A Match Made In Jannah

Chapter 38

Danyaal's POV

I knew that I had overreacted. I should have been there for her when she needed me. Of all people, I should have understood her best. Maariah just saw my Islamic exterior, but not my corrupted, broken interior. Alhamdulillah, I had changed, but my past was anything but pure. Too much emphasis is put on what a girl does, and so little on the boy.

Maariah had always been the angel of our family. She was a good girl, and no one doubted her purity. Yet, years ago, I had found out that she had been attending some parties that were firstly, not age appropriate, and secondly, unislamic. I was part of the group of older boys that controlled the parties, and the younger boys trusted me with everything. I didn't know how to react, so I decided not to tell anyone since it would mean explaining my own issues. I saw that with time, Maariah seemed to break the ties that held her to the party lifestyle, and hang out more with Husna, who was an extremely good influence on her.

Despite my concern for her, I lacked concern for myself. I knew that if my parents found out about what Maariah did, they would be enraged. They would confiscate her phone, confine her to the beautiful cell that was her room, and deem her unfit for the family. She would be forgiven eventually but that would take a long time. Maariah had a lot to worry about, because she was a girl.

I, on the other hand, had had several girlfriends. My mother had found out about two of my girlfriends, and although she was upset, she shrugged it off. Although I had changed now, since I had befriended Zaid and learnt lessons from his story, I still regretted my past.

After I began my Aalim course, I was surprised to see just how unequal or society was. While I, as a boy, could date and just be classified as a little off-track, my sister just talking to a guy could lead to her reputation being ruined. We taught our girls to cover up, which is not wrong, as that is Allah's command, but why did we teach our girls to control their dressing but failed to teach our boys to control themselves? Why was it that a girl could be slut-shamed for one sin that she committed, and her future be put at risk, while a boy is allowed to do whatever he wants without anyone blinking an eyelid? If I were to marry a girl, and she found out about my previous relationships, she would be told that it was just my past, whereas if my sister's prospective husband had found out about her previous relationships, society would have pressurised him to divorce her.

Why could a man demand a pure wife while he himself was impure?

Why do men taunt women that have had previous relationships by calling them sluts when they were the ones in a relationship with them?

Why was it that I was given leeway as a boy to commit a sin because "Boys will be boys," and "Girls must maintain the family Izzat."?

I knew that society functioned on a male superiority system. As an Aalim, I will not dispute what a woman should not do. Yes, she is meant to stay at home, and she is meant to raise her children. She isn't meant to work and we won't fight for equality in political and economic spheres for our Muslim women because they aren't meant to be at the forefront of such issues. Yet, I, even as an Aalim, will fight for sister's right to be seen like I am.

If I had made a girl pregnant, I know for a fact that I'd be admonished severely for it but eventually allowed to marry her without my reputation being tainted much. She, on the other hand, will receive the scorn of all the lady's panchaat, and will be classified as a badly raised disgrace.

What my Aalim course has taught me is that no matter what gender, race or class we are, Allah will judge us according to our deeds. So to say that my sister is worse than me for having fallen pregnant is a lie. I have been on the verge of a breakdown many times, worried that I had made a girl pregnant. I'm not proud of that, but I am proud of my mindset that I am as bad as my sister, because our sin was the same.

She deserves someone with her now, and she deserves to know that she can change. I know that society's eyes will be on her in no time, and I want her to realise that as a girl, she is no worse than a boy who has committed this sin.

Of course, she'll receive much more of the aunties' taunts. She'll receive much more hate and will be the subject of much more gossip than the man who impregnated her. Whoever he is, I would find out, but forcing her to tell me was of no use. I knew that she had told no one, because she had just discovered it. I wondered if Husna knew. Maybe I should have asked her.

With that thought in mind, I took a u-turn and returned home to attend to my sister.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

Jazakallah to all you amazing readers for everything you've done to make this book a success. I am so proud to announce that with your help, wait for it...

WE'VE REACH #323 IN SPIRITUAL!!!

I can't believe this. Without your help, none of this would be a success.