says:
And for women are rights over men similar to those
of men over women. (2:226)
The Qur'an, in addressing the believers, often uses the expression,'believing
men and women' to emphasize the equality of men and women in regard
to their respective duties, rights, virtues and merits. It says:
For Muslim men and women, for believing men and
women, for devout men and women, for true men and women, for
men and women who are patient and constant, for men and women
who humble themselves, for men and women who give in charity,
for men and women who fast, for men and women who guard their
chastity, and for men and women who engage much in Allah's praise,
for them has Allah prepared forgiveness and great reward. (33:35)
This clearly contradicts the assertion of the Christian Fathers
that
women do not possess souls and that they will
exist as sexless beings in the next life. The Qur'an
says that women have souls in exactly the same way as men and
will enter Paradise if they do good :
Enter into Paradise, you and your wives, with
delight. (43:70)
Who so does that which is right, and believes, whether
male or female, him or her will We quicken to happy life.
(16:97)
The Qur'an admonishes those men who oppress or ill-treat
women:
O you who believe! You are forbidden to inherit
women against their will. Nor should you treat them with harshness,
that you may take away part of the dowry you have given them
- except when they have become guilty of open lewdness. On the
contrary live with them on a footing of kindness and equity.
If you take a dislike to them, it may be that you dislike something
and Allah will bring about through it a great deal of good.
(4:19)
Considering the fact that before the advent of Islam the pagan
Arabs used to bury their female children alive, make women dance
naked in the vicinity of the Ka'ba during their annual fairs,
and treat women as mere chattels and objects of sexual pleasure
possessing no rights or position whatsoever, these teachings of
the Noble Qur'an were revolutionary. Unlike other religions, which
regarded women as being possessed of inherent sin and wickedness
and men as being possessed of inherent virtue and nobility,
Islam
regards men and women as being of the same essence created from
a single soul. The Qur'an declares:
O mankind! Reverence your Guardian-Lord, who created
you from a single person, created, of like nature, his mate,
and from this pair scattered (like seeds) countless men and
women. Reverence Allah, through Whom you demand your mutual
(rights), and reverence the wombs (that bore you); for Allah
ever watches over you. (4:1)
The Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him) said,
"Women
are the twin halves of men." The Qur'an emphasizes the essential
unity of men and women in a most beautiful simile:
They (your wives) are your garment and you are
a garment for them. (2:187)
Just as a garment hides our nakedness, so do husband and wife,
by entering into the relationship of marriage, secure each other's
chastity. The garment gives comfort to the body; so does the husband
find comfort in his wife's company and she in his.
"The
garment is the grace, the beauty, the embellishment of the body,
so too are wives to their husbands as their husbands are to them."
Islam does not consider woman "an instrument of the
Devil", but rather the Qur'an calls her muhsana - a fortress against
Satan because a good woman, by marrying a man, helps him keep
to the path of rectitude in his life. It is for this reason that
marriage was considered by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon
him) as a most virtuous act. He said:
"When a man marries,
he has completed one half of his religion." He enjoined matrimony
on Muslims by saying:
"Marriage is part of my way and whoever
keeps away from my way is not from me (i.e. is not my follower)."
The Qur'an has given the raison d'être of marriage in the following
words:
And among His signs is this, that He has created for
you mates from among yourselves, that you may dwell in tranquillity
with them; and He has put love and mercy between you. Verily
in that are signs for those who reflect. (30:21)
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was full of praise for
virtuous and chaste women. He said:
"The world and all things in the world are precious
but the most precious thing in the world is a virtuous woman.
He once told the future khalif, 'Umar: "Shall I not inform you
about the best treasure a man can hoard? It is a virtuous wife
who pleases him whenever he looks towards her, and who guards
herself when he is absent from her."
On other occasions the Prophet said:
"The best property a man can have is a remembering
tongue (about Allah), a grateful heart and a believing wife
who helps him in his faith." And again: "The world, the whole
of it, is a commodity and the best of the commodities of the
world is a virtuous wife."
Before the advent of Islam women were often treated worse than
animals. The Prophet wanted to put a stop to all cruelties to
women. He preached kindness towards them. He told the Muslims:
"Fear Allah in respect of women." And:
"The best
of you are they who behave best to their wives." And:
"A
Muslim must not hate his wife, and if he be displeased with one
bad quality in her, let him be pleased with one that is good."
And:
"The more civil and kind a Muslim is to his wife, the
more perfect in faith he is."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) was most emphatic in enjoining
upon Muslims to be kind to their women when he delivered his
famous khutba on the Mount of Mercy at Arafat in the presence
of one hundred and twenty-four thousand of his Companions who
had gathered there for the Hajj al-Wada (Farewell Pilgrimage).
In it he ordered those present, and through them all those Muslims
who were to come later, to be respectful and kind towards women.
He said:
"Fear Allah regarding women. Verily you have married
them with the trust of Allah, and made their bodies lawful with
the word of Allah. You have got (rights) over them, and they
have got (rights) over you in respect of their food and clothing
according to your means."
In Islam a woman is a completely independent personality. She
can make any contract or bequest in her own name. She is entitled
to inherit in her position as mother, as wife, as sister and as
daughter. She has perfect liberty to choose her husband. The pagan
society of pre-Islamic Arabia had an irrational prejudice against
their female children whom they used to bury alive. The Messenger
of Allah (peace be upon him) was totally opposed to this practice.
He showed them that supporting their female children would act
as a screen for them against the fire of Hell:
It is narrated by the Prophet's wife, 'A'isha, that
a woman entered her house with two of her daughters. She asked
for charity but 'A'isha could not find anything except a date,
which was given to her. The woman divided it between her two
daughters and did not eat any herself. Then she got up and left.
When the Prophet (peace be upon him) came to the house, 'A'isha
told him about what had happened and he declared that when the
woman was brought to account (on the Day of Judgment) about
her two daughters they would act as a screen for her from the
fires of Hell.
The worst calamity for a woman is when her husband passes away
and, as a widow, the responsibility of maintaining the children
falls upon her. In the Eastern World, where a woman does not always
go out to earn her living, the problems of widowhood are indescribable.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) upheld the cause of widows.
Most of his wives were widows. In an age when widows were rarely
permitted to remarry, the Prophet encouraged his followers to
marry them. He was always ready to help widows and exhorted his
followers to do the same. Abu Hurairah reported that the Prophet
said:
"One who makes efforts (to help) the widow or a poor
person is like a mujahid (warrior) in the path of Allah, or like
one who stands up for prayers in the night and fasts in the day."
Woman as mother commands great respect in Islam. The Noble
Qur'an speaks of the rights of the mother in a number of verses.
It enjoins Muslims to show respect to their mothers and serve
them well even if they are still unbelievers. The Prophet states
emphatically that the rights of the mother are paramount. Abu
Hurairah reported that a man came to the Messenger of Allah
(peace be upon him) and asked: "O Messenger of Allah, who
is the person who has the greatest right on me with regards
to kindness and attention?" He replied, "Your mother."
"Then who?" He replied, "Your mother." "Then who?"
He replied, "Your mother." "Then who?" He replied,
"Your father."
In another tradition, the Prophet advised a believer not to
join the war against the Quraish in defense of Islam, but to
look after his mother, saying that his service to his mother
would be a cause of his salvation. Mu'awiyah, the son of Jahimah,
reported that Jahimah came to the Prophet (peace be upon him)
and said, " Messenger of Allah! I want to join the fighting
(in the path of Allah) and I have come to seek your advice."
He said, "Then remain in your mother's service, because
Paradise is under her feet."
The Prophet's followers accepted his teachings and brought
about a revolution in their social attitude towards women. They
no longer considered women as a mere chattels, but as an integral
part of society. For the first time women were given the right
to have a share in inheritance. In the new social climate, women
rediscovered themselves and became highly active members of
society rendering useful service during the wars which the pagan
Arabs forced on the emerging Muslim umma. They carried provisions
for the soldiers, nursed them, and even fought alongside them
if it was necessary. It became a common sight to see women helping
their husbands in the fields, carrying on trade and business
independently, and going out of their homes to satisfy their
needs.
'A'isha reported that Saudah bint Zam'ah went out one night.
'Umar saw her and recognized her and said, "By God, O Saudah,
why do you not hide yourself from us?" She went back to
the Prophet (peace be upon him) and told him about it while
he was having supper in her room, and he said, "It is permitted
by Allah for you to go out for your needs." The predominant
idea in the teachings of Islam with regard to men and women
is that a husband and wife should be full-fledged partners in
making their home a happy and prosperous place, that they should
be loyal and faithful to one another, and genuinely interested
in each other's welfare and the welfare of their children. A
woman is expected to exercise a humanizing influence over her
husband and to soften the sternness inherent in his nature.
A man is enjoined to educate the women in his care so that they
cultivate the qualities in which they, by their very nature,
excel.
These aspects were much emphasized by the Prophet (peace be
upon him). He exhorted men to marry women of piety and women
to be faithful to their husbands and kind to their children.
He said:
"Among my followers the best of men are those who
are best to their wives, and the best of women are those who
are best to their husbands. To each of such women is set down
a reward equivalent to the reward of a thousand martyrs. Among
my followers, again, the best of women are those who assist
their husbands in their work, and love them dearly for everything,
save what is a transgression of Allah's laws."
Once Mu'awiyah asked the Prophet (peace be upon him),
"What
are the rights that a wife has over her husband?" The Prophet
replied,
" Feed her when you take your food, give her clothes
to wear when you wear clothes, refrain from giving her a slap
on the face or abusing her, and do not separate from your wife,
except within the house." Once a woman came to the Prophet
with a complaint against her husband. He told her:
"There
is no woman who removes something to replace it in its proper
place, with a view to tidying her husband's house, but that Allah
sets it down as a virtue for her. Nor is there a man who walks
with his wife hand-in-hand, but that Allah sets it down as a virtue
for him; and if he puts his arm round her shoulder in love, his
virtue is increased tenfold." Once he was heard praising
the women of the tribe of Quraish,
"...because they are the
kindest to their children while they are infants and because they
keep a careful watch over the belongings of their husbands."
The Shari'ah regards women as the spiritual and intellectual
equals of men. The main distinction it makes between them is
in the physical realm based on the equitable principle of fair
division of labor. It allots the more strenuous work to the
man and makes him responsible for the maintenance of the family.
It allots the work of managing the home and the upbringing and
training of children to the woman, work which has the greatest
importance in the task of building a healthy and prosperous
society.
It is a fact, however, that sound administration within the
domestic field is impossible without a unified policy. For this
reason the Shari'ah requires a man, as head of the family, to
consult with his family and then to have the final say in decisions
concerning it. In doing so he must not abuse his prerogative
to cause any injury to his wife. Any transgression of this principle
involves for him the risk of losing the favor of Allah, because
his wife is not his subordinate but she is, to use the words
of the Prophet (peace be upon him), 'the queen of her house',
and this is the position a true believer is expected to
give his wife. In contrast to these enlightened teachings of
Islam in respect of women, Western talk of women's liberation
or emancipation is actually a disguised form of exploitation
of her body, deprivation of her honor, and degradation of her
soul!
