Brilliant Examples from the History of Muslim Women

Allaah The Almighty Says (what means):
· } O you who have believed, fear Allaah as He should be feared anddo
not die except as Muslims [in submission to Him]. { [Quran 3:102]
· } O you who have believed, fear Allaah and speak words of
appropriate justice. He will [then]amend for you your deeds and
forgive you your sins. And whoever obeys Allaah and His Messenger has
certainly attained a great attainment. { [Quran 33:71]
A regrettable problem has surfaced in our societies, and scholars are
receiving complaints from righteous women about thetrouble they are
facing in their commununities. Who is troublingour sisters? Jews?
Christians? Secularists? No, unfortunately, these provocations are
from some Muslims, may Allaah The Almighty guide us all.
This problem is not widespread so far, but one worries that it might
escalate to an extent that we will not be able to treat it. Thus, it
is best to tell those who criticize righteous sisters: When you
criticize righteous sisters, you are criticizing the Sunnah
(tradition) of the Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam .
When you criticize a certain person, the criticism is not directed to
the person himself, but to the methodology that he adopts. Such
conduct could be quite serious because some of the criticism or
mockery may be regarded as disbelief in Allaah The Almighty Who Says
(what means): } Say, "Is it Allaah and His verses and His Messenger
that you were mocking?" Make no excuse; you have disbelieved afteryour
belief. { [Quran 9:65, 66]
The Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam , said: "A man may
heedlessly utter a word that angers Allaah with him, which makes him
fall in Hell for seventy years." [At-Tirmithi, Ibn Maajah and Ahmad]
Such conduct has serious repercussions not just for the observant
Muslim woman alone, but for the person who mocks her as well, because
it may lead to the loss of their religion if theydo not turn to Allaah
The Almighty in repentance.
Being observant and religious is the right thing to do, whereas
religious non-observance and mocking observant people is extremism and
deviation.
Women in the Quran and Sunnah (tradition)
The best and most brilliant examples of Muslim women are the women who
are mentioned in the Quran and the Sunnah (tradition). We may know
about them, but let us contemplate these great examples.
Many Soorahs (chapters) in the Quran have names that are related to
women. One of the longest Soorahs of the Quran is Soorat An-Nisaa'
(The Women). Another Soorah is Al-Mujaadilah (She that Disputes/ The
Pleading Woman), Maryam (Mary) and Al-Mumtahinah (Examining her).
There are numerous verses that deal with women. Allaah The Almighty
Says (what means):
· } And their Lord responded to them, "Never will I allow to be lost
the work of [any] worker among you, whether male or female; you are of
one another. { [Quran 3:195]
· } The believing men and believing women are allies of oneanother. {
[Quran 9:71]
· } Would substitute for him wivesbetter than you - submitting [to
Allaah ], believing, devoutly obedient, repentant, worshipping, and
traveling - [ones] previously married and virgins. { [Quran 66:5]
· } For men is a share of what theyhave earned, and for women is a
share of what they have earned. { [Quran 4:32]
· } So righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in [the
husband's] absence. { [Quran 4:34]
There are also many other verses and stories in the Quran about issues
concerning women, but I will only refer to some of them.
In Soorat Al-Ahzaab , there are the verses that refer to the wives and
daughters of the Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam . andthe
believing women. Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): } O wives of
the Prophet.. { [Quran 33:32]
Moreover, the story of Maryam (Mary), may Allaah exalt her mention,
was mentioned in morethan one Soorah of the Quran. The story of the
mother of Prophet Moosa (Moses), may Allaah exalt his mention, was
mentioned in Soorat Al-Qasas . The story of the Ifk (falsehood)
incident was mentioned in SooratAn-Noor . This story is considered to
be a declaration of the innocence of 'Aa'ishah, may Allaah be pleased
with her, and of virtuous Muslim women.
The incident of the Ifk (falsehood)is related to what I have mentioned
earlier, because observant women may encountersimilar harm from
hypocrites anddeviant people, so they should beready to face it. If
women assume that they will be saved from a trial like this, it must
be remembered that 'Aa'ishah, may Allaah be pleased with her, would
have been worthier of being safe from such slander.
A long time ago, I saw a shameful cartoon in a newspaperin Kuwait and
I thought to myselfthat the Kuwaiti press had gone beyond the bounds
of propriety and had taken too much liberty. Perhaps such actions
could be to blame for what befell Kuwait.
Some years ago, when young women who attended the University of Kuwait
began adhering to the Islamic dress code, by putting on Hijaab
(Islamic covering), the Kuwaiti press expressed annoyance. The press
launched campaigns against religiously observant Muslim women. As part
of the campaign, the famous cartoonist,Nagi Al-Ali, who later faced
his doom when he was shot dead in Britain, drew a cartoon of a young
woman in Hijaab with a strand of hair on her chest, beingasked by
another young woman, who did not cover up, whose beard hair that was.
This cartoon slandered women in Hijaab and accused them of having
unlawful relationships with men with beards. The cartoon mocked
religiously observant men and women. The cartoonist in question has
already received his punishment in the worldly life and will be
reckoned by Allaah The Almighty, The Just for what he did.
The incident of the Ifk (falsehood)shook the house of the Prophet,
sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam , to the extent that some of the
Companions, may Allaah be pleased with them, thought ill of 'Aa'ishah,
may Allaah be pleased with her, until Allaah The Almighty declared her
innocence. Let me advise Muslim women who are attacked and falsely
accused of wrongdoing to be patient just like 'Aa'ishah, may Allaah be
pleased with her.
The wife of Fir'awn (Pharaoh), was a believing woman who observed
patience. This woman ismentioned in Soorat At-Tahreem .
Also, the wife of Ibraaheem (Abraham), may Allaah exalt his mention,
was mentioned in morethan one Soorah .
Another story is that of the Queen of Saba' (Sheba) which wasmentioned
in Soorat An-Naml . A poet composed poems about thisqueen saying that
if all women were like this queen, women would be superior to men. It
is worth mentioning that this queen was a wise woman even before she
became a Muslim. As aruler, she was never a dictator, but she used to
consult her eminent helpers. Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): }
I would not decide a matter until you witness [for] me. { [Quran
27:32] She was not too proud to believe; because she had a sound mind
and thanks to the grace of Allaah The Almighty, she was guided to
believe in Prophet Sulaymaan (Solomon), may Allaahexalt his mention.
This story should be contemplated over, as it containsmany lessons
that have been pointed out by scholars and exegetes.
Women in the Sunnah
There are many Hadeeths of the Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam
, that deal with women. The Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam ,
said:
· "Be advised to be good to women." [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
· "Be gentle to women."
Abu Hurayrah, may Allaah be pleased with him, said, 'A man came to the
Messenger of Allaah and asked him, "Who is most entitled to my best
companionship?"The Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said :
"Your mother." The man said, "Who is next?" The Prophet, sallallaahu
'alayhi wa sallam, said : "Your mother." The man further asked, "Who
is next?" The Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said : "Your
mother." The man asked for the fourth time, "Who is next?" The
Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said : "Your father."
[Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
The Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam , used to allocate sometime
to answering women's questions and to help them to solve their
problems.
One of the brilliant examples of women is that of the two women from
Al-Ansaar who participated in the pledge of Al-'Aqabah, despite the
arduous circumstances. This proves that women can be brave and that
they can fulfill important roles in certain situations.
Women in the past also participated in Jihaad and we can recall the
story of Umm 'Atiyyah, may Allaah be pleased with her, who
participated in seven battleswith the Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa
sallam . She used to treat the injured, serve the fighters and guard
their belongings. (The issue of the permissibility of working as a
nurse needs further discussion, as scholars have stated certain
conditions for this, but this is notthe suitable context to discuss
this issue.)
Thus, the status of women in the Sunnah is clear and one need not talk
about it at length.