Women in the Qur`an
This is a brief response to a article written by Dallas M. Roark on “Women in the Qur`an”. You can read the original Article here.
There are many Muslim women in Muslim countries with high professions and there are many Muslim women in Muslim countries without any education. For example statistics for female literacy are higher in countries like Kuwait, Jordan, UAE than Afghanistan, Yemen and Libya. The laws and regulations within Muslim countries are not necessarily linked to Islam. And in order to substantiate an argument which sets out to prove a direct effect Islam would have on any society, it becomes necessary to prove whether the Law itself is derived from Islamic teachings. This is primarily due to the fact that many societies don’t hold religion to be the ultimate demarcation between right and wrong. For example in certain cultures “honour killings” are justified whereas in Islam this is a great crime. The cultural laws within society are not reflective on the laws within Islam. It is undeniable that Islam has shaped societies and influenced the lives of many Muslims around the world. However It seems unreasonable to draw a direct link between Islam and it’s effect on society unless there is an established state which adheres to all of the principles of Islam without a rigid or extreme interpretation of the divine discourse set by Allah. In order to illustrate the Islamic systems failure the system must be established in practice without any form of discrimination or sexism.
Dallas M Roark makes the point at the beginning of the article that “women are not equal in Islam in any important sense”. For Muslim women the purpose of life is to glorify the lord and follow the righteous path he has set for humanity. Muslim women strive to attain paradise because that is their ultimate destination. In order to attain paradise one has to make the contractual declaration of faith and set out to follow the rules and principles of Islam. Paradise is attained through the mercy of Allah, however good actions are necessary and consequently avoidance of immorality becomes a necessity. Through good actions e.g. giving in voluntary charity we attain more good deeds. These righteous deeds are accounted for on a equal scale for both men and women. And for this to be dismissed as not having any importance illustrates lack of knowledge about Islamic principles and Muslim goals. The most valuable, meaningful and significant form of equality is spiritual-equality for Muslims because it illustrates that faith and good works transcends gender.
The article is loaded with imposed opinions and lack of evidence for many points made. The bullet points below will address the relevant points in the article.
- Paradise and It’s rewards for women
Islam does not specify the types of pleasures and enjoyments available to women as it does to men. This does not mean women don’t have similar pleasures and enjoyments within paradise, it simply means there is no specified reference. However in the general sense women are rewarded in paradise just like men are. God will reward both men and women and this is evident from the following verses:
(Holy Qur’an 4:124) If any do deeds of righteousness,- be they male or female – and have faith, they will enter Heaven, and not the least injustice will be done to them.
(Holy Qur’an 6:97) Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has Faith, verily, to him will We give a new Life, a life that is good and pure and We will bestow on such their reward according to the best of their actions.
(Holy Qur’an 40:40) “He that works evil will not be requited but by the like thereof: and he that works a righteous deed – whether man or woman - and is a Believer- such will enter the Garden (of Bliss): Therein will they have abundance without measure.
- Menstruation (Holy Qur`an 2:222)
The Jews around the Prophet (Salla llahu `alay wasalam) would not even stay in the same house as their menstruating wives because they believed menstruation was something filthy. And this verse in the Holy Qur`an is misunderstood to mean women on their monthly period are filthy. And this interpretation stems from the bible which depicts women on their monthly period as filthy and their “filth” as contagious. In other words whatever they sat on, touched and came in contact with was dirty (Leviticus 15:19-30, Leviticus 20:18, Ezekiel 18:5-6 ). In the bible men who are just and do that which is lawful abstain from women who are on their monthly period. However this mentality is not founded within Islam. The Prophet Muhammed (Salla llahu `alay wasalam) illustrates this in the following hadith.
‘Aisha reported: The Messenger of Allah (Salla llahu `alay wasalam) said to me: Get me the mat from the mosque. I said: I am menstruating. Upon this he remarked: Your menstruation is not in your hand. (Sahih Muslim: 298 and that is listed under the Menstruation chapter)
We can clearly see from the above women are not filthy and the Prophet (Salla llahu `alay wasalam) clarifies the matter by saying “Your menstruation is not in your hand” meaning you are not going to make the mat filthy by touching it since menstruation is not a contagious illness.
(Holy Qur`an 2:222) And they will ask thee about [woman's] monthly courses. Say: “It is a vulnerable condition. Keep, therefore, aloof from women during their monthly courses, and do not draw near unto them until they are cleansed; and when they are cleansed, go in unto them as God has bidden you to do.” Verily, God loves those who turn unto Him in repentance and He loves those who keep themselves pure.
The above verse is not to mean men are supposed to stay away from women during their monthly period but simply to abstain from having sex. This does not mean other forms of intimacy is not permissible. And this is evident from the tradition of the prophet (Salla llahu `alay wasalam)
‘A’isha reported: When anyone amongst us was menstruating the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) asked her to tie waist-wrapper during the time when the menstrual blood profusely flowed and then embraced her; and she (‘A’isha) observed: And who amongst you can have control over his desires as the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) had over his desires. (Sahih Muslim Book 003, Number 0578)
“And he loves who keep themselves pure” is not in reference to those who do not have sex with their wives while they are on their monthly period. It is in reference to the filth of anal sex. The statement is in the general sense and in this case it is in relation to God saying “go in unto them as God has bidden you to do”.
And the evidence of this is in the fact that the prophet (Salla llahu `alay wasalam) did not disassociate himself from his wives while they were on their menses.
`A’ishah said, “Allah’s Messenger used to ask me to wash his hair while I was having the menses. He would lay on my lap and read the Qur’an while I was having the period.’ (Sahih Bukhati Book: 6, Hadith 296) It is also reported in the Sahih that `A’ishah said, “While having the menses, I used to eat from a piece of meat and give it to the Prophet who would eat from the same place I ate from. I used to have sips of a drink and would then give the cup to the Prophet who would place his mouth where I placed my mouth.”
- Your wives are your tilth
There is nothing negative or even wrong about “Your wife are your tilth” and God saying “go in them in any way you wish”. This was revealed because the Jews held unto a strange myth about not going into your wife in a particular way.
Al-Bukhari recorded that Ibn Al-Munkadir said that he heard Jabir say that the Jews used to claim that if one has sex with his wife from behind (in the vagina) the offspring would become cross-eyed. Then, this Ayah was revealed.
Polygyny is a form of marriage where a man takes up more than one wife. And in Islam men are permitted to marry 1,2,3, or 4 wives. And this is evident from the following verse:
(Holy Qur`an 4:3) And if ye fear that ye will not deal fairly by the orphans, marry of the women, who seem good to you, two or three or four; and if ye fear that ye cannot do justice (to so many) then one (only) or (the captives) that your right hands possess. Thus it is more likely that ye will not do injustice.
There is nothing inherently wrong with having more than one wife provided those involved in a polygamous marriage are happy, satisfied and not forced. Marriage is both a private and public institution. There are numerous articles written in a attempt to contextualize or make the institution of a polygamous marriage more palatable but, since the institution or lack thereof of any contractual marriage neither proves nor disapproves the legitimacy of Islam or the rights and privileges it gives to women, there is no point in mentioning the conditions of such marriages. However those interested in this form of marriage within Islam should investigate the context of the revelation of the above verse, as well as the previous forms of marriage which Islam abrogated.
- Muhammad (Salla llahu `alay wasalam)’s marriage to Zainab Bint Jahsh.
Click here to read about the true story of how Muhammad (Salla llahu `alay wasalam) came to marry Zainab Bint Jahsh since it has nothing to do with the rights of women but instead a particular event within the life of the Prophet (salla llahu `alay wasalam).
