I have been told that no woman is allowed to attain a high standard in Islamic learning so as to give rulings on matters that may be put to her. Is this true? If so, how can we account for the position of Ayesha, the Prophet’s wife, who used to giver rulings on different matters?
Men and women are equal in God’s sight. There are some differences of what God requires of them in worship, but these are minor and take care of differences in their make-up or responsibilities.
To say that a woman is not allowed to attain a high level of scholarship is to accuse Islam of discrimination, which it does not condone.
As you say, Ayesha was far more learned than many of the Prophet’s companions, and practically more than anyone else in later generations.
In Islamic history there was a long tradition of women scholars who studied up to a very high degree. Many of them had their circles in which they taught whoever wished to read under them. Among their students were some men who attained a high standard. Several women, for example, taught Imam Ibn Hazm.
An unmarried Muslim woman wants to travel abroad to take up a job as a journalist. The job does not carry any safeguards of observing Islamic teachings. It involves interacting with strangers and going on field assignments. Her parents have been trying to persuade her that it is not the right job for a Muslim woman, but she feels that it offers her a great opportunity, which she does not like to miss. Her prospective employer told her that some scholars allow travel of a woman by air if she is unaccompanied, and told her to do the Istikhara. We feel that it is wrong to do the Istikhara for something that prima facie is not permissible. Please advise.
There is no doubt that travel in the old days, when Islam was revealed, was totally different from present day travel. Nowadays we cross-continents in a matter of hours. Long haul journeys take a matter of 10-12 hours by plane to carry people distances of 6-7000 kilometers. Should one travel, say, from Saudi Arabia to the Philippines, he would complete the journey within such a time, if he flies non-stop. Such a journey, which would have taken months of continuous travelling, was never contemplated in old days except by very few people, who would be either merchants or the odd person who wanted to study human communities and their different lifestyles.
Yet the religious rulings that apply to human practices remain the same, as long as the text which sets out a ruling is definitive in its meaning. Hence, when social modes and practices change, we need to look at the wording anew in an effort to learn whether it applies to us in a different mode to that understood by earlier scholars. Their understanding was inevitably within what was available in their societies. This means that the rule remains the same, but the way we understand it or implement it may be different.
The Hadith in which the Prophet, peace be upon him, makes it clear that a Muslim woman must not travel alone mentions a travel of one day and one night, i.e. 24 hours. On the basis of the Hadith, the woman must be accompanied by her husband or a close relative whom she may not marry, such as her father, brother, uncle, nephew, etc. Scholars also mention that it is permissible for a woman to travel with ‘appropriate companionship’. By this they mean either a group of women, or a group that includes some suitable women.
What we need to understand is that Islam does not prevent women from travelling alone because of any distrust of Muslim women. Definitely not. It simply wishes that a Muslim woman should not find herself in a situation of danger when she cannot call on any help. Travel in old days carried such a danger. Suppose a person traveled on foot or on camel back from Makkah to Madinah alone, the journey would need several days to complete. He would have to sleep on the road, and he may be exposed to danger from wild animals or unknown people who may be travelling across his way. Should a woman put herself in such a situation, she may come to grief. Should she travel with strangers, she might be a victim of some scheming. Hence the insistence on travelling with a close relative or appropriate companionship.
Today’s travel is totally different. We use airplanes, trains and coaches. In any of these modes of travel there is a sort of appropriate companionship. It is impossible to imagine a situation in which there is any special risk to which an individual traveler, man or woman, is exposed in such travels. When one arrives, the immigration controls are also safe for all. Should a woman be travelling from one country to another where she joins other members of her family, she may travel alone. She would be safe throughout and she would not have contravened the rule of not travelling for 24 hours without a Mahrem.
In the case we are looking at, it is not the actual travel that is concerned, but whether the lady could live alone at her place of work. That comes under a different heading. Islam does not approve of a person living alone in a house or apartment. This is discouraged because something may happen to that person when he needs help or medical attention and he may not find that available. However people may be forced to do that for some periods of their lives. If a person is living alone, he or she should make arrangements, which would ensure that help is available when needed. ~
May I put to you the case of a woman who is always insulted and ill treated by her husband. Although she works hard as a physician and contributes much to the family finances, still her husband demands more. He often says that a woman should give all her salary to her husband. He often laments his misfortune on being connected with his wife. What is she to do, when she practically has no family, as both her parents are dead and her brother and sisters are all married and live in a different country. She has two children.
Islam requires of every man to take good care of those whom God places under his care: his wife and children. The Prophet, peace be upon him, says that the best people are the ones who are best to their wives. Numerous are the Hadiths that encourage good treatment of one’s wife. Indeed, a Muslim has a clear duty of taking good care of all women in his family, including wife, mother, sister and daughter. One such Hadith says: "Take good care of women. A woman is created from a rib. If you try to straighten a rib, you will break it. A break means divorce. Hence, take good care of women." (Related by Al-Bukhari) Note how the Hadith starts and finishes with the same wording, requiring men to treat women with kindness. The middle of the Hadith highlights a certain quality of women, which tends to create misunderstanding. Hence, the Prophet, peace be upon him, encourages us to be patient with our women so that family relations are maintained.
In return for such good care, a man stands to earn great reward from God. Needless to say, a person who turns a deaf ear to such Hadiths and instructions exposes himself to God’s displeasure. Not only so, but we must always remember that the Prophet, peace be upon him, has only taught us what is good for us. If we refuse it, we are substituting for his good teaching something that is a lot inferior to it.
This man thinks that when he married he obtained for himself a slave whom he could ask to work hard to enrich himself. He thus treats her so badly, even worse than an animal. When people use animals for their purposes, such as a horse, ass, or cow, they take care of such animals because they want them to continue to give them the service they need. They feed their animals well and give them the rest they need. If they are ill, they have them examined; if they are hungry, they feed them; if they are tired, they rest them; and they show them care and often love. Unfortunately, some men treat their wives and families with less care than they would take of their animals. Such men are not worthy of having a family. They are ungrateful for the blessing God has given them in providing them with wives and children.
The lady in this case is offering far too much to a husband who is totally ungrateful. It is not her responsibility to support her husband and children. That is the man’s responsibility. A working woman may do well to contribute to the family finances, particularly if her work means an increase in the level of spending, as in the case of having to employ a child minder or domestic help. Contemporary scholars, like Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradawi, make it clear that if a working woman is sharing in the family expenses, her responsibility does not exceed one-third. If this lady’s husband is demanding to have all her salary, he is more than greedy.
Unfortunately, there are people like that in society. These are men who think that they have a divine privilege and that whatever a woman does for them, she is still short of what she should do. They are ungrateful, selfish and self-centered. When a woman gives in to their initial demands, they want more. They are never satisfied. The only way to deal with these people is to take a firm stand, and show them that they have killed the hen that lays golden eggs. However, before the woman makes such a move, she must look for support, either from her family or friends. She should know where she would go in case her husband does something very serious, such as beating her. But normally, such men are cowards. They fear for the privileges they receive from their wives. If this woman has a separate bank account into which she pays her salary, she may be able to refuse to give her husband any money unless he changes his ways. She should steel herself so that she could stand much resistance on his part, but she must stand firm. When he is in a conciliatory mood, she should be ready with her terms. But if he gets nasty, she should be ready to seek outside help, even if she has to go to the authorities or to court.
Having said that, I stress that she should first make sure of what help she could get. But she should not think herself too weak, because she is not. She has resources, which she has not used, and it is time to use them so that she receives the kind treatment every wife deserves. May God help her.