What you are about to read might sound unusual but it could be very enlightened.
What About Those Muslim Women?



At a time when the rest of the world, from Greece and Rome to India and China,
considered women as no better than children or even slaves, with no rights
whatsoever, Islam acknowledged women's equality with men in a great many
respects. The Quran states:
"And among His signs is this: that He created mates for you from yourselves that
you may find rest and peace of mind in them, and He ordained between you love
and mercy. Certainly, herein indeed are signs for people who reflect." [30:21]

Prophet Muhammad said:

"The most perfect in faith amongst believers is he who is best in manners and
kindest to his wife."

Muslims believe that Adam and Eve were created from the same soul. Both were
equally guilty of their sin and fall from grace, and Allah forgave both. Many
women in Islam have had high status; consider the fact that the first person to
convert to Islam was Khadijah, the wife of Muhammad, whom he both loved and
respected. His favorite wife after Khadijah's death, Ayesha, became renowned as
a scholar and one of the greatest sources of Hadith literature. Many of the
female Companions accomplished great deeds and achieved fame, and throughout
Islamic history there have been famous and influential scholars and jurists.

We might also mention that while many in the West criticize Islam with regard to
the treatment of women, in fact a number of Muslim countries have had women
rulers and presidents. To name a few: Turkey; Bangladesh and Pakistan.

With regard to education, both women and men have the same rights and
obligations. This is clear in Prophet Muhammad's saying:

"Seeking knowledge is mandatory for every believer."
This implies men and women.

A woman is to be treated as God has endowed her, with rights, such as to be
treated as an individual, with the right to own and dispose of her own property
and earnings, enter into contracts, even after marriage. She has the right to be
educated and to work outside the home if she so chooses. She has the right to
inherit from her father, mother, and husband. A very interesting point to note
is that in Islam, unlike any other religion, a woman can be an imam, a leader of
communal prayer, for a group of women.

A Muslim woman also has obligations. All the laws and regulations pertaining to
prayer, fasting, charity, pilgrimage, doing good deeds, etc., apply to women,
albeit with minor differences having mainly to do with female physiology.

Before marriage, a woman has the right to choose her husband. Islamic law is
very strict regarding the necessity of having the woman's consent for marriage.
The groom gives a marriage dowry to the bride for her own personal use. She
keeps her own family name, rather than taking her husband's. As a wife, a woman
has the right to be supported by her husband even if she is already rich. She
also has the right to seek divorce and custody of young children. She does not
return the dowry, except in a few unusual situations.

Despite the fact that in many places and times Muslim communities have not
always adhered to all or even many of the foregoing in practice, the ideal has
been there for 1,400 years, while virtually all other major civilizations did
not begin to address these issues or change their negative attitudes until the
19th and 20th centuries, and there are still many contemporary civilizations
which have yet to do so.


For more information about Islam :
http://www.islamtomorrow.com/women.asp


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]