Rethinking Islam with Sultan Shahin

Urdu Section
20 Oct 2010, NewAgeIslam.Com
Quran and the Rights of Women in Modern Age

God has not created anything useless in this workshop of life. He has fixed everybody's work and place and has bestowed upon them the abilities, accordingly, as every part of a machine has its own special work to perform but each part has its own significance.The machine performs its required function only when a particular part is fitted in the machine in its respective place. If we do not fit a spare part into its required place or fit it into another place, the machine will either not run at all or will not perform its required function.

Similarly, the work of this factory of the universe goes smoothly only when every creature executes its assigned tasks from the place and position Allah has accorded to them. The purview of work the Quran has assigned to men and women are according to their natures and no one’s position and tasks should be looked down upon. --- Atiya Siddiqua, , translated from Urdu by Arman Neyazi, NewAgeIslam.com

Quran and the Rights of Women in Modern Age

By Atiya Siddiqua

(Translated from Urdu by Arman Neyazi, NewAgeIslam.com)

God created countless creatures in the universe. Human beings were made the best among all the creatures and created Man and Woman among them. Allah says in Surah Al Nisa:

“O people! Fear God who created you from a single soul and created the pair with it and spread many men and women from them.” (Al Nisa:1

It was an announcement making it clear that the false differences the world has created among human beings were wrong and superficial. All the human beings have been born from a single soul. No one is either superior or inferior by birth, all are equal. The differences which continue to exist between men and women for centuries have been repudiated and it was made obvious that the first pair of the human beings did not belong to any other creation but they were from the same species and various others were also created from them itself. Relationship was established among the man and whole human community came to the fore. Therefore differences among them is like differentiating one arm from the other. There is a difference between the two constituents of a whole.

God has assigned different tasks to the men and women and has bestowed mental and physical abilities on them accordingly. The man was given the responsibility of dealing with tasks outside his home, of earning a livelihood by doing labour, of carrying economic struggle and meeting the needs of the family. The woman was told that her field of work was her home and her responsibility was to upbring and nurture children. Her nature, temperament and psychology was constituted accordingly. The spirit of love, sympathy and empathy, sacrifice, patience and restraint and service have been endowed in her more than in men.

God has not created anything useless in this workshop of life. He has fixed everybody's work and place and has bestowed upon them the abilities, accordingly, as every part of a machine has its own special work to perform but each part has its own significance.The machine performs its required function only when a particular part is fitted in the machine in its respective place. If we do not fit a spare part into its required place or fit it into another place, the machine will either not run at all or will not perform its required function.

Similarly, the work of this factory of the universe goes smoothly only when every creature executes its assigned tasks from the place and position Allah has accorded to them. The purview of work the Quran has assigned to men and women are according to their natures and no one’s position and tasks should be looked down upon.

In the name of so called development multinational companies have presented the importance of household work, family and family life before women because they needed an army of employees on low salaries. Therefore, they egged the women on take part in financial struggle whereas Islam has assigned economic responsibility to the men and household responsibilities to women so that the family runs smoothly with each other’s cooperation.

It does not mean that a woman has been prohibited to struggle for the financial development of her house. She can take part in it if she so desires albeit with some limitations. There are two objectives of this prohibition. One, there should not be any disintegration or problem in the family system the stability of which is the responsibility of the woman and secondly, she should be able to live a life of dignity and is not thrown into circumstances in which she finds it difficult to remain within the confines of moral values. If these limitations are not kept in consideration, there will be rift in the society and all will have to pay for it. This is an age of ideologies.

This is an age of ideologies. The battles are not fought with weapons in battlefields but the thoughts and points of view are being changed. The media is playing a big role in changing the mindset of the people. The print and visual media is publicizing the ills in sucb a way that people are lapping them up as virtues. The individual unit of a family has gone haywire because of the limitless freedom the western countries have given to the women. The whole family system has disintegrated. Now the eastern countries also wish to tread the same path because of which the ills like live in relationship, casual sex and homo sexuality are much in vogue.

God has created human being as His best creation so it could have realised that he should not follow the path that has led the West to destruction. But, he has become blindfolded with "Hal Min Mazeed" ( I want more) . He can’t see anything and is taking it as a development and equality.

Ancient age because of its illiteracy and the modern age in the name of development has always erred in fixing the place and status of women. Society can flourish and develop only when women are given their right place in the light of the guidance and knowledge imparted by Allah and His Prophet(SAW) becasuse Islam teaches us the middle path and this is what is Serat ul Mustaqueem( the right path). To God the development is complete Iman (faith) and good deeds. To Him everybody is equal. None of us has been given permanent high or low place in the society. Whoever, man or woman, will perform as per the guidance of Allah will get high status on the Day of Judgement and the person who will be bereft of these qualities will perish in both the places.

“Man Amelan Salehan min Zikrin aw Unsa w huwa Momenan falanajjainahu Hahatan Taiyyebatan w la Najzeyannahum Ajrahum be Ahsan ma Kanu Yamaluoon" (Al Nahal79) " The people who are good in their deeds and if he is a Momin will certainly be provided a pious life in the world and such people will certainly be awarded for their good deeds on the Day of Judgement"

On the Day of Judgement the human beings will be awarded or punished not on the basis of their gender buyt on the basis of their Iman and deeds. Whoever will have the wealth of good deeds and pious practice of Shariah will get Pious Life, Hayat e Taiyyaba, he will never be misguided from the right path, God will provide him pious food and patience during the difficult days. The doors of paradise will be opened for him and he will have everlasting right on it. It is for all without any discrimination between man and woman. May we get the power of treading the right path and get succes here and hereafter. Ameen

Source: RASHTRIYA SAHARA

URL: http://www.newageislam.com/NewAgeIslamUrduSection_1.aspx?ArticleID=3555