youssef%LOCAL@cs.umn.edu (Habib Youssef) (02/24/90)
Assalamou Aleikom,
This is in response to, what I believe, were incorrect statements about
the status of women in Islam. The interpretations of some verses of the Holy
Koran or the saying of the prophet (PBUS) reflect rather the point of view
of the commentators rather than the true position of women in Islam. Islam
sees women different than men not because men have bigger brains, and for
that matter are smarter. This is like saying that someone with longer legs
always outrun anyone with shorter legs!!! The differences are rather
of other physiological nature, which make the duties of each sex different.
Men and women are different and they complement and perfect each other
weaknesses.
Anyway, sometime ago, I read a five page publication on the subject
of woman in Islam. The author of the publication is (I think) Nizar Al-Talib,
from the Muslim Student Association (MSA) in Pa. The publication dates back
to 1964. I personnally think that the publication gives a very concise
summary on the subject aforementioned.
Dr. Habib Youssef
Csci Department
Univiversity of Minnesota
===============================================================================
STATUS OF WOMEN IN ISLAM
1. INTRODUCTION
In the pre-Islamic days, the pagan Arabs regarded the birth of a
girl-child the very opposite of a blessing. They had the custom of burying
alive such of them as they considered superfluous. They held women in
supreme contempt, ill-treated, and defrauded them habitually. With the
advent of Islam, a complete metamorphosis took place. Within the 23 years
during which prophet Muhammad (may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him)
promulgated the message of Islam, the position of women was raised from the
lowest degradation to the greatest heights of esteem, honor, and respect.
At a time when woman-hood in the west was held in such a state of impurity
that even a woman's touch was an evil polution of the Bible, Quranic
manuscripts were held in the trust of the Lady Hafsa at Medina. At a time
when Romans held conferences to debate whether woman was a "person" or
a "thing", Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him (pub)) stood up to declare
that "women are but the sisters of men" and to shatter the pre-Islamic
era of darkness and injustice, so that a woman could argue with the Prophet
in the courtyard of the mosque and say "I have been deputed to you on
behalf of women".
Islam elevated woman to heights of prestige which have neither
precedent nor parallel in human history. It is the purpose of this article
to state the Islamic view of the status of woman in society. If in certain
Eastern countries the position of woman is a degraded one, it is precisely
because the Islamic injunctions in this regard are not obeyed there, on
account of ignorance and illeteracy. The situation, however, is fast
changing, and in many Muslim countries women enjoy the freedom, honor
and deep esteem accorded to them by Islam.
2. POSITION OF WOMAN.
Before discussing the specific aspects of the position of woman in
Islam, it must be made clear that while Islam professes unconditional equality
between man and woman in the matters of duties and rights, it recognizes
the limitations of sexes. Thus, instead of saying that man and woman are
equal in every respect, Islam teaches that man and woman have distinct
functions in life, and are created to perfect each other. One of the Quranic
verses of exquisite beauty, which has been subject to misconstruction by
certain non-muslim authors:
"They (the wives) are a garnment for you and you are a garment for them"
(Surah 2, Verse 157).
Just as a garment in the grace, the beauty, the embellishment of the body,
so is a wife to her husband and a husband to his wife. Thus, man and woman
mutually form complements of one another. Without one the other is incomplete.
The Quran states states this fact as follows:
"And of his signs is this: He created for you helpmates from yoursleves that
ye may find rest in them, he ordained between you love and mercy."
(Surah 30, Verse 21).
God has not willed a perfect equality between the two sexes, but a
distribution of avocations and functions. While Islam requires strict equality
between man and woman in the matter of rights, moral, and social obligations,
it recognizes that man's responsibilities are far greater than woman's. Islam
regards the "family as the important unit of society, and places on man the
task of supporting in the best of possible manner and to look after the
household affairs. This is only too natural, since the physical differences
between man and woman demand such an arrangement. It is for this reason that
Islam regards man as being prior to woman, although his duties and rights are
the same as hers. This is evident from the following verse of the Quran:
"The women ought also to behave toward their husbands in like manner as their
husbands should behave toward them, according to what is just: but the man
ought to have a superiority over them".
This superiority is purely a dictate of wordly efficiency. Family leadership
belongs to man by divine arrangement, and it is in this respect that man is
given priority. Moral superiority and excellence, genuine moral worth, is as
much possible to man as it is to woman. Only Allah (Allah is the Arabic name
for God) can judge whether a man or his wife is "better".
3. POSITION OF WOMAN AS MOTHER, WIFE, AND DAUGHTER.
The position of mother is very exalted in Islamic tradition. Prophet
Muhammed (pbu) has gone so far as to say:
"Even Paradise lies underneath the feet of your mothers".
He said, that next to saying prayers at the appointed hour, what pleases Allah
most is being kind and generous to your parents.
The Quran mentions this often, reminding man the fact that it was his mother
who had borne him in her womb, suffered much on his account and reared him up
after making all sorts of sacrifices.
As regards the status of woman as wife, the saying of Prophet Muhammad
(pub) is well known:
"The best among you is the one who is best toward his wife".
Islam holds a wife in great esteem. The rights and concessions allowed to
woman as wife are many. A few of these will be discussed below.
With regard to woman as a daughter, the Islamic attitude can be judged
from the reproaches which Quran makes (e.g. see Surah 16, Verses 57-59) against
the excesses committed toward daughters in the pre-Islamic Arabia. Prophet
Muhammad (pbu) was very fond of his daughters and exhorted Muslims to be very
affectionate to their daughters. About divorced women, he has said:
"Shall I not point out to you the best of virtues? It is doing good to your
daughter when she is returned to you having been divorced by her husband".
4. RIGHTS OF WOMEN.
The Quran places woman at the same level as man where the rights of
property, honor, education, etc. are concerned. In certain instances, the
rights of woman are held to be more important. For instance, the Quran
decrees (see Surah 24, Verses 4 & 5) that if a man accuses a woman of
immorality and does not produce proof, he is exposed not only to the penalty
prescribed for false accusation, but to be declared unfit for serving as a
witness in any court, for the rest of his life.
The perfect and complete individualtiy of the person of woman is
manifest in a most striking manner in the matter of property. According to
Islamic law, the woman possesses a most absolute right over her property.
She may dispose of it as she wishes without reference to anybody else,
whether it be her father, brother, husband or son or any other person. The
latter may not touch her property without her consent. The husband is required
to fully support his wife and children in every respect, barring, of course,
exceptional circumstances which may require the woman to go to work. The idea
of maintenance goes so far in Islam that, according to the law, the wife may
refuse to nurse her baby and demand a renumeration for bringing up her
children, if she so wishes.
As regards marriage, the Islamic law allows the woman the fullest freedom
of choice of the partner in the sense that if a marriage is contracted by her
parents or guardian without her consent, the marriage will not be valid.
Al Ghazali [1] cites the example of a girl who complained to Prophet
Muhammad (pbu) that her parents contracted her marriage without her consent.
The prophet (pbu), thereupon, ordered that the marriage be annulled. However,
the girl changed her mind, saying that actually she came to like her husband.
It should be mentioned that a woman has the fullest right to divorce her
husband, if reasonable grounds exist. Finally, as regards polygamy,
this matter has been discussed in [2].
Briefly, polygamy in Islam is neither forbidden nor necessary. It is a
preventive measure allowed in exacting circumstances. However, a woman has the
right to legally ensure that her husband does not take a second wife.
5. THE RIGHT OF INHERITANCE.
A woman's right to inheritance requires some explanation. The Islamic law
allows a person to dispose a maximum of one third of his assets in any manner
he wants, the rest, however, must be distributed among the children and the
wife (and brothers and sisters and parents, under certain conditions only) of
the decrease in certain proportions. Without going into details (for which
the reader is referred to the excellent summary given by Yussuf Ali [3]),
it may be mentioned that, on the whole, women get somewhat smaller share
than men. There are many reasons for this, some of which are these: a woman
has fewer financial responsibilities than men, she does not have to spend
her share on the family while the man must, she is fully supported by her
husband, she recieves a contractual sum ("mahr") from her husband at the time
of marriage, which is her personal property, etc. It is characteristic of the
social justice of Islam that in spite of the fact that Islams frees woman from
all financial responsibilty under normal circumstances, she still recieves a
substantial share of the inheritance.
6. RELIGIOUS OBLIGATIONS OF WOMEN.
In religious matters, the first duty of the muslim woman, as also of man,
is to believe in the Unity of Allah and in the teachings of Islam. She is
required to bring up her children in such a manner that they have sound
knowledge of the principles of Islam.
Among the religious practices, it is incumbent upon Muslim women, as also
upon men, to say prayers, observe fasting, etc., though with certain
concessions. An adult woman is exempt from these duties during the menstruate
period and after childbirth. With regard to the pilgrimage to Mecca also, there
are certain rites from which she is exempted, if she cannot perform them for
feminine reasons. As to the payments of poor-tax ("Zakat"), she has equality
with man, though certain schools of law on the savings, yet the savings
converted into ornaments of personal use are exempt from tax. To be brief,
Islam is lenient and considerate to a woman, and recognizes her physical
weaknesses as well as her feminine tastes.
7. WOMEN AND MORALITY.
The Muslim woman is required to strictly observe the Islamic code of
morals in the interests of her own chastity as well as the moral stabilty of
the society as a whole. She must avoid all practices which may arouse feelings
of lust or evil thoughts in those who may observe her. Briefly, not only a
woman must observe certain rules of decency as regards dress and public
manners, laid down by Allah in the Quran, and further expounded by Prophet
Muhammad (pbu). A few of these will be mentioned.
Al-Ghazali [1], one of the greatest Muslim thinkers of this century,
shows by authoritative arguments that Islam never required a woman to wear a
veil or to stay indoors. What it does make clear is that women, when they
go out of the home, should be fully dressed but not over-adorned. Showing their
faces is not a sin as long as they are not painted or perfumed. In the context
of dress and public manners, the Quran states:
"Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their
modesty: that will make for greater purity for them: and God is well
acquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that
they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not
display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear
thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display
their beauty except to their husbands...". (Surah 24, Verse 30 and part of
Verse 31).
Some of the other requirements laid down by the Prophet (pbu), to be
observed by the Muslim woman are, that a woman may not travel a whole day and
night's distance without escort, she may not be left alone with a man
(an outsider), whether in her home or outside it. Women are further required
to be reserved in their conversation and to discourage their interlocutors
from tempting them.
As regards dress, categorically, Islam does not tolerate the uncovering of
arms, legs, and breasts, or the wearing of transparent or semi-transparent
clothes. Some of the Muslims jurists do allow the Muslim woman to wear very
conservative Western dress, provided it fulfills certain requirements.
In the end, it must be emphasized that the Quran specifically prohibits
Muslim women from exhibitions of themselves under any circumstances, even if
their dress fulfills the conditions laid down by the Islamic law.
8. THE IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATION.
Islam accords paramount importance to the education of women. This is
evident from the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (pbu), as well as from the
numerous examples of muslim women, who played important roles in the early
history of Islam. The reader may refer to whole books on the topic [4, 5].
According to Islam, education is not a luxury a person may do without.
It is an absolute necessity for men and women alike. In the early Muslim
society, the educational standards of men and observance of the religious
obligations by both, the Quran as well as the sayings of the Prophet (pbu)
place a great deal of emphasis on the value of learning for Muslims in general,
women and men alike.
A Muslim woman does not get educated to enter a clerical or government
service, or to take some other job. Rather, her primary aim is to build the
home and the family, and consequently, the whole nation. The poet Al-Rasafi
says:
"There is no place where moral character could be better developed than
in the laps of women. A mother's lap is a school whose distinction is the
education of sons and daughters. The morals of a child can be no better
than those of his mother."
Thus, it is seen that Islam's strong emphasis on the education of women is
not only wisely based, but also it has far-reaching implications concerning
the development of the whole Islamic society.
9. CONCLUSION.
Finally, whatever may be said, Islam regards a woman most favorably.
If she is a mother, then "Paradise is underneath her feet", if she is a child,
then "to educate her is to escape hellfire", and if she is a wife, then
"her husband's goodness and dignity lie in loving and protecting her."
(Sayings of the Prophet (pbu)).
To a Muslim, a woman is far above an object of lust. She is among the
noblest of Allah's creations. She is capable of the highest emotions, and she
is worthy of the greatest honor, for she is the procreator of the human race.
10. REFERENCES.
[1] Muhammad Al-Ghazali: Our beginning in Wisdom,
Published by American Counc 1 of Learned Societies, Washington, D.C.
(1953).
[2] Nizar Al-Talib: Polygamy in Islam,
Studies in Islam Series No. 2, published by the MSA,
University Park, Pa. (1964).
[3] A. Yussuf Ali: The Holy Quran-text, Translation and Commentary.
Available from the Islamic Center, Washignton, D.C. (1963)
(see footnotes to Surah 4: Women)
[4] Famous Women in Islam, Available from Specialty Promotion Co.,
P.O. Box 3034, Newark, N.J.
[5] A Sulaiman Navdi: Heroic Deeds of Muslim Women,
Islamic Publications, Ltd., 11C Shah Alam Market, Lahore, Pakistan.rached@ee.eng.ohio-state.edu (Rached Zantout) (04/23/91)
Assalamu alaykum nrothers/sisters In the Muslim Student Association of Ohio State University (Columbus, Ohio), we have a Daawa Committee. This committee has the primary purpose of seeking ways to spread the din of Allah and make daawa to muslims and non muslims. One of our activities is to set a table every thursday in the Union (the place where most of the people go) of the OSU. Recently we got a suggestion from one sister that is to let sisters (and not only brothers) sit on the daawa table. When this suggestion was discussed, a very knowlegeable brother objected to it claiming that it is not the duty of the women to make daawa and even if they want to do it we should prevent them from doing it since this was not done at the days of the prophet PBUH. He is a very knowlegeable brother and highly respected in our community, also he had his proof ready on the spot, anaya from the Quran (Sura Al-Imran) telling women to stay at home. He also gave many examples from the Sirah of the prophet (that I don't remember now). I amwriting this because we agreed that we should ask for more opinions about this sensitive issue. The questions to answer are: 1. What are women allowed to do in islam ? 2. Are they allowed to go out of their homes ? 3. Are they allowed to have their own businesses and to run them ? I know the answers to those questions (or at least I thought I knew) but I don't recall the proofs that will refute the ones of the above brother. I had a discussion with many other brothers about that and I know those proofs exist. I will do my part of researching this subject inshallah but I am posting this for you to think about it and reply to me. I will inshallah summarize the replies in an article (whether I am right or wrong since we are seeking the truth here) but please remember to include your PROOFS from QURAN and SUNNAH and not give me the logical and not logical argument because in islam to say that something is or is not halal or haram we have to supply the proof. I hope that this subject will simulate good and fruitfull discussion that will make us all learn more about OUR religion and make non muslims also learn more about it. yours in Islam Rached -- "I bear witness that there is only one god, and that Muhammad is his messenger"
bes@tybalt.caltech.edu (Behnam Sadeghi) (04/27/91)
In article <1991Apr23.153534.14606@wpi.WPI.EDU>, brother Rached Zantout (rached@ee.eng.ohio0state.edu) writes: >When this suggestion was discussed, a very knowlegeable brother objected >to it claiming that it is not the duty of the women to make daawa and >even if they want to do it we should prevent them from doing it since >this was not done at the days of the prophet PBUH. He is a very >knowlegeable brother and highly respected in our community, also he had >his proof ready on the spot, anaya from the Quran (Sura Al-Imran) >telling women to stay at home. He also gave many examples from the Sirah >of the prophet (that I don't remember now). Assalamu Alaikum [peace on you]. Advise this brother that the Quran does not ask women to stay home. The Quran advised the wives of the Prophet (pbuh) to stay home, while making it explicit that this injuction was only for the Prophet's wives since the Prophet's wives were different than ordinary women. Translation of verse 32 in Sourah 33: O Consorts of the Prophet! You are not like any of the other women: if you do heed God....And stay quietly in your houses ... This is not the only way in which "Mother of the Believers" were different than ordinary women. More on this and the reasons behind it at the end of this article. >I am writing this because we agreed that we should ask for more opinions >about this sensitive issue. The questions to answer are: >1. What are women allowed to do in islam ? >2. Are they allowed to go out of their homes >3. Are they allowed to have their own businesses and to run them ? I am going to quote excerpts from a book titled "Role of Muslim Woman in Society" and edited by Afzular Rahman. The book discusses Muslim women in battle, in agriculture, industry, etc. Here are the excerpts: "Agriculture and Grazing ... The incident of Jabir's aunt has already been mentioned. According to him, his aunt was divorced by three utterances. She had a garden of palm trees and wanted to cut down fruit from them; but a man forbade her to go out during her period of waiting (idda). So she went to the Prophet and told him this and he said, 'Certainly cut down fruit from your palm trees, and perhaps you may give charity (sadaqah) or do an act of kindness." (Sahih Muslim) ...It is narrated by Sahl ibn Sa'd: "There was a woman who had a farm and she used to sow salq (a kind of vegetable) on the edges of streams in her farm. On Friday, she used to pull out the salq by roots and put the roots in a utensile. Then she would put a handful of powdered barley over them and cook them. The roots of the salq were a substitute for meat. After finishing the friday prayer, we used to greet her and she would give us some of this food, which we would eat with our hands, and because of that meal, we used to look forward to Fridays." (Bukhari) [The book continutes to quote two pages of ahadith (traditions) about the same subject, but I don't have time to type them all. then:] Industry and Trade ...There was a lady named Qailah who told the Prophet that she was a trader and bought and sold things. Then she asked some qustions of the Prophet about trading. (Tabaqat Ibn Sa'd, vol.8, p.228). It is narrated about Asma bint Makhramah that she received perfumes from her son Abdullah ibn Abi Rabiah in Yemen and sold them. (Tabaqat Ibn Sa'd, vol.8, p.220) ...The wife of Abdullah ibn Ma'sud was an accomplished artisan and worked hard at crafts to meet the needs of the family because Abudullah ibn Mas'ud was mostly engaged in the work of Din [religion] and did not earn anything. Once the Prophet asked her if she spent her money on her husband, and when she replied in the the affirmative, the Prophet said: "You will get your reward." (Tabaqat Ibn Sa'd, Vol.8, p. 278). .... ...Many incidents are found in the books of history and hadith which seem to indicate that women did engage themselves in trade and industry in order to meet their household expenses. The Prophet met quite a few of these working women and never objected to their engagement in these crafts, businesses, and trades... [From now on, I will just summarize] Visits to the Mosque [ The book quotes ahadith in Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, and Tirmidhi to the effect that women prayed in the mosques during the Prophet's lifetime. But they were not mixed with men. Men and women reportedly sat separately. Traditions in Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah indicate that women reportedly participated in Friday and Eid prayers as well.] War Services [The book contains more than 5 pages of traditions concerning women's participation in the defense of the Islamic state. These women reportedly participated in the actual fighting! In other cases, women tended the wounded or carried water or prepared food for the troops. Sorry, I don't have time to type all these traditions.] The Defense of Din and its Inducement [The book cites traditions concerning some women's contributions to the Da'wa (call to Islam) effort as well as their verbal defense of Islam.] ============================================================================= At the beginning of this article, it was mentioned that the "Mothers of Believers" were said by Qur'an to be different than ordinary women. Another way in which they differed was that they were prohibited to marry anybody else after the Prophet's death. Ordinary women can remarry if they are widdowed. According to traditions, certain obnoxious people were approaching the Prophet's wives (while the Prophet was alive) and urging them to marry them after the Prophet's death! Apparently marriage with these ladies would have been a cause of prestige and might have potentially been used by some people for political gain and manipulation, obviously a dangerous prospect. Another way these ladies differed from ordinary ladies was their adherence to a rather strict form of hijab (i.e. curtain). In an article, Mostafa Hashem Sharif writes: The rules of polite behavoior are tightened in the case of the Prophet and his wives. According to the verses quoted above speaking to the Prophet's wives in their residences should be from behind a partition because their private quarters should be restricted from the general public. Furthermore, as "Mothers of Believers" they could not remarry after the Prophet's death. To understand such rules, we have to reconstruct the atmosphere of the times, with the prevailing habits and customs. There is no doubt that many people, particularly among the less polished bedouins, were oblivious to individual privacy and were insensitive to the sanctity of houses. They tended to abuse the Prophet's hospitality and graciousness and would call him, for example, while he was sleeping without deference to his rank or consideration for his need to rest (S. 49:1-4). They often did not hesitate to enter without permission irrespective of the time. During a conversation or a discussion with the Prophet, they would raise their voices in an attempt to drown his. We can easily imagine the inconvenience that these visitors inflicted on the Prophet and his wives, particularly since rooms then did not have doors but were merely partitioned with curtains of hair tassels.... Taken in its context, hijab was a social education of the general Muslim public in the proper ways of treating and addressing the Prophet's wives and the sanctity of their houses. These verses, therefore, introduced much needed decency in dealing with the Prophet's wives and taught them in return to protect the dignity of their status. The consequences were quickly felt; after this verse, for example, the Prophet's wives stopped going to the wide terrain on the outskirts of Medina (manasi) that served as communal latrines, and resorted to toilet pits inside the houses, unless in the darkness of the night. {Ibn Hajar, "Fath al-Bari", X, 150}. Sharif goes on to point out that this didn't mean that the Prophet's wives never left their homes. He cites instances of travel by these ladies after the revealation of the mentioned verses. Salam Alaikum, Behnam Sadeghi