Islam and Women

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Islamic scriptures generally employ the masculine pronoun in Arabic, which is used to refer to both men and women. On occasion, the scriptures diverge from this standard, inclusive usage, and comment specifically on men or women. The perspective taken by Islamic scriptures on women is of special interest in recent times due to frequent collision with modern values.

Women are legally disadvantaged by Islamic law in several in several domains of life. Particularly, women are disadvantaged in matters of sexual, domestic, legal, financial, sartorial, and physical autonomy. According to Islamic legal theory, while not all of Islamic law necessarily has a perceptibly rational basis, legal restrictions on women may be due to their supposed intellectual deficiency, which was pronounced by Muhammad according to Sahih Bukhari.

It should also be noted that whereas the patriarchal arrangements of early Islamic society hardly deserve indictment, given their historical situation and the fact that they were in a limited sense an improvement upon pre-Islamic gender norms, the same can, perhaps, not be said about the perpetual enshrinement of those patriarchal norms - however much an improvement in 7th century Arabia - as took place in the ideas of Islamic law that finally emerged.

Overview

Women in Islam

Souad Saleh, a female professor at Al-Ahzar University in Cairo and a vocal proponent of women's rights in Egypt, recently stated, "Islam is pure and simple, and it holds women in high esteem."[1] Saleh has also stated that Muslim men have the right to enjoy sex slaves and that "If we [Egyptians] fought Israel and won, we have the right to enslave and enjoy sexually the Israeli women that we would capture in the war."[2] The sharp contrast between the two statements made by Saleh reflect the dissonance of the Islamic tradition. While women are, in some metaphysical sense, men's equals, they are simultaneously deemed to be inferior in such things as intelligence and are subject to a wide array of unique legal disabilities.

Islamic scriptures

Narrated Usama bin Zaid: The Prophet said, "After me I have not left any affliction [fitnah] more harmful to men than women."

Honor Violence and Islam

Honor Related Violence is physical violence that is inflicted on an individual by perpetrators who believe the victim has brought dishonor upon the family, clan, or community by engaging in any conduct that is perceived as immoral or unacceptable by religious or social/cultural standards. This violence almost always happens in Muslim families.

While not prescribed in Islam, Muslim women are killed by family members for many "honor" related reasons, including being raped, associating with non-related males, getting pregnant outside of marriage, refusing a forced marriage, and for the belief they might have done something else immoral. In the eyes of their family, death serves restore the family's honor. The entire family may all collaborate on this, and in some cases the whole community may participate and even celebrate the occasion. The generally controlling nature of Islam towards women, and the death penalty in Islam for some types of zina (unlawful sexual intercourse) are plausible indirect reasons for such extremely negative attitudes towards women.

While honor violence is not explicitly endorsed in Islamic law, it often appears where Islamic law is implemented. Certain Islamic punishments such as stoning, flogging, and even death by being thrown off a tall building are prescribed for sexual crimes. While these punishment are not justified as 'recovering honor' as such, it is not difficult to see how a culture can make that connection and then implement the violence prescribed through other, extralegal means.

In Islamic doctrine

Women as intellectually deficient

Muhammad's declared that the majority of the inhabitants of Hell are women.[3] When asked why, he said it was because they are deficient in intelligence and religion and because they are ungrateful to their husbands.

Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri:

Once Allah's Apostle went out to the Musalla (to offer the prayer) o 'Id-al-Adha or Al-Fitr prayer. Then he passed by the women and said, "O women! Give alms, as I have seen that the majority of the dwellers of Hell-fire were you (women)." They asked, "Why is it so, O Allah's Apostle ?" He replied, "You curse frequently and are ungrateful to your husbands. I have not seen anyone more deficient in intelligence and religion than you. A cautious sensible man could be led astray by some of you." The women asked, "O Allah's Apostle! What is deficient in our intelligence and religion?" He said, "Is not the evidence of two women equal to the witness of one man?" They replied in the affirmative. He said, "This is the deficiency in her intelligence. Isn't it true that a woman can neither pray nor fast during her menses?" The women replied in the affirmative. He said, "This is the deficiency in her religion."
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: On 'Id ul Fitr or 'Id ul Adha Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) went out to the Musalla. After finishing the prayer, he delivered the sermon and ordered the people to give alms. He said, "O people! Give alms." Then he went towards the women and said. "O women! Give alms, for I have seen that the majority of the dwellers of Hell-Fire were you (women)." The women asked, "O Allah's Apostle! What is the reason for it?" He replied, "O women! You curse frequently, and are ungrateful to your husbands. I have not seen anyone more deficient in intelligence and religion than you. O women, some of you can lead a cautious wise man astray." Then he left.

Muhammad also disapproved of female heads of state in severe terms.

Narrated Abu Bakra:

During the battle of Al-Jamal, Allah benefited me with a Word (I heard from the Prophet). When the Prophet heard the news that the people of the Persia had made the daughter of Khosrau their Queen (ruler), he said, "Never will succeed such a nation as makes a woman their ruler."

72 Virgins in Paradise

Main Articles: 72 Virgins and Authenticity of 72 Virgins Hadith

These articles discusses what the Qur'an, hadith and Islamic scholars say about the 72 Virgins and heavenly houris in general, and dispel popular misconceptions surrounding them. The Qur'anic Paradise is sensual in nature, promising Muslim men voluptuous, gigantic, and transparent-skinned virgins, but does not specify their exact number. This cannot be, as is sometimes claimed, a mistranslation because raisins do not have large eyes, breasts, or be wed to men. The hadith literature compliment the Qur'anic text by specifying the exact number of virgins as 72 and providing us with detailed descriptions of their characteristics. These narrations are not weak but vary in strength from good to authentic. There are also given details on the physical attributes given to men to sustain 72 virgins, namely, ever-erect penises that never soften and the sexual strength to satisfy 100 women. Although it does say they will receive a "great reward" and there are also hasan (good) hadith which refer to 72 virgins as one of the "seven blessings from Allah" to the martyr, the Qur'an does not specify these virgins are a reward exclusively for jihadists/martyrs, but rather for any Muslim male who gains admittance to Paradise.

Women are possessions

In the following hadith, note that Sad bin Ar-Rabi used his wives as a mere possession to be traded in a purely commercial transaction:

Narrated Ibrahim bin Sad from his father from his grand-father: Abdur Rahman bin Auf said, "When we came to Medina as emigrants, Allah's Apostle established a bond of brotherhood between me and Sad bin Ar-Rabi'. Sad bin Ar-Rabi' said (to me), 'I am the richest among the Ansar, so I will give you half of my wealth and you may look at my two wives and whichever of the two you may choose I will divorce her, and when she has completed the prescribed period (before marriage) you may marry her.'

The prophet of Islam stated the following, recorded in the earliest biography:

"Lay injunctions on women kindly, for they are prisoners with you having no control of their persons. You have taken them only as a trust from God, and you have the enjoyment of their persons by the words of God, so understand (T. and listen to) my words, O men, for I have told you.[4]

Women are also mentioned in these texts as possessions along with animals:

When one is given a woman, servant, or cattle, one should seize its forehead and pray to Allah.
Ibn-i-Majah vol.3 no.1918 p.157
Treat women well, for they are like domestic animals (awan) with you and do not possess anything for themselves.
al-Tabari vol.9 p.113

Women are the inhabitants of hell

(And it is said unto the angels): Assemble those who did wrong, together with their wives and what they used to worship instead of Allah, and lead them to the path to hell;

Some Qur'an translators use the word "spouses" instead of "wives."[5] Yet, the Qur'an is clear in telling us that if some persons deserve hell, their spouses must simply follow suit irrespective of whether or not they are guilty. The tafsirs are also in disagreement over the correct word; Ibn Abbas goes with "wives."[6]

Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: The Prophet said: "I was shown the Hell-fire and that the majority of its dwellers were women who were ungrateful." It was asked, "Do they disbelieve in Allah?" (or are they ungrateful to Allah?) He replied, "They are ungrateful to their husbands and are ungrateful for the favors and the good (charitable deeds) done to them.
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: Once Allah's Apostle went out to the Musalla (to offer the prayer) o 'Id-al- Adha or Al-Fitr prayer. Then he passed by the women and said, "O women! Give alms, as I have seen that the majority of the dwellers of Hellfire were you (women)..."
Narrated 'Abdullah bin Abbas: The people say, "O Allah's Apostle! We saw you taking something from your place and then we saw you retreating." The Prophet replied, "I saw Paradise and stretched my hands towards a bunch (of its fruits) and had I taken it, you would have eaten from it as long as the world remains. I also saw the Hell-fire and I had never seen such a horrible sight. I saw that most of the inhabitants were women." The people asked, "O Allah's Apostle! Why is it so?" The Prophet replied, "Because of their ungratefulness."
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri: On 'Id ul Fitr or 'Id ul Adha Allah's Apostle (p.b.u.h) went out to the Musalla. After finishing the prayer, he delivered the sermon and ordered the people to give alms. He said, "O people! Give alms." Then he went towards the women and said. "O women! Give alms, for I have seen that the majority of the dwellers of Hell-Fire were you (women)."
Narrated Usama: The Prophet said, "I stood at the gate of Paradise and saw that the majority of the people who entered it were the poor, while the wealthy were stopped at the gate (for the accounts). But the companions of the Fire were ordered to be taken to the Fire. Then I stood at the gate of the Fire and saw that the majority of those who entered it were women."
Narrated Imran: The Prophet said, "I looked at Paradise and saw that the majority of its residents were the poor; and I looked at the (Hell) Fire and saw that the majority of its residents were women."

Women compared to dogs

Most orthodox Islamic scholars considers dogs to be haram - forbidden and najis - unclean. Thus the comparison of women to dogs in these Sahih (authentic) ahadith are noteworthy:

Narrated 'Aisha: The things which annul the prayers were mentioned before me. They said, "Prayer is annulled by a dog, a donkey and a woman (if they pass in front of the praying people)." I said, "You have made us (i.e. women) dogs."
Narrated 'Aisha: It is not good that you people have made us (women) equal to dogs and donkeys.
Abu Dharr reported: The Messenger of 'Allah (may peace be upon him) said: When any one of you stands for prayer … his prayer would be cut off by (passing of an) ass, woman, and black Dog.
...Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: A woman, an ass and a dog disrupt the prayer.
...Masruq reported: It was mentioned before 'A'isha that prayer is invalidated (in case of passing) of a dog, an ass and a woman (before the worshipper, when he is not screened). Upon this 'A'isha said: You likened us to the asses and the dogs.

Women compared to devil

Jabir reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) saw a woman, and so he came to his wife, zainab, as she was tanning a leather and had sexual intercourse with her. He then went to his Companions and told them: The woman advances and retires in the shape of a devil, so when one of you sees a woman, he should come to his wife, for that will repel what he feels in his heart.

Man Can Take Pleasure from their Women (Wives)

They question thee (O Muhammad) concerning menstruation. Say: It is an illness, so let women alone at such times and go not in unto them till they are cleansed. And when they have purified themselves, then go in unto them as Allah hath enjoined upon you. Truly Allah loveth those who turn unto Him, and loveth those who have a care for cleanness.
Your women are a tilth for you (to cultivate) so go to your tilth as ye will, and send (good deeds) before you for your souls, and fear Allah, and know that ye will (one day) meet Him. Give glad tidings to believers, (O Muhammad).

Women are Placed in Paradise for the Pleasure of Men

Narrated Abdullah bin Qais: Allah's Apostle said, "In Paradise there is a pavilion made of a single hollow pearl sixty miles wide, in each corner of which there are wives who will not see those in the other corners; and the believers will visit and enjoy them.

Muhammad Suggested Marrying Virgins to Fondle Them

Narrated Jabir bin 'Abdullah: I was accompanying the Prophet on a journey and was riding a slow camel that was lagging behind the others. ... When we approached Medina, I started going (towards my house). The Prophet said, "Where are you going?" I said, "I have married a widow." He said, "Why have you not married a virgin to fondle with each other?"
Narrated 'Aisha: The Prophet and I used to take a bath from a single pot while we were Junub. During the menses, he used to order me to put on an Izar (dress worn below the waist) and used to fondle me.

In Islamic law

Muhammad and Women

Wives and Concubines of Muhammad

Main Articles: List of Muhammad's Wives and Concubines and Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Muhammad's Wives and Concubines and Ages of Muhammad's Wives at Marriage

According to multiple sources, Muhammad had many wives and concubines, and was known as a "womanizer".[7] Muhammad consummated his marriages with thirteen women and divorced another six. He also used to visit all his wives in one night:

Narrated Qatada: Anas bin Malik said, "The Prophet used to visit all his wives in a round, during the day and night and they were eleven in number." I asked Anas, "Had the Prophet the strength for it?" Anas replied, "We used to say that the Prophet was given the strength of thirty (men)." And Sa'id said on the authority of Qatada that Anas had told him about nine wives only (not eleven).

Aisha

Aisha, sometimes spelt as 'Ayesha' or 'Aysha', was the nine year old child-bride of Muhammad. She was engaged to him at the age of six. She was also the daughter of Abu Bakr, a close friend of Muhammad. Historically, she is known as Muhammad's "favorite wife."

'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported: Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house when I was nine years old.

The age of Muhammad's child-bride Aisha, has only in recent times become an actively contested issue, with many claiming that she was in fact older than nine when married or when the marriage was consummated. It has also been recorded in authentic Islamic sources that Muhammad struck Aisha[8] and also allowed Abu Bakr to do the same.[9] Aisha was not 'offered' to Muhammad by her father, as many lay Muslims believe, rather it was Muhammad who approached Abu Bakr, and Abu Bakr originally protested.[10] However, Muhammad justified his desire for Aisha with a 'divine' vision from Allah.[11]

Khadijah

Khadijah bint Khuwailid/Khuwaylid (555 – 619 AD) was the first wife of Muhammad and also a distant cousin. Belonging to the Bani Asad tribe, Khadijah was the daughter of Khuwaylid bin Asad bin. ‘Abd al-‘Uzza bin Qusayy, the Grand son Qusayy. She was a wealthy woman aged forty who ran her own business, and her marriage with Muhammad was a controversial one which almost ended in bloodshed.

Khadija's high social standing is often used as "proof" that women are equal in Islam.[12] However, she was a "great independent businesswoman" before Islam, during the so-called "Period of Ignorance" (Jahiliyah). Indeed, after Islam, Muhammad prohibited women from taking leadership positions[13] and this is why in some Islamic countries women "cannot run for president or become judges."[14][15]

Safiyah

Safiyah bint Huyayy (610 - 670 AD) was the bride of Kinana and the chief mistress of the Jewish tribes of Quraiza and An-Nadir. When the Muslims invaded and conquered Khaibar, the fighting men were killed and Safiya was taken captive (along with the rest of the women and children) and allotted as booty to Dihya Al-Kalbi, a Muslim.[16] Kinana, Safiyah's suitor or husband, was tortured and executed by the Muslims in order to discover the hiding places of treasure,[17] and one source relates that he and Safiya had been married only one day.[18] She was so beautiful, that the Muslims began praising her in the presence of Muhammad[19], and so the prophet commanded that Dihya be brought before him along with Safiya. Upon seeing her, Muhammad said, "Take any slave girl other than her from the captives"[20] and he selected her to be his slave rather than the slave of any of his companions.

She was held captive up until the marriage, and when Muhammad decided that she would be a wife rather than a slave-girl, that is when he made known that her manumission was her mahr.

Mariyah

Mariyah the Copt was one of the prophet’s wives’ maids. Muhammad slept with her without any ceremony, which caused uproar among his wives and finally was settled by divine intervention.

Waqidi has informed us that Abu Bakr has narrated that the messenger of Allah (PBUH) had sexual intercourse with Mariyyah in the house of Hafsah. When the messenger came out of the house, Hafsa was sitting at the gate (behind the locked door). She told the prophet, O Messenger of Allah, do you do this in my house and during my turn? The messenger said, control yourself and let me go because I make her haram to me. Hafsa said, I do not accept, unless you swear for me. That Hazrat (his holiness) said, by Allah I will not contact her again. Qasim ibn Muhammad has said that this promise of the Prophet that had forbidden Mariyyah to himself is invalid – it does not become a violation (hormat).[21]

Muhammad and the Violation of Qur'anic Sexual Norms

Women and the Farewell Sermon

Main Article: The Farewell Sermon See also: Analysis of Muhammad’s Farewell Sermon

The Farewell Sermon (خطبة الوداع‎, Khuṭbatu l-Wadā') is Muhammad's last sermon before his death in 632 CE. There is a popular redacted and edited version of the sermon, but in the original versions found in Sunan Abu Dawud 1900 (Ahmad Hasan Ref), al-Tabari's History, and ibn Ishaq's Sirat, Muhammad's order to beat women coincides with the Qur'anic order of wife-beating in 4:34. In al-Tabari's version, he also compares women to domestic animals, and in ibn Ishaq's version quoted below, they are compared to prisoners:

"You have rights over your wives and they have rights over you. You have the right that they should not defile your bed and that they should not behave with open unseemliness. If they do, God allows you to put them in separate rooms and beat them but not with severity. If they refrain from these things they have the right to their food and clothing with kindness. Lay injunctions on women kindly, for they are prisoners with you having no control of their persons. You have taken them as a trust from God, and you have the enjoyment of their persons by the words of God, so understand…"[22]

Women in the modern Muslim world

According to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, over 90% of married women report being kicked, slapped, beaten or sexually abused when husbands were dissatisfied by their cooking or cleaning, or when the women had 'failed' to bear a child or had given birth to a girl instead of a boy.[23]

See Also

External Links

References

  1. Gamal Nkrumah - "Soaud Saleh: Time to tear down the divides" interview in Al-Ahram Weekly, online publication
  2. "The Ideological Extremism of Al-Azhar". www.washingtoninstitute.org. Retrieved 2019-02-28.
  3. Sahih Bukhari 1:6:301
  4. ibn Ishaq, p. 651
  5. 37:22
  6. "Tanwir al-Miqbas min Tafsir Ibn Abbas 37:22", http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=0&tTafsirNo=73&tSoraNo=37&tAyahNo=22&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=2. 
  7. "....Layla’s people said, "’What a bad thing you have done! You are a self-respecting woman, but the Prophet is a womanizer. Seek an annulment from him.’ She went back to the Prophet and asked him to revoke the marriage and he complied with [her request]...." - al Tabari vol.9 p.139
  8. "...He said: Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said: Yes. He struck me on the chest which caused me pain, and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you?..." - Sahih Muslim 4:2127
  9. "....Abu Bakr (Allah be pleased with him) then got up went to 'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) and slapped her on the neck, and 'Umar stood up before Hafsa and slapped her saying: You ask Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) which he does not possess...." - Sahih Bukhari 1:7:330
  10. "....The Prophet asked Abu Bakr for 'Aisha's hand in marriage. Abu Bakr said "But I am your brother."...." - Sahih Bukhari 7:62:18
  11. "....You were shown to me twice (in my dream) before I married you. I saw an angel carrying you in a silken piece of cloth, and I said to him, 'Uncover (her),' and behold, it was you. I said (to myself), 'If this is from Allah, then it must happen....." - Sahih Bukhari 9:87:140
  12. For example, take a look at this bit of vandalism.
  13. "Narrated Abu Bakra: During the battle of Al-Jamal, Allah benefited me with a Word (I heard from the Prophet). When the Prophet heard the news that the people of the Persia had made the daughter of Khosrau their Queen (ruler), he said, "Never will succeed such a nation as makes a woman their ruler." - Sahih Bukhari 9:88:219
  14. Don't "play" with Islamic law, Iranian women told - Reuters, July 4, 2007
  15. Stacey Moore - Man is the Leader - NewsDay, December 7, 2011
  16. Sahih Bukhari 2:14:68
  17. Ishaq. I (Author), Guillaume. A (Translator). (2002). The Life of Muhammad. (p. 515). Oxford University Press - Tabari vol. 8, p.123 - Muir, Sir William. (1878). The Life of Mahomet, New Edition. (pp. 390-391) London:Smith, Elder and Co.
  18. Muir, Sir William. (1878). The Life of Mahomet, New Edition. (pp. 392) London:Smith, Elder and Co.
  19. Sahih Muslim 8:3329
  20. Sahih Bukhari 1:8:367
  21. Tabaqat v. 8 p. 223 Publisher Entesharat-e Farhang va Andisheh Tehran 1382 solar h ( 2003) Translator Dr. Mohammad Mahdavi Damghani
  22. Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah, p. 651
  23. Pakistan: Violence against women: Media briefing - Amnesty International