Guest Author - Serkan Tufan
Since we are realizing and celebrating International Women’s Week, I wanted to write about women’s place in Islam. Actually, it is a broad topic and I want to make it three pieces of article.
Women have a very important, unique and novel place in Islam. Islam changed the image of women in people’s minds over 1400 years ago and gave women the most honorable rights and the most respectful place that they have ever been given until now.
First of all, Quran –the Holy book of Islam- mentions women many times with a great emphasis, not to mention that one of the longest chapters is named Nisa (meaning women) and another one is named Maryam (Mary-Mother of Jesus).
Quran itself starts with the prayer: "In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful" and also every chapter (except one) starts with these words. Since in Islam Quran is the pure, exact revelation from God to the Messenger, that means in the beginning of Quran and also in every chapter God introduces himself as the most gracious and most merciful. It is also interesting that women have an attribution of being the most merciful and compassionate among creatures. That way, the names of God ‘merciful’ and ‘compassionate’ are manifested in women, especially in mothers. It is such an honor to carry these qualifications that God most wants us to know Him with also.
We can always see Messenger Mohammed- the best example for Muslims- supporting women and respecting them a lot. Once He said: “Heaven is laid at mothers’ feet", meaning the gate to heaven for any human being is opened with mothers’ assent and being happy about their children’s attitude towards them. In other words, we can never go into heaven without pleasing our mothers and meeting their needs and rights.
Considering the fact that before the advent of Islam, almost everywhere in the world, women's status was miserable. The pagan Arabs used to bury their female children alive, make women dance naked in the vicinity of the Ka‘ba during their annual fairs, and treat women as mere chattels and objects of sexual pleasure possessing no rights or position whatsoever, these teachings of the Noble Qur’an were revolutionary.
Unlike some other beliefs, which regarded women as being possessed of inherent sin and wickedness and men as being possessed of inherent virtue and nobility, Islam regards men and women as being of the same essence created from a single soul. The Qur’an declares:
“O mankind! Reverence your Guardian-Lord, Who created you from a single person, created, of like nature, his mate, and from this pair scattered (like seeds) countless men and women. Reverence Allah, through Whom you demand your mutual (rights), and reverence the wombs (that bore you); for Allah ever watches over you. (4:1)”
Quran also states the story of first human and first messenger Adam and Eve in a different way than many of the scriptures in the aspect of Eve’s role in the incident. Here are the verses from 7th chapter of Quran (Araf):
7:19"O Adam! dwell thou and thy wife in the Garden, and enjoy (its good things) as ye wish: but approach not this tree, or ye run into harm and transgression."
7:20 Then began Satan to whisper suggestions to them, bringing openly before their minds all their shame that was hidden from them (before): he said: "Your Lord only forbade you this tree, lest ye should become angels or such beings as live for ever."
7:21 And he swore to them both, that he was their sincere adviser.
7:22 So by deceit he brought about their fall: when they tasted of the tree, their shame became manifest to them, and they began to sew together the leaves of the garden over their bodies. And their Lord called unto them: "Did I not forbid you that tree, and tell you that Satan was an avowed enemy unto you?"
7:23 They said: "Our Lord! We have wronged our own souls: If thou forgive us not and bestow not upon us Thy Mercy, we shall certainly be lost."
As we see, there is no deceiving of Eve in the story. They both made this mistake together, than prayed and have been forgiven by God. With these verses, Quran clarifies the thought of the role of women in the first sin that humankind committed.
There is no difference between men and women in Islam in the aspect of the position in front of God and hereafter. They both are promised the same reward for good deeds and the same punishment for bad deeds. Here is some verses(words from quran)
-And for women are rights over men similar to those of men over women. (2:226)
-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, for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in Allah’s praise, for them has Allah prepared forgiveness and great reward. (33:35)
Many belief system still claim that women don’t possess souls, and that they will exist as sexless beings in the next life, whereas the Quran says that women have souls in exactly the same way as men and will enter Paradise if they do good:
-Enter into Paradise, you and your wives, with delight. (43:70)
She is given the right to be independent, thus fully responsible:
-Who so does that which is right, and believes, whether male or female, him or her will We quicken to happy life. (16:97)
The Qur’an also admonishes those men who oppress or ill-treat women:
O you who believe! You are forbidden to inherit women against their will. Nor should you treat them with harshness, that you may take away part of the dowry you have given them - except when they have become guilty of open lewdness. On the contrary live with them on a footing of kindness and equity. If you take a dislike to them, it may be that you dislike something and Allah will bring about through it a great deal of good. (4:19)
Now, we tried to conclude the basics of women’s place in Islam. In the next article, I’ll deal with women’s place in society compared to men and some of the distinguished women that shows the great examples of women's life in Islam.
