Within The Quranic Tradition and The Life of The Prophet Lies the Rights and Inspiration for Women Empowerment
By
Moin Qazi, New Age Islam
3 November
2023
In several
cities and even towns, girls who had exposure to modern schools to pursue
careers ranging from journalism to teaching have chosen in the past few years
to wear the hijab (a scarf wrapped tightly around their heads to conceal every
wisp of hair). Most strikingly, however, these women fluently and cogently
articulate how they believe Islam has liberated and empowered them. The Islam
they describe is a million miles away from that of the Taliban, let alone the
Islam practised in many Muslim countries from Pakistan to Saudi Arabia. Still,
they insist - and back up their points with Quranic references - that the Islam
they first discovered when they were teenagers is faithful to the Prophet's
teachings. They don't need Western feminism, which, they argue, developed as a
reaction against the particular expression of Western patriarchy.
Photo:
News Click for Representative Purpose
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Within the
Quranic tradition and the life of the Prophet lies the rights and inspiration
Muslim societies have a misconception that the struggle for women's rights is
confined, historically and geographically, to European and North American
locations. This 'myth' enjoys such great credibility that women's rights in
Muslim societies have almost become an alien idea, and whoever works for them
is believed to be promoting some 'foreign' agenda. The misconception is
confined to Muslim societies, and some people in non-Muslim cultures see Muslim
women as passive and silent victims. This misconception is so prevalent that
any example of brave Muslim women resisting patriarchal values, whether in the
past or present, is brushed aside as an exception. This 'myth' has been
repeated so often that everyone now considers it a reality in public and
private lives.
New
Status for Women
The Quran
enshrined a new status for women and gave them rights that they could have only
dreamed of before in Arabia, so why the seeming disparity between what once was
and what now appears to be?
Historically,
Islam was incredibly advanced in providing revolutionary rights for women and
uplifting women's status in the seventh century. Many of the revelations in the
Quran were by nature reform-oriented, transforming critical aspects of
pre-Islamic customary laws and practices in progressive ways to eliminate
injustice and suffering. Still, it is not enough to merely flaunt these values.
We must act on them.
The reforms
that took place in the early years of Islam were progressive, changing with the
needs of society; however, the more detailed rules that the classical jurists
laid out only allowed many pre-Islamic customs to continue. These rules
reflected their society's needs, traditions, and expectations, not the
progressive reforms that started during Muhammad's time. Hence, the trajectory
of reform that began during Muhammad's time was halted in the medieval period
through further elaborating fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), which was then
selectively codified in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Muslims
need to look at themselves realistically instead of their imagined selves. The
Prophet was centuries ahead of the men of his time in his attitudes toward
women, and not surprisingly, right after he died, men started rolling back his
reforms. The Prophet may have been too advanced for the mindset of
seventh-century men, but his compassion for women is precisely the model that
Muslims in the 21st century need to emulate today.
Twenty-four
women appear in the Quran in various forms and for multiple purposes; 18 appear
as minors, the primary five being Mary, mother of Jesus. Bilquis, the queen of
Sheba, Mary's mother, Hannah, Hawa (Eve), and Umm Musa, the mother of Moses.
All of them are potent examples of the tremendous potential of women.
The
Women Scholars
Islam is
arguably the most discussed religion in the West today, in both media and
society and after terrorism, the plight of Muslim women is probably the most
controversial topic of debate, there is only a small amount of published work
available on Muslim women fighting sexism within Muslim communities, and much
of that focuses on women who see Islam as inherently part of the problem — if
not the whole problem — that Muslim women face. The assumption is that Muslim
women must be disengaged from the religion entirely before anything close to
liberation or equality can be achieved.
In the 21st
century, the combined spread of literacy, the availability and promotion of
public education for both girls and boys and the expansion of job opportunities
for women have added to Muslim women's desire for greater empowerment in
practising and interpreting their faith. We have hundreds of examples of women
who defied culturally defined gender norms to assert their right to be
different and to be agents of change in their society.
Modern
Muslim Women in The Arts
Like the
other forms of art, cinema is a reflection of reality. However, the truth on
the screen is not natural, which means the seventh art presents a fact
reproduced by human hands to its audience. While cinema, as a critical artistic
language, has witnessed life and reflected society-structured reality since its
beginning, it has represented women in many different ways for over 100 years.
This
representation of women on the big screen started to be scrutinized and
criticized over time. The primary criticism was that women were reflected in a
distorted way and line with the interests of patriarchal culture. As
productions diversified, various complaints were added to these primary
problems. Among these ensuing criticisms was diversity
Today,
Muslim women are active in Qur'anic study circles, mosque-based activities,
community services sponsored by religious organizations, and Islamic education
as students and teachers. There are a rising number of female Qur'an reciters,
Islamic lawyers, and professors of Islamic studies worldwide.
While many
Muslims worldwide learn about such exceptional Muslim women in school, their
relevance to the contemporary context is frequently overlooked. Most critical
aspects of their personalities are glossed over. Through learning and
celebrating their examples, men and women can better understand and build upon
notions of the role of Muslim women in a culturally authentic paradigm.
Women needs
to achieve their full potential - the challenge ahead is to educate Muslim
girls and women so they have that knowledge. They justify wearing the hijab,
either as a public statement of their spiritual quest or of their political
identity in a world where Islam perceives itself as under threat, or both.
In a
traditional Muslim home, the emphasis was on cultural conservatism rather than
piety. At first, parents would remain firm about wearing conservative garments;
parents were shocked". But these girls found liberation in Islam. It gave
them the confidence to insist on a good education and reject arranged marriage.
Islam made sense to them, and they could understand it, unlike a generation
back.
They
argue and reiterate an affirmation of
themselves as women: "The Qur'an
says that men and women are equal in the eyes of God and that we are like a
garment for each other to protect one another."
Again and
again, these women emphasize these two themes, evoked in richly poetic Quranic
metaphor: first, the equality of the sexes in the eyes of God (the most
meaningful equality of all, they argue), and second, the complementarily of the
sexes. The Qur'an says, "I created you from one soul, and from that soul,
I created its mate so that you may live in harmony and love."
The
stereotype of a Muslim woman as a passive victim is a dangerous myth. It is
promoted by the opponents of gender equality within and outside Muslim
societies. It has to be challenged, debunked, and laid to rest. Without
completely shattering it, Muslim women will keep fearing to speak out for their
rights, afraid of being treated as the 'other,' as someone who has imported
these 'problematic' and 'negative' ideas from foreign cultures.
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Moin Qazi is the author of the bestselling book,
Village Diary of a Heretic Banker. He has worked in the development finance
sector for almost four decades.
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism