(1)\u00a0 The Quran ended the cruel practice of female infanticide, which was before Islam.\u00a0 God has said:<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd when the girl (who was) buried alive is asked, for what sin she was killed.\u201d (Quran 81:8-9)<\/p>\n
(2)\u00a0 The Quran went further to rebuke the unwelcoming attitude of some parents upon hearing the news of the birth of a baby girl, instead of a baby boy.\u00a0 God has said:<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd when one of them is informed of (the birth of) a female, his face becomes dark, and he suppresses grief.\u00a0 He hides himself from the people because of the ill of which he has been informed.\u00a0 Should he keep it in humiliation or bury it in the ground?\u00a0 Certainly, evil is what they decide.\u201d (Quran 16:58-59)<\/p>\n
(3)\u00a0 Parents are duty-bound to support and show kindness and justice to their daughters.\u00a0 The Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him, said:\u00a0\u201cWhosoever supports two daughters until they mature, he and I will come on the Day of Judgment as this (and he pointed with his fingers held together).\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n (4)\u00a0 A crucial aspect in the upbringing of daughters that greatly influences their future is education.\u00a0 Education is not only a right but a responsibility for all males and females.\u00a0 The Prophet Muhammad said:\u00a0\u201cSeeking knowledge is mandatory for every Muslim.\u201d <\/strong> The word \u201cMuslim\u201d here is inclusive of both males and females.<\/p>\n (5)\u00a0 Islam neither requires nor encourages female circumcision.\u00a0 And while it is maybe practiced by some Muslims in certain parts of Africa, it is also practiced by other peoples, including Christians, in those places, a reflection merely of the local customs and practices there.<\/p>\n (1)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Marriage in Islam is based on mutual peace, love, and compassion, and not just the mere satisfying of human sexual desire.\u00a0 Among the most impressive verses in the Quran about marriage is the following:<\/p>\n \u201cAnd of His signs is: that He created for you from yourselves mates that you may find tranquility in them; and He placed between you affection and mercy.\u00a0 Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought.\u201d (Quran 30:21, see also 42:11 and 2:228)<\/p>\n (2)\u00a0 The female has the right to accept or reject marriage proposals.\u00a0 According to the Islamic Law, women cannot be forced to marry anyone without their consent.<\/p>\n (3)\u00a0 The husband is responsible for the maintenance, protection, and overall leadership of the family, within the framework of consultation (see the Quran 2:233) and kindness (see the Quran 4:19).\u00a0 The mutuality and complementary nature of the role of husband and wife does not mean subservience by either party to the other.\u00a0 The Prophet Muhammad instructed Muslims regarding women:\u00a0\u201cI commend you to be good to women.\u201d<\/strong> And\u00a0\u201cThe best among you are those who are best to their wives.\u201d<\/strong> The Quran urges husbands to be kind and considerate to their wives, even if a wife falls out of favor with her husband or disinclination for her arises within him:<\/p>\n \u201c…And live with them in kindness.\u00a0 For if you dislike them, perhaps you dislike a thing and God makes therein much good.\u201d (Quran 4:19)<\/p>\n It also outlawed the Arabian practice before Islam whereby the stepson of the deceased father was allowed to take possession of his father\u2019s widow(s) (inherit them) as if they were part of the estate of the deceased (see the Quran 4:19).<\/p>\n (4)\u00a0 Should marital disputes arise, the Quran encourages couples to resolve them privately in a spirit of fairness and goodness.\u00a0 Indeed, the Quran outlines an enlightened step and wise approach for the husband and wife to resolve persistent conflict in their marital life.\u00a0 In the event that dispute cannot be resolved equitably between husband and wife, the Quran prescribes mediation between the parties through family intervention on behalf of both spouses (see the Quran 4:35).<\/p>\n (5)\u00a0 Divorce is a last resort, permissible but not encouraged, for the Quran esteems the preservation of faith and the individual\u2019s right -male and female alike- to felicity.\u00a0 Forms of marriage dissolution include an enactment based upon mutual agreement, the husband\u2019s initiative, the wife\u2019s initiative (if part of her marital contract), the court\u2019s decision on a wife\u2019s initiative (for a legitimate reason), and the wife\u2019s initiative without a cause, provided that she returns her marital gift to her husband.\u00a0 When the continuation of the marriage relationship is impossible for any reason, men are still taught to seek a gracious end for it.\u00a0 The Quran states about such cases:<\/p>\n \u201cAnd when you divorce women and they have fulfilled their term (i.e. waiting period), either keep them in kindness or release them in kindness, and do not keep them, intending harm, to transgress (against them).\u201d (Quran 2:231, see also 2:229 and 33:49)<\/p>\n (6)\u00a0 Associating polygyny with Islam, as if it was introduced by it or is the norm according to its teachings, is one of the most persistent myths perpetuated in Western literature and media.\u00a0 Polygyny existed in almost all nations and was even sanctioned by Judaism and Christianity until recent centuries.\u00a0 Islam did not outlaw polygyny, as did many peoples and religious communities; rather, it regulated and restricted it.\u00a0 It is not required but simply permitted with conditions (see the Quran 4:3).\u00a0 Spirit of law, including timing of revelation, is to deal with individual and collective contingencies that may arise from time to time (e.g. imbalances between the number of males and females created by wars) and to provide a moral, practical, and humane solution for the problems of widows and orphans.<\/p>\n (1)\u00a0 The Quran elevates kindness to parents (especially mothers) to a status second to the worship of God:<\/p>\n \u201cYour Lord has commanded that you worship none but Him, and that you be kind to your parents.\u00a0 If one of them or both of them reach old age with you, do not say to them a word of disrespect, or scold them, but say a generous word to them.\u00a0 And act humbly to them in mercy, and say, \u2018My Lord, have mercy on them, since they cared for me when I was small.\u2019\u201d (Quran 17:23-24, see also 31:14, 46:15, and 29:8)<\/p>\n (2)\u00a0 Naturally, the Prophet Muhammad specified this behavior for his followers, rendering to mothers an unequalled status in human relationships.\u00a0 A man came to the Prophet Muhammad and said, \u201cO Messenger of God!\u00a0 Who among the people is the most worthy of my good companionship?\u201d\u00a0 The Prophet\u00a0 said:\u00a0\u201cYour mother.\u201d<\/strong> The man said, \u201cThen who?\u201d\u00a0 The Prophet\u00a0 said:\u00a0\u201cThen your mother.\u201d<\/strong> The man further asked, \u201cThen who?\u201d\u00a0 The Prophet\u00a0 said:\u201cThen your mother.\u201d<\/strong> The man asked again, \u201cThen who?\u201d\u00a0 The Prophet\u00a0 said:\u201cThen your father.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n (1)\u00a0 According to the Prophet Muhammad\u2019s sayings:\u00a0\u201cwomen are but shaqa\u2019iq (twin halves or sisters) of men.\u201d<\/strong> This saying is a profound statement that directly relates to the issue of human equality between the genders.\u00a0 If the first meaning of the Arabic word shaqa\u2019iq, \u201ctwin halves,\u201d is adopted, it means that the male is worth one half (of society), while the female is worth the other half.\u00a0 If the second meaning, \u201csisters,\u201d is adopted, it implies the same.<\/p>\n (2)\u00a0 The Prophet Muhammad taught kindness, care, and respect toward women in general:\u00a0\u201cI commend you to be good to women.\u201d<\/strong> It is significant that such instruction of the Prophet was among his final instructions and reminders in the farewell pilgrimage address given shortly before his passing away.<\/p>\n (3)\u00a0 Modesty and social interaction: The parameters of proper modesty for males and females (dress and behavior) are based on revelatory sources (the Quran and prophetic sayings) and, as such, are regarded by believing men and women as divinely-based guidelines with legitimate aims and divine wisdom behind them.\u00a0 They are not male-imposed or socially imposed restrictions.\u00a0 It is interesting to know that even the Bible encourages women to cover their head: \u201cIf a woman does not cover her head, she should have her hair cut off; and if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or shaved off, she should cover her head.\u201d (1 Corinthians 11:6).<\/p>\n (1)\u00a0 Equality before the Law: Both genders are entitled to equality before the Law and courts of Law.\u00a0 Justice is genderless (see the Quran 5:38, 24:2, and 5:45).\u00a0 Women do possess an independent legal entity in financial and other matters.<\/p>\n (2)\u00a0 Participation in Social and Political Life: The general rule in social and political life is participation and collaboration of males and females in public affairs (see the Quran 9:71).\u00a0 There is sufficient historical evidence of participation by Muslim women in the choice of rulers, in public issues, in Law making, in administrative positions, in scholarship and teaching, and even in the battlefield.\u00a0 Such involvement in social and political affairs was conducted without the participants\u2019 losing sight of the complementary priorities of both genders and without violating Islamic guidelines of modesty and virtue.<\/p>\n The status which non-Muslim women reached during the present era was not achieved due to the kindness of men or due to natural progress.\u00a0 It was rather achieved through a long struggle and sacrifice on woman\u2019s part and only when society needed her contribution and work, more especially during the two world wars, and due to the escalation of technological change.\u00a0 While in Islam such compassionate and dignified status was decreed, not because it reflects the environment of the seventh century, nor under the threat or pressure of women and their organizations, but rather because of its intrinsic truthfulness.<\/p>\n If this indicates anything, it would demonstrate the Divine origin of the Quran and the truthfulness of the message of Islam, which, unlike human philosophies and ideologies, was far from proceeding from its human environment; a message which established such humane principles that neither grew obsolete during the course of time, nor can become obsolete in the future.\u00a0 After all, this is the message of the All-Wise and All-Knowing God whose wisdom and knowledge are far beyond the ultimate in human thought and progress<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Social Aspect of Women in Islam A)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 As a Daughter: (1)\u00a0 The Quran ended the cruel practice of female infanticide, which was before Islam.\u00a0 God has said: \u201cAnd when the girl (who was) buried alive is asked, for what … Continue reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=196"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":198,"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196\/revisions\/198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.whoismohamed.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}B)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 As a Wife:<\/h3>\n
C)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 As a Mother:<\/h3>\n
D)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 As a Sister in Faith (In General):<\/h3>\n
The Legal and Political Aspect of Women in Islam<\/h2>\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n