(Original Source: http://www.55a.net/firas/english/?page=show_det&id=127&select_page=2 )

By Dr. Nazmy Khalil Abulata

Translated by: Yasmine Muhammad Moslim; Revised by: Magdy Abd Al-Shafy Abd Al-Jawad

Edited by: Defending-Islam staff

Studying the History of Islam and the holy history of the Life of Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) in a careful and objective way – despite the misunderstandings of some Muslims today – one will be introduced to the pioneering role of Muslim women. Such a leading role was emphasized through protecting the Call to Islam, martyrdom for the sake of God, sacrifice, consultation, medical treatment, struggle, giving opinions, learning, and bringing up children, all of which are proved by events, facts and true reports of the Sunna [1] and Islamic History.

1. Khadija (Radhia Allahu Anha) is the first believer in Islam:

When Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) returned from the Cave of Hira for the first time, he went to Khadija (his wife) (Radhia Allahu Anha) and said: “Cover me! Cover me! (out of fear as he had already saw the Angel Jibril (Alayhi Salaam).” She covered him until his fear was over and after that he told her everything that had happened and said, “I fear that something may have happened to me.” Khadija replied: “Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your kith and kin, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the destitute and calamity-afflicted ones.” Khadija then accompanied him to her cousin Waraqa bin Naufal, who was an old learned man. Khadija said to Waraqa: “Listen to the story of your nephew, O my cousin!” Waraqa asked: “O my nephew! What have you seen?” Allah’s Apostle described what he had seen. Waraqa said, “This is the same one who keeps the secrets (Angel Jibril) whom Allah had sent to Moses.”[2]

Imam Ahmad has reported that Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) said (about Khadija): “She believed in me when others disbelieved in me, she affirmed my faithfulness when others accused me of lying, and she supported me with her money while others deserted me”.

The pioneering role of Khadija (Radhia Allahu Anha):

Khadija (Radhia Allahu Anha) played a pioneering role. She never abandoned the Messenger of God (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) during his troubles.  Furthermore, Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam), as a man, never devalued the opinion of Khadija (Radhia Allahu Anha), as a woman. He never ignored her advice. Instead, he accompanied her to her erudite cousin where she started the discussion and showed leadership, which was not disapproved by Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam). Also, he never felt ashamed that he was weak at the beginning of (receiving) the Divine Revelation while she coped well with the situation. This is, actually, a lesson for male degree holders, as today some of them degrade women and their role.

2. Sumaya Bint Al-Khayat (Radhia Allahu Anha), the first martyr in the History of Islam:

She encountered the polytheists with the strength of a female believer who had a firm will and died of excruciating torture.

Although the unbelievers used to beat her belly and her private parts with a steel bar as they became filled with rage at her pioneering attitude and resistance, and in spite of her slavery and torture, she was strong and venerated. On the contrary, in spite of the pretended mastery of the polytheists, they were very humble before her.

What a heroic role! What great honour a Muslim woman had when she became the first martyr in the history of Islam! O slaves of manhood, wake up! O those who have a complex about womanhood, I wonder which man did as Sumaya (Radhia Allahu Anha) did.

3. Asma’ [3] (Radhia Allahu Anha) was the first one to have risked her life for Islam (commando) in the History of Islam:

She played the role of commissariat for the Immigrants’ Army and the role of an intelligence agent as she used to transmit necessary information of the enemy. It has been narrated in Sahih Muslim that when Al-Hajjaj crucified her son, Abd Allah Bin Al-Zubair (Radhia Allahu Anhu), and sent his messenger to her, she refused to attend his court. So, Al-Hajjaj came to her himself. “How do you find what I did with the enemy of God?” Al-Hajjaj said. “I find that you ruined his life, while he ruined your life in the Hereafter.” she replied. “I have been informed that you call him: the son of the Woman of the Two Belts. I swear by Allah, I am the Woman of the Two Belts; with one of them, I suspended high the food of the Prophet (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) and Abi Bakr, making it out of the reach of pack animals. The other is the necessary belt for a woman . The Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) told us that, in the Thaqif Tribe, there would be born a great liar and a great assassin. We have seen the liar,(Mussailama), and I do think the murderer is none but you.” Thereupon, he (Al-Hajjaj) stood up and never replied to her.

These are only some glimpses of the courage of Asma (Radhia Allahu Anha) a woman who was one who confronted the tyrant, Al-Hajjaj – a man who was a case in point- and supported reformers and prophets – the Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) and the Immigrants with him (Radhia Allahu Anhum).

4. Umm Salama (Radhia Allahu Anha), a woman who rescued Muslims from ruin:

On the day of Al-Hudaibiya Treaty, people disobeyed the Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) and therefore the Muslims were about to be ruined [4]. Allah protected them with the wisdom of Umm Salama (Radhia Allahu Anha) and her good advice. Imam Al-Bukhari has reported: “when the Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) concluded the Al-Hudaibiya Peace Treaty with the Quraish Tribe, he said to his Companions:  ‘Get up and butcher your sacrifices, then have your heads shaved’. By God, no one did so although he repeated his order three times. When none of them got up, he went to Umm Salama (his wife) and told her about what the people had done. She said: ‘O Prophet of Allah, do you want them to follow your order?

Go out, do not speak to any of them until you butcher your she-camel (sacrifice) and call your barber to shave your head’. He got out and did not speak to anyone until he did that, i.e. butchered his sacrifice and called his barber to shave his head.

When Muslims saw that, they got up, butchered their sacrifices and shaved the heads of each other”. [5] It is the fraternity of Islam appearing in how Umm Salama (Radhia Allahu Anha) rescued Muslims from the disobedience of their Prophet (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam). Furthermore, he (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) never devalued her advice, as some men do nowadays with their wives. Instead, he followed her advice. I wonder if men today try to draw a lesson from that.

5. Umm Atiya (Radhia Allahu Anha) defended men:

Imam Al-Bukhary reported that the husband of Umm ‘Atiyya participated in twelve military campaigns (Ghazawats) with the Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam). Umm Atiya accompanied him in six of them. Imam Muslim narrated on the authority of Umm ‘Atiyya, the Ansarite, who said: I took part with the Messenger of God (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) in seven battles. I used to stay behind in the camp of men, cook their food, treat the wounded and nurse the sick. [6]

On the day of the Battle of Uhud, when men ran away, she resisted and defended the Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam). So, she used to stand up for Muslim men and the Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam).

6. The first military field hospital established by a Muslim woman:

It is mentioned in the history of Islam that Raffida (Radhia Allahu Anha) set up the first mobile military field hospital in the History of Islam. She pitched a field tent where medical care was provided for the wounded.

In short, if we try to mention the glorious feats of women in the History of Islam, we would find that such pioneering feats are countless. I wonder how far women nowadays tread in the steps of those of the early age of Islam.

Remarks

(1) Sunna: The deeds, sayings, and silent approvals of the Prophet Muhammad (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam); this constitutes the second source of Shari’a (Islamic Law). It is obligatory for Muslims to follow the Sunna as well as the Quran.

(2) Al Jaami` Al-Saheeh, Vol.1, No.1-3  and Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Number 0301.

(3) Asma’ bint Abi Bakr (died 73 A.H.): A meritorious female Companion, she was one of the first to adopt Islam. She was called “the Woman of the Two Belts” because she split her belt to bind the food carried for Abu Bakr (Radhia Allahu Anhu) and the Prophet (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) on their Migration journey. She composed good poetry, and was the last woman immigrant to die.

(4) When the disbelievers agreed to the Treaty (of Hudaibiya), one of the things stipulated was that the Prophet (Salla Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) should return to them (i.e. the pagans) anyone coming to him from their side, even if he was a Muslim; and would not interfere between them and that person. The Muslims did not like this condition and got disgusted with it. The disbelievers would not agree except with that condition. (Al Jaami` Al-Saheeh, Vol.3, No.3-874).

(5) Al Jaami` Al-Saheeh, Vol.3, No.3-891

(6) Sahih Muslim, Book 19, Number 4462

Women in Islam

Allah has created every living being in pairs, male and female (51:49).

In islam a woman has a distinct and separate identity. Islam has given her the right to own property. She is the owner of her earnings. She can dispose of her earnings and property as she wishes within the bounds of halal (lawful) and haram (unlawful). Islam has given women a right to inheritance. She has a claim on the property of her dead father, husband or childless brother.

A woman has a right to develop her talent and seek employment within limits of Islam.

Women have a very important place in Islamic Society. Unlike a number of other religions, Islam holds a woman in high esteem. Her importance as a mother and a wife has been clearly stated by Prophet Muhammed (SAW).

Some of the famous sayings of the Prophet (SAW) are:

‘Paradise lies at the feet of your mothers?

Once a person asked the prophet who deserves the best care from me? The prophet (SAW) said your mother (3 times), then your father and then your closest relatives.

He (SAW) also said “Fear Allah (SWT) 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 is displeased with one bad quality in her, let him be pleased with one that is good; the more civil and kind a Muslim is to his wife, the more perfect in faith he is.”

These sayings clearly prove the important position given to women in Islam but there are still people, especially in the West, who have misgiving’s about the status of women in Islam. To these people, the Muslim women is seen almost as a prisoner in the four walls of the house, a non-person and someone who has no rights and is living always under the domination of a man.

These nations are totally wrong and are based on ignorance rather then knowledge of Islam. One of the rites of Hajj is a fast walk between As-Safa and Al-Marwah, which is observed to remember the event of Hajar; mother of Prophet Ismail, who ran between these two Hills to find water. This is another proof of the importance given to two women by Islam.

Why are man and woman not Equal?

Allah (SWT) has made man and woman identical, so it would be against nature to try to have total equality between a man and a woman .

That would destroy the social balance. Society would not prosper but would instead have insoluble problems such as broken marriages, illegitimate children and the break up of family life. These problems are already in Western society. Schoolgirl pregnancies an increase in abortion, divorce and many other problems have copped up because of permissive outlook and the so called freedom of women.

 In Islam, Eve (RA) and Adam(RA) were equal in disobediance, which led to their exile.

Women in other religion and societies

In order to judge the false ideas held by Western people, it would be useful to look at the attitudes to women in different societies in the past. During the Roman Civilization, for example, a woman was regarded as a slave. The Greeks considered her a commodity to be bought and sold. Early Christianity regarded women as temptress, responsible for the fall of Adam. However, women according to the Qur’an is not blamed for Adams first mistake. Both were jointly wrong in their disobedience to food both repented and both were forgiven.

In India, the Hindus until recently considered their women worse then death, pests, serpents or even hell. A wifes life ended with the death of the husband. In the past, a widow had to jump into the flames of her husbands funeral pyre.

In the pre-Islamic state of Arabia, a women was regarded as a cause for grief and unhappiness and baby girls were sometimes buried alive after birth.

“And when the female (infant) buried alive ?is questioned for what crime she was killed” (Qur’an 81:8-9).

Among the sayings of prophet Muhammed (SAW) in this regard are:

“Whosoever has a daughter and he does not bury her alive, does not insult her, and does not favour his son over her, god will enter him into paradise”

“It is generous (in character) who is good to women and it is the wicked who insult them”.

In France, 587 CE, a meeting was held to study the status of women and to determine whether a woman could truly be considered a human being or not. Henry VIII in England forbade the reading of the Bible by women and brought out the middle ages the Catholic Church treated women as second ?class citizens. In the Cambridge and Oxford uni, male and female students were not given the same right until 1964. Before 1850, women were not counted as citizens of England and they did not have any personal rights until 1882.

If we keep this picture in mind and look into the position of the women in Islam liberated women from the dark age of obscurity 14 hundred years ago.

Islam is a religion of common sense and is in line with human nature. It recognises the relatives of life. This does not mean it has recognised equality of man and woman in every respect. Rather, it has defined their duties in keeping with their different biological make up.

Islamic Marriage

The family in Islam is a unit in which a man and woman unite to share life together according to the rules and regulations laid down by the Shari’ah.

A great deal thought is necessary therefore before the couple decide two marry piety should come before all other consideration.

Prophet (saaw) said: “Do not marry only for the sake of beauty, maybe the beauty becomes the cause of moral decline. Do not marry even for the sake of wealth; maybe the wealth becomes the reason of disobedience; marry rather on the grounds of religious devotion”

Is marriage obligatory

When a man marries, he has fulfilled half of his religion, so let him fear for the remaining half.

Marriage should not be put off or delayed if one has the means to do so.

Prophet (saaw) said: ” Marriage my tradition who so ever keeps away there from it is not from amongst me”

.  In Islam, women are equal to men in the sight of God but they have in some respects different roles in life to men because of their different natures.

Women differ psychologically, physiologically, and biologically from men. This makes them more suitable than men for certain responsibilities and less suitable than men for others.

Islam recognises these differences.

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 (and deny themselves), for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in God’s praise – for them has God prepared forgiveness and great reward.

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.  Oppression of women is the result of removing their rights. There are some ‘Islamic’ countries where women’s rights are being stepped on, but this is the law of the people, it is not the religion of Islam.

Islam gives men & women rights that are different in some aspects to those they have in the western world. The main difference in the way these rights came about is also important. In the West, rights became part of the law only after women had been through great political struggles and also partly due to the necessity of women working in factories during wars.

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In a truly Islamic society women have the following rights in Islam:

• The right and duty to obtain education.
• The right to have their own independent property.
• The right to work to earn money if they need it or want it.
• Equality of reward for equal deeds.
• The right to participate fully in public life and have their voices heard by those in power.
• The right to provisions from the husband for all her needs and more.
• The right to negotiate marriage terms of her choice.
• The right to obtain divorce from her husband, even on the grounds that she simply can’t stand him.
• The right to keep all her own money (she is not responsible to maintain any relations).
• The right to get sexual satisfaction from her husband.
• and more…

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. The Qur’an has much to say both about women, and to  women. One Surah  (Chapter in the Qur’an) is called `Women’, another is named after Maryam the mother of Jesus (peace be upon him). Women appear in many other parts. In stories of the prophets we have:

• – Hawwa (Eve) the wife of Adam, no longer the temptress who leads Adam to sin but a partner jointly responsible with him and jointly forgiven by Allah soon afterwards.
• – There is the wife of Nuh (Noah) (peace be upon him) who betrays her husband and is held up along with the wife of Lot as an example of a disbeliever (66:10-11).
• – There is the wife of Ibrahim (Abraham) (peace be upon him), who laughs at the news the angel brings, of the baby she is to have in her old age.
• – the wife of Pharaoh, who saves the infant Musa (Moses) (peace be upon him) and, along with Maryam, mother of Jesus, is one of the two female examples of the good believer held up in Surah 66:10 & 11.
• – The wife of Aziz, who tried to seduce Yusuf (Joseph)(peace be upon him), is nevertheless treated with some sympathy, when she shows her friends how handsome he is and they all cut themselves with their knives because they are distracted by his beauty;

It is noteworthy that the four women mentioned as examples are presented to both male and female Muslims to show how it is possible to be true believers in difficult circumstances, and disbelievers in favourable circumstances.

– The two good examples believed in spite of the attitudes of those close to them, Pharaoh’s wife saving Moses from her husband’s wicked command to kill all the Hebrew firstborn sons, and Maryam confronting accusations of immorality when she brought home her baby after the virgin birth.

– The two bad ones disbelieved in spite of being married to prophets of Allah.

In neither case do these examples show the traditional picture of the `submissive’ woman.

Then there are the contemporary women of Prophet Muhammads (peace be upon him) household, his wives and daughters. One of his wives, Umm Salamah, complained to him that the Qur’an was addressed only to men, and then a long passage was revealed to the Prophet* addressed clearly to men and women in every line, which states clearly the equal responsibilities and rewards for Muslim men and women.

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Aishah,  Prophet Muhammad’s wife, caused a scandal when she went out into the desert to look for a necklace she had lost there and got left behind by the caravan. She was rescued by a young man and came back with him and rumours spread that she had been dallying with him. This caused great pain to her and to the Prophet and it was a long time before they were relieved by another revelation (24:4), demanding that people making such accusations against chaste women must produce four eye witnesses to the act or suffer a flogging themselves and have their evidence rejected ever after.

There are passages specifically addressed to the wives of the Prophet as a group. For example:

“O Consorts of the Prophet! Ye are not like any of the (other) women. If Ye do fear (Allah) be not too complaisant of speech, lest one in whose heart is a disease should be moved with desire, but speak Ye a speech (that is) just.

And stay quietly in your houses, and make not a dazzling display, like those of the former times of ignorance, and establish regular prayer, and give zakat (welfare due) and obey Allah and His Messenger. And Allah only wishes to remove all abomination from you, Ye members of the family, and to make you pure and spotless.

And recite what is rehearsed to you in your houses of the Signs of Allah and His Wisdom, for Allah is All-Subtle, All-Aware.” (Qur’an 33:32-34)

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Other verses of the Qur’an were revealed in answer to questions from ordinary women, like the one concerning the practice of divorce by abstinence within the marriage (zihar). A woman complained to the Prophet about this practice, which left the woman with no sexual satisfaction, but still not free to marry another husband and a verse was revealed condemning this practice.

“Allah has indeed heard (and accepted) the statement of the woman who pleads with thee concerning her husband and carries her complaint (in prayer) to Allah…”(Qur’an 58:1)

Another passage was revealed in answer to a woman’s complaint about the way her husband wanted to have intercourse with her (2:223).

So the Qur’an is a book which has a lot to say TO women and ABOUT women. It does not condemn all women in the image of Eve as Christianity has been known to do; that it is often on the side of women who complain about injustice, in marriage, divorce and in false accusation.

Women are made of the same soul as men. Their capacity for good and evil is identical with that of men. In 49:13, of the Qur’an we find that it is good deeds and awareness of Allah which make the believer, male or female, noble in the sight of Allah:

Indeed the noblest of you in the sight of Allah is the most pious. (Qur’an 49:13)

and also in the Qur’an:

Whoever does right, whether male or female, (all) such will enter the garden (Qur’an 40:40)

The works of male and female are of equal value and each will receive the due reward for what they do:

“Never will I suffer to be lost the work of any one of you, male or female…”(Qur’an 3:195)

“Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has faith, verily to him will We give a new life that is good and pure, and We will bestow on such their reward according to their actions.” (Qur’an 16:97)

The same duties are incumbent on men and women as regards their faith:

“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 (and deny themselves), for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in God’s praise – for them has God prepared forgiveness and great reward. “(Qur’an 33:35)

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Under normal circumstances women are allowed to do all the things that men do. Women are given exemption from certain duties, some of which are:

• – Fasting when they are pregnant or nursing or menstruating,
• – Praying when menstruating or bleeding after childbirth, and
• – The obligation to attend congregational prayers in the mosque on Fridays.
• – They are not obliged to take part as soldiers in the defence of Islam, although they are not forbidden to do so.
• – Even when they are menstruating, on special days, like the two Id festivals, they are still allowed to come to the Id prayers, and menstruating women can take part in most of the actions of the Hajj pilgrimage.

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Islamic law makes no demand that women should confine themselves to household duties. In fact the early Muslim women were found in all walks of life.

The first wife of  Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), Khadijah, mother of all his surviving children, was a businesswoman who hired him as an employee, and proposed marriage to him through a third party; women traded in the marketplace, and the Khalifah Umar, not normally noted for his liberal attitude to women, appointed a woman, Shaff’a Bint Abdullah, to supervise the market.

Other women, like Laila al-Ghifariah, took part in battles, carrying water and nursing the wounded, some, like Suffiah bint Abdul Muttalib even fought and killed the enemies to protect themselves and the Prophet and like Umm Dhahhak bint Masoud were rewarded with booty in the same way as the men.

The Qur’an even speaks favourably of the Queen of Sheba and the way she consulted her advisors, who deferred to her good judgement on how to deal with the threat of invasion by the armies of Solomon:

She (the Queen of Sheba) said, “O chiefs, advise me respecting my affair; I never decide an affair until you are in my presence.’ They said, `We are possessors of strength and possessors of mighty prowess, and the command is Thine, so consider what thou wilt command.’ She said, `Surely the kings, when they enter a town, ruin it and make the noblest of its people to be low, and thus they do. And surely I am going to send them a present, and to see what (answer) the messengers bring back.” (Qur’an 27:32-35)

A much vaunted Hadith that the Prophet said, `A people who entrust power to a woman will never prosper’, has been shown to be extremely unreliable on several counts. It is an isolated and uncorroborated one, and therefore not binding in Islamic law, and in addition there is reason to believe it may have been forged in the context of the battle which Aishah the Prophet’s widow led against the fourth Khalifah Ali. In view of the examples set by women rulers in history, it is also clearly untenable and false.

To sum up, the qualifications of women for work of all kinds are not in doubt, despite some spurious ahadith to the contrary. Women can do work like men, but they DO NOT HAVE to do it to earn a living. They are allowed and encouraged to take the duties of marriage and motherhood seriously and are provided with the means to stay at home and do it properly.

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The Muslim woman has always had the right to own and manage her own property, a right that women in this country only attained in the last 100 years. Marriage in Islam does not mean that the man takes over the woman’s property, nor does she automatically have the right to all his property if he dies. Both are still regarded as individual people with responsibilities to other members of their family – parents, brothers, sisters etc. and inheritance rights illustrate this.

The husband has the duty to support and maintain the wife, as stated in the Qur’an, and this is held to be so even if she is rich in her own right. He has no right to expect her to support herself, let alone support his children or him. If she does contribute to the household income this is regarded as a charitable deed on her part.

Because of their greater financial responsibilities, some categories of male relations, according to the inheritance laws in the Qur’an, inherit twice the share of their female equivalents, but others, whose responsibilities are likely to be less, inherit the same share -mothers and fathers, for instance are each entitled to one sixth of the estate of their children, after bequests (up to one third of the estate) and payment of debts. (Qur’an 4:11)

For parents a sixth share of the inheritance to each if the deceased left children; If no children, and the parents are the (only) heirs, the mother has a third; if the deceased left brothers (or sisters) the mother has a sixth…

Women are thus well provided for: their husbands support them, and they inherit from all their relations. They are allowed to engage in business or work at home or outside the house, so long as the family does not suffer, and the money they make is their own, with no calls on it from other people until their death.

Women are NOT expected to do the housework. If they have not been used to doing it, the husband is obliged to provide domestic help within his means, and to make sure that the food gets to his wife and children already cooked. The Prophet (peace be upon him) himself used to help with the domestic work, and mended his own shoes. Women are not even obliged in all cases to suckle their own children. If a divorcing couple mutually agree, they can send the baby to a wet-nurse and the husband must pay for the suckling. If the mother decides to keep the baby and suckle it herself, he must pay her for her trouble! This is laid down in the Qur’an itself,

The mothers shall give suck to their offspring for two whole years, if the father desires to complete the term, but he shall bear the cost of their food and clothing on equitable terms…If they both decide on weaning, by mutual consent, and after due consultation, there is no blame on them. If Ye decide on a foster-mother for your offspring, there is no blame on you, provided Ye pay what Ye offered on equitable terms …(Qur’an 2:233)

Nevertheless the womanly state in marriage is given full respect in Islam. No Muslim woman could feel ashamed to say she was only a housewife. She is the head of her household, although the husband has the final say in major decisions. According to a Hadith:

The ruler is a shepherd and is responsible for his subjects, a husband is a shepherd and is responsible for his family, a wife is a shepherd and is responsible for her household, and a servant is a shepherd who is responsible for his master’s property. (Hadith: Bukhari)

The wife must defer to her husband in respect for the fact that he maintains and protects her out of his means (Qur’an 4:34), but not if he tries to make her break the laws of Allah. If the husband wilfully fails to maintain his wife, she has the right to divorce him in court.

Women are also entitled to respect as mothers. Allah says:

And we have enjoined on man (to be good to his parents: in travail upon travail did his mother bear him…(Quran 31:14)

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
Paradise lies at the feet of mothers…
and in another Hadith the Prophet (peace be upon him) told a man that his mother above all other people, even his father, was worthy of his highest respect and compassion.

Although the Islamic marriage contract is a civil agreement between the two parties, not a sacrament like the Christian one, it is not just a relationship of material convenience. The words used to describe marriage in the Qur’an are poetic and beautiful:

And among His signs is this: that He created for you mates from among yourselves, that Ye may dwell in tranquillity with them, and He has put love and mercy between your hearts, verily in that are Signs for those who reflect. (Qur’an 30:21)

They are your garments and Ye are their garments (Qur’an 2:187)

Love, mercy, intimacy and mutual protection and modesty are the qualities expected of an Islamic marriage. Even in Paradise marriage remains as one of the great joys:

Verily the Companions of the Garden shall that day have joy in all that they do; they and their spouses will be in groves of (cool) shade reclining on thrones of (dignity); fruit will be there for them, they shall have whatever they call for; `Peace’, a word (of salutation) from a Lord Most Merciful. (Qur’an 36:55-57)

Husbands are expected to treat their wives kindly during marriage and even during and after divorce. Allah says:

… Live with them on a footing of kindness and equity. If Ye take a dislike to them, it may be that Ye dislike a thing, and Allah brings about through it a great deal of good. (Qur’an 4:19)

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “The most perfect believers are the best in conduct and the best of you are those who are best to their wives.” (Hadith: Ibn Hanbal)

To conclude, these are the ideals to which Muslim women can aspire and frequently have done in the past. In a truly Islamic society, they are guaranteed:

• – personal respect
• – respectable married status
• – legitimacy and maintenance for their children
• – the right to negotiate marriage terms of their choice
• – to refuse any marriage that does not please them
• – the right to obtain divorce from their husbands, even on the grounds that they can’t stand them (Mawdudi)
• – custody of their children after divorce
• – independent property of their own
• – the right and duty to obtain education
• – the right to work if they need or want it
• – equality of reward for equal deeds
• – the right to participate fully in public life and have their voices heard by those in power

and much more! Is there any other religion that offers such rights for women?

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