Though Islam has given women important position, there are still some people, especially in the west, who have misgivings about the status of women in Islam. To them, the Muslim women are considered 'prisoner' within the four walls of the house or a 'non-person' who has no rights and is living always under the domination of men. These notions are totally wrong and are based on ignorance rather than proper knowledge of Islam. Such misgivings will simply spread misunderstanding and misinformation about the normative teachings of Islam. A comparative study of the status of women in Islam and that in some other societies will help us have a proper understanding about the status and dignity of woman in Islam.
Position of women in the Islamic society: There are some basic facets of the status and position of woman in Islam. They are as follows:
These verses clearly establish that, in Islam, women are treated equally they do not suffer any discrepancy in mundane or religious affairs. This recognition is furthered proved when we take the rights and status of woman as specified by Islam in consideration.
As a mother: One prophetic tradition will suffice to clearly establish the unique position of the mother in Islam. The Prophet (SAWS) said, "Paradise lies under the feet of mother." Another Hadeeth is there stating the preponderant honor of mother over father. Once a man asked the Prophet (SAWS) "O Messenger of Allah! Who deserves the best care from me?" The Prophet (SAWS) replied, "Your mother". Again the man asked "Who then?" The Prophet (SAWS) said, "Your mother". For the third time the man asked the Prophet (SAWS) "Who then". The Prophet replied "Your mother". And the man asked for the fourth time "Who then", the Prophet (SAWS) replied "Your father". (Bukhari).
As a wife: In his farewell speech at Arafah in the tenth of Hijrah, the Prophet (SAWS) said, "O people, your wives have certain rights over you as you have certain rights over them. Treat them well and be kind to them, for they are your partners and are committed helpers." The Prophet also said, " The most perfect of the believers is the one who is best in his character, and the best of you are those among you who are best to their wives." (Tirmiji).
One of the rites of Hajj is the fast walk between As-safa and Marwah, which is observed to remember the event of Hagar, mother of Prophet Ismail, who ran between these two hills in search of water.
As a person: Women enjoy all important rights in Islam such as:
These all clearly prove the important position given to woman in Islam.
Position of woman in some societies in 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 her as temptress responsible for the fall of Adam. In India, the Hindus until recently considered their woman worse than death, pest, serpents or hell. A wife's life ended with the death of her husband. In the past, the widow had to jump into the flames of her husband's funeral pyre. In the pre-Islamic Arab, a woman was regarded as a cause of grief and unhappiness, and baby girls were sometimes buried alive soon after birth. In France in 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 the 8th in England forbade the reading of the Bible by women, and throughout the middle ages, the Catholic Church treated women as second class citizen. In the universities of Cambridge and Oxford, male and female students were not given the same rights until 1964. Before 1850, women were not counted as citizens in England, and English woman had not personal rights until 1882.
Conclusion: An unbiased and comprehensive study of the status of woman in Islam clearly shows that Islam liberated woman from the dark age of obscurity fourteen hundred years ago. In some cases, differences in social life system in Islam between Muslim man and woman such as allowing polygamy (having more than one wives to the maximum of four) but not polyandry (having more than one husband at a time by a woman); allowing to marry non-Muslims (Christian and Jewish) women not men etc may arise misgivings. Actually these are based on ignorance rather than knowledge. A person with a reasonable knowledge of Islam can easily understand the reasons behind these small differences between men and women. Islam prescribes what is best for us considering the areas of inter-related life. Any imprecise knowledge about Islam will create misunderstanding and confusion. We should look into the matter, as a whole not in fragmented way. (Ref. Islamic Teachings Course, by Dr. Jamal Badawi, G-31-35).
Allah has not made man and woman identical, so it would be against nature to try to have total equality between man and woman. Islam has done the just thing, it has ensured equity between the sexes.
Any sense equality in its literal sense would destroy the social balance. Society will 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 rife in the western society. In the West the women have been reduced almost to the position of commodity and object of carnal enjoyment. And women have tended to degrade themselves unwillingly in the modern times. In the name of equality, they have become the objects of exploitation by men and the slogans of liberty and equality have virtually reduced them to the status of plaything. Women have neither liberty nor equality, rather they have lost their natural place in the home and society.
Islam has given woman her right position without attempting to violate her natural dispositions. Other religions and philosophies have been unable to visualize the exact and correct role of women until today.
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by Md. Hossain Sohrab