Women - Women's Scholarship: Remembering a ..

Women have had a strong presence in society since the beginning of
Islam. Khadeejah bint Khuwaylid, may Allaah be pleased with her,
wasthe first person ever to believe in the Prophet,...Women have had a
strong presence in society since the beginning of Islam. Khadeejah
bint Khuwaylid, may Allaah be pleased with her, was the first person
ever to believe in the Prophet,sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. She was
a great support for theDa'wah)Islamic propagation( until her demise in
the tenth year after theBi'thah)the beginning of the mission of the
Prophet,sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, as a prophet and messenger sent
by Allaah The Almighty to convey His message(. The Prophet,sallallaahu
'alayhi wa sallam, called that year "The Year of Grief".
The first person to sacrifice her soul in the cause of Allaah The
Almighty was a woman. She was the first martyr in Islam: Sumayyah bint
Khabbaat, may Allaah be pleased with her.
The first one to emigrate in the cause of Allaah The Almighty was a
woman: Ruqayyah, may Allaah be pleased with her, the daughter of the
Prophet,sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam.It is said that she and her
husband, 'Uthmaan bin 'Affaan, may Allaah be pleased with him, were
the first people to emigrate in the cause of Allaah after Prophet
Loote )Lot(, may Allaah exalt his mention. She emigrated to Abyssinia
to escape persecution in Makkah.
Muslim women did not only achieve great feats in terms of faith,
emigration and sacrifice. Rather, their achievements cover the fields
of scholarship and education as well. There were among them scholars
ofFiqh)Islamic jurisprudence(,Hadeeth)narration( andMuftis)scholars
entitled to issue religious verdicts( who were the center of
attraction for seekers of knowledge and some great and prominent
Muslim scholars. They were even consulted about publicaffairs. There
were women scholars who held assemblies of knowledge in the largest
Islamic mosques and who attracted students from all over the world.
There were some women scholars ofFiqhand narrators ofHadeethwho
traveled a great deal in pursuit of knowledge, to many of the centers
of knowledge in Egypt, Ash-Shaam)the Levant( and Al-Hijaaz)Western
Arabia( such that they became well-versed in knowledge and the
narration ofHadeeths. Many of them wrote books and contributed to
literature.
Their rooms were beacons of light
During the early stage of Islam, the Mothers of the Believers and a
number of women Companionswere the pioneers of women's education and
scholarship. The rooms ofthevirtuous Mothers of the Believers were
beacons for knowledge, culture and literature. 'Aa'ishah, may Allaah
be pleased with her, was the greatest in this regard. She was
eloquent, well-versed in genealogy and poetry. The Prophet,sallallaahu
'alayhi wa sallam, himself would listen to some of the poems that she
narrated.
In the field of narrating the PropheticHadeeths, she occupiesthe third
rank amongHadeethnarrators, for she narrated 2210Hadeeths. Some
reported citations stated that she alone was the repository of half of
the religious knowledge. Hence, the Companions used to refer to her to
find an answer for some difficult issues of knowledge andFiqh,
especially those which are relevant to the life of the
Prophet,sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam. She used to urge her questioner
not to be bashful by saying,"Ask! I am your mother."About 299 of the
Companions andtheTaabi'oon)successors of the Companions(,including 67
women, were taught by her.
Umm Salamah, may Allaah be pleased with her
Ath-Thahabi, may Allaah have mercy upon him, described her saying that
she was one of the scholars ofFiqhamong the women Companions. She
narrated manyHadeethson the authority of the Prophet,sallallaahu
'alayhi wa sallam. About 101 Companions andTaabi'oon, including 23
women, narratedHadeeths on her authority.
There were many women Companions andTaabi'oonrenowned for their
knowledge and narration ofHadeeths. The books ofHadeeth, narration and
biographies abound with the names of women who narratedHadeeths and on
whose authorityHadeeths were narrated; such as Asmaa' bint Abu Bakr,
Asmaa' bint 'Umays, Juwayriyah bint Al-Haarith, Hafsahbint 'Umar and
Zaynab bint Jahsh,may Allaah be pleased with them all.
Producing scholars
Great writers of biographies did not overlook the biographies of
Muslim women especially in the field of narratingHadeeth. Muhammad ibn
Sa'd, may Allaah have mercy upon him, mentionedmany of the female
Companions andTaabi'oonwho narratedHadeeths in his
bookAt-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra. In his bookAsad Al-Ghaabah, Ibn Al-Atheer,
may Allaah have mercy upon him, specified one whole volume for the
biographies of women. InTaqreeb At-Tahtheeb,Ibn Hajar Al-'Asqalaani,
may Allaah have mercy upon him, mentioned the names of 824 women who
were known for narratingHadeeths at the beginning of the
thirdHijricentury.
Women participated in raising and bringing up great scholars. The
celebrated scholar ofHadeethand historian, Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdaadi,
may Allaah have mercy upon him, the compiler ofTaareekh Baghdadstudied
under Taahirah bint Ahmad ibn Yoosuf At-Tanookhiyyah, may Allaah
havemercy upon her, )d. 436 A.H.(. She was a scholar ofFiqhandHadeeth.
Amat Al-Waahid bint Al-Husayn ibn Ismaa'eel, may Allaah have mercy
upon her, )d. 377 A.H.( was among the most knowledgeable scholars
about the Shaafi'i schoolofFiqh. She was well-acquainted with the
knowledge of distributing the shares of inheritance, mathematics and
Arabic grammar )Nahw(. She used to issueFatwas )religious verdicts(
and her narrations ofHadeethwere written down by her students.
Jaleelah bint 'Ali ibn Al-Hasan Ash-Shajari, may Allaah have mercy
upon her, lived in the fifth century ofHijrah. She traveled seeking
the knowledge ofHadeethin Iraq and Ash-Shaam. Some of the great
scholars; such as As-Sam'aani, may Allaah have mercy upon him, studied
under her. She used to teach Quran to the children.
Zaynab bint Makki ibn 'Ali ibn Kaamil Al-Harraani, may Allaah have
mercy upon her, )d. 688 A.H.( was among the female scholars who spent
their whole life seeking the knowledge ofHadeethand narrating it.
Students gathered at the door of her home at foot of the Mount
Qasiyoun in the city of Damascus. They heardHadeeths from her and read
before her many books.
Zaynab bint Yahya ibn Al-'Izz ibn 'Abdul-Salaam, may Allaah have mercy
upon her, )d. 735 A.H.( was the only person to narrate the Hadeeths
ofAl-Mu'jam As-Sagheerthrough an uninterrupted chain of narrators. The
celebrated Muslim historian, Shams Ad-Deen Ath-Thahabi, may Allaah
have mercy upon him, said about her that there was goodness in her,
love of worship and of narrating theHadeeths. Many parts
ofHadeethcompilations were read before her on the day of her demise.
Zaynab bint Ahmad ibn 'Umar Ad-Dimishqiyyah, may Allaah havemercy upon
her, )d. 722( was among the remarkable narrators ofHadeeth, such that
many students headed for her in pursuit of knowledge.
Female scholars earning their living by sewing
The great traveler Ibn Battootah mentioned that he visited Al-Masjid
Al-Umawi in Damascus and heardHadeeths from some of the female
scholars ofHadeethin that age; such as Zaynab bint Ahmad ibn
'Abdul-Raheem, may Allaah have mercy upon her. She was well-versed in
knowledge andHadeeth. 'Aa'ishah bint Muhammad ibn Al-Muslim
Al-Harraaniyyah, may Allaah have mercy upon her, held a session for
teaching knowledge at theMasjid. She used to earn her living by
sewing. Ibn Battootah read before her some books.
Some women, who were narrators ofHadeeth, were the only persons to
narrate certain versions ofHadeeths; such as Zaynab bint Sulaymaan ibn
Ibraaheem, may Allaah have mercy upon her, )d. 705 A.H.(.
Taqiyy-ud-Deen As-Subki was one of her students.
Some female scholars in the field of narratingHadeeths
gaveIjaazah)licence( to a number of great scholars. Zaynab bint
'Abdullaah ibn 'Abdul-Haleem ibn Taymiyyah, may Allaah have mercy upon
her, )d. 725 A.H.( gaveIjaazahto Ibn Hajar Al-'Asqalaani, may Allaah
have mercy upon him.He also narrated on the authority 'Aa'ishah bint
Muhammad ibn 'Abdul-Haadi, may Allaah have mercy upon her. She had a
sound uninterrupted chain of narrators and many people narrated on
herauthority. She never prevented anyone from listening to theHadeeths
from her and she was kind. She narratedHadeeths on the authority of
two female narrators: Sitt Al-Fuqahaa' bint Al-Waasiti and Zaynab bint
Al-Kamaal, may Allaah have mercyupon them.
In his book,Al-Mu'jam Al-Mu'assas lil-Mu'jam Al-Mufahras, Ibn Hajar,
may Allaah have mercy upon him, mentioned many of the women teachers
under whom he studied,and those who learned with him under the
sameShaykhs)teachers(. He described one of them
asMusannifah)compiler(; she was 'Aa'ishah bint
'AbdullaahAl-Halabiyyah, may Allaah have mercy upon her.
Imaam Ath-Thahabi, may Allaah have mercy upon him, also mentioned many
of his women teachers in his book,Mu'jam Shuyookh Ath-Thahabi.
Women played a prominent role in teaching and raising the great
scholar ofFiqh,Ibn Hazm Al-Andalusi, may Allaah have mercy upon him.
They taught him the Noble Quran, reading, writing, poetry and he
remained under their care until the age of puberty. He related his
experience, saying, "I was brought up by women and I did not know
other than them or sit with men until I reached the age of my youth.
They taught me the Quran and many poems. They taught me writing."This
upbringing and education had a great effect on his taste and
personality.
Qualified forFatwaand wife of a scholar ofFiqh
The respected scholar, Faatimah bint Muhammad ibn Ahmad As-Samarqandi,
may Allaah have mercy upon her, assumed a high rank in the fields
ofFiqhandFatwa. She used to teach and compiled many books. The just
king, Noor Ad-Deen Mahmood, used to consult her on some domestic
affairs of the state and some issues that were related toFiqh. Her
husband, the renownedscholar ofFiqh, Al-Kaasaani, may Allaah have
mercy upon him, the author ofAl-Badaai,'used to listen to her
corrections when he fell short to reach the right opinion. She used to
issueFatwas and her husband used to respect herFatwas. The
issuedFatwaused to be signed in her name, and that of her father or
husband. When her father died, she and her husband used to
signtheFatwabecause of the broad and reliable scope of her knowledge.
In his large encyclopedia,Adh-Dhaw' Al-Laami' li-Ahl il-Qarn
At-Taasi', As-Sakhaawi, may Allaah have mercy upon him, mentioned the
biographies of more than 1070 women who were prominent in that
century; most of them were scholars ofFiqhand narrators ofHadeeth.
The encyclopedic scholar, Jalaal ud-Deen As-Suyooti, may Allaah have
mercy upon him, said his women teachers played a prominent role in his
acquiring knowledge. He learned from Umm Haani' bint Al-Hooreeni, may
Allaah have mercy upon her. He called her 'Al-Musnad'; she was also a
scholar ofNahw)Arabic grammar( and he put her biography among the
scholars ofNahwin his bookBughyat Al-Wu'aah fee Akhbaar An-Nuhaah. He
also learned from Umm Al-Fadhl bint Muhammad Al-Maqdisi, Khadeejah
bint Abu Al-Hasan Al-Mulaqqin, Nashwaan bint 'Abdullaah Al-Kanaani,
Haajarbint Muhammad Al-Misriyyah, Amat Al-Khaaliq bint 'Abdul-Lateef
Al-'Uqbi and many other female scholars, may Allaah have mercy upon
them.
Some of these female scholars assumed charge of some centers of
knowledge such as Zayn Al-'Arab bint 'Abdul-Rahmaan ibn 'Umar, may
Allaah have mercy upon her, )d. 704 A.H.(. She assumed charge of
Ribaat As-Saqlaatooni and then Ribaat Al-Haramayn.
The women Muslim scholars did not stop at imparting knowledgeand
teaching during times of peace and welfare. Rather, she played a
prominent academic role during the hardest times of crises. When the
forts of Islam fell in Andalusia and the Muslims were forced to become
Christiansand there were the worst ever Inquisitions and torture
against Muslims; some Muslims had to show that they were Christians
and practiced Islam in secrecy. Despite coercive Spanish policies,
Muslims continued their pursuit of knowledge. There were two women
scholars who were the highest referential authorities forMuslims in
the knowledge ofSharee'ah)Islamic legislation(. They taught many
Muslim scholars who bore the flag of Islam for years. Those two women
were Muslimah Abdah and Muslimah Ablah. The Morisco scholar ofFiqh'the
Young Man from Arévalo' )Mancebo de Arevalo( compiled many books
ofTafseer)exegesis( andSunnah)tradition( in the Aljamiado language
which was invented by Muslims there.
To conclude, Muslim women had a prominent presence in the Islamic
scholarly society. They used to learn, teach and travel seeking
knowledge. They were sought by knowledge seekers, compiled books,
issuedFatwas and were consulted on public affairs. Women were not
confined to their homes or restricted to certain professions. They had
a broad field of activity and achievement under the aegis of the true
spirit of IslamicSharee'ahwhich protected their chastity and modesty
while enabling them to achieve great feats of scholarship.