Essence of Islam

Status of Women In Islam

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Westerns and many of Non-Muslims believe that Islam is oppressing women and it is restraining them from freedom. Human Rights associations and Feminists of West are campaigning against Islam declaring it an unjust and oppressing religion. But, this is just a misconception which has not an ounce of truth in it. In fact, Islam is the only religion which is a feminist religion. It has provided those rights to females which were unknown in the previous civilization, and also today in many parts of World these rights are alien for people. Before discussing the status of Women in Islam, let's have a glimpse of her condition in previous civilizations and in some parts of this modern era.

In pre-Islamic era, Arabs used to bury their daughters alive. It was dishonorable for them when a female child was born in their households.

Allah, the Exalted has stated it in his Glorious Quran:

"When the news of (the birth of) a female is brought to any of them, his face becomes dark, and he is filled with inward grief! He hides himself from the people because of

the evil (and shame) of that which he has been informed. Shall he keep her with dishonor, or bury her in the dirt?

Certainly, evil is their decision" [16:59]

Their history was full of degrading women, beating them and treating them as an inferior being. After it, Islam came and it gave rights to women which were previously unknown to the World.

In other civilizations, treating women as an inferior being is also common. In Hinduism or Indian Society, Men is being given the status of god. In old times "Sutti" was a common practice and was justified by their religion. In it, the wife had to be burned alive with the death of her husband. Now, this practice is not common in India because people revolt against it, but still it is present in the uncivilized or far villages of India.

In Catholics or Christians, women are being seen as the cause of "Original sin". Christians believe that Eve forces Adam to eat the forbidden apple and due to her, humans are exiled from Paradise. They see women as an evil being and treat her with hate because she is the root cause of the downfall of Humans (according to their beliefs). You all can imagine what will be her condition in the Catholics when she is being seen as the root cause of the biggest sin of Human history. While in Quran, Allah has explained this incident while repeating again and again that both Adam and Eve, were the reason of this downfall. According to the Qur'an, both were jointly wrong in their disobedience to God, both repented, and both were forgiven. (Qur'an 2:36, 7:20 - 24). In one verse in fact (20:121), Adam specifically, was blamed.

In Chinese societies, women's status was the same as of the status of women in Pre-Islamic Arab. Men were being seen as the "gift of god" while female children had to endure harsh customs and treatments from the society. They were seen as a despised and degraded being who had to acquire the most inferior positions of society. If a wife failed to produce a son, she would be cut off from the family's list. After husband's death, she was seen as the property of her spouse's family. A Chinese proverb says:

"Listen to your wife, but never believe what she says."

This proverb and customs has told us how much that civilization was male oriented.

In Greek civilization, they believed that women were nothing but evil. In this society, women were deprived of their basic rights; rights of inheritance, rights of protection, rights of education, rights for being treated as a human being. They were subjected to please and obey the man without thinking of their own will. They were bought and sold like a commodity who had no feelings or rights. Gustave Le Bon, the French thinker, stated about the status of women in the Greek society in his book "Arab Civilization":