Islam is the eternal divine message of Allah (subhanahu wa
ta'ala) to all men delivered by Allah's Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him). A group of mankind believed
in the Message of Islam and followed it, while others
disbelieved in it. The Message of Islam declared at the
beginning of the revelation that the human being is dignified
and honored more than all other creatures.
Allah
(subhanahu wa ta'ala), stated in the Glorious Quran (17:70)
which the meaning of is translated as:
“And indeed We have honored the children of Adam, and We have
carried them on land and sea, and have provided them with
lawful good things, and have preferred them above many of
those whom We have created with a marked preference.”
Allah
(subhanahu wa ta'ala) also declared another major principle of
man's life on Earth, after the first principle was declared:
“All men are created equal in terms of original creation.”
Allah
(subhanahu wa ta'ala) stated in the Glorious Quran (4:1) which
the meaning of is translated as:
“O mankind! Be dutiful to Your Lord, Who created you from a
single person (Adam), and from him (Adam) He created many men
and women and fear Allah through Whom you demand your mutual
(rights), and (do not cut the relations of) the wombs
(kinship). Surely, Allah is Ever an All Watcher over you.”
Based on the
previous principles, all men are equal in terms of human
values. All men and women are equal in terms of expressing
their opinion and utilizing all that has been established on
Earth for them by Their Creator, Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala).
All men and women are created equal in the sight of Allah. If
there are differences between the various members of mankind,
it is truly not on the basis of honor and lineage. If there
are different levels of people in terms of living standards,
income, etc., this does not reflect, by any means, a
difference in the human nature of these classes of people.
Distinction between the levels of mankind is based on their
true commitment to Islam and their level of practice and
application of its principles in their own lives. Allah
(subhanahu wa ta'ala), stated this principle in the Glorious
Quran (49:13) which the meaning of is translated as:
“O Mankind! We have created you from a male and a female, and
made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one
another. Verily, the most honorable of you in the Sight of
Allah is that who is most pious and righteous. Verily, Allah
is All-Knowing, All-Aware.”
Honoring a
person, in the Sight of Allah is not on the basis of color,
social status, sex, race, strength, health, dignity or wealth.
All men are created equal. The only measure of distinction and
differentiation in the Sight of Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala) is
strictly on the basis of piety and performance of good deeds.
Similarly,
Allah's Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was
also reported as saying:
“An Arab has no virtue over a non-Arab. A white has no virtue
over a black except with the amount of piety.”[99]
Islamic
teachings remove all differences between men and places them
all on equal footing. One of the essential and integral
teachings of Islam, which is really misunderstood,
misconstrued and not well explained, is that "a female is
equal to a male in everything except where there is a clear
and distinct call for exception". These exceptions were the
subject of our booklet. We have attempted to clarify all these
misconceptions about women that many people have, including
Arabs, Muslims and non-Muslims, about the reality of Islam.
Allah
(subhanahu wa ta'ala), stated in the Glorious Quran (9:71)
which the meaning of is translated as:
“The believers, men and women, are helpers, supporters,
friends and protectors of one another; they enjoin (on the
people) Islamic Monotheism and that Islam orders one to do,
and forbid (people) from all forms of evil (i.e. polytheism of
all kinds, and all that Islam has forbidden) they offer their
prayers perfectly, and give their charity and obey Allah and
His Messenger. Allah will shower His Mercy upon them. Surely
Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise.”
Allah
(subhanahu wa ta'ala), stated in the Glorious Quran (3:195)
which the meaning of is translated as:
“So their Lord accepted (their supplication and answered
them), Never will I allow to be lost the work of any one of
you, be he male or female. You are (members) one of
another...”
Allah
(subhanahu wa ta'ala), stated in the Glorious Quran (4:7)
which the meaning of is translated as:
“There is a share for men and a share for women from what is
left by parents and those closely related, whether, the
property be small or large, a legal share.”
Based upon
what has been said and elaborated upon in this entire booklet,
one can comfortably and confidently say that women never have,
and will never ever enjoy full rights, natural freedom and
complete personal rights except in the SHADE of ISLAM. Islam
has established and set forth a set of rights for women. It
sets and names certain duties that she must maintain, be
committed to and perform. All this is due to the fact that
Islam is a divine religion, as opposed to man-made laws. It is
for the entire mankind, male and female, rich and poor, king
and peasant, healthy and ill, rich and poor, strong and weak,
white, black, red or yellow. They are all alike and equal in
the Sight of Their Creator, Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala).
Allah, the Creator, knows best what benefits and improves the
situations of all His creation both in this world and in the
hereafter.
I would like
to request the reader not to pass judgment on Islam on the
basis of what he/she may see, observe or notice in the
behavior, attitude and bad-practices of a group of Muslim
individuals who claim close ties to Islam. In fact, there are
some people who use Islam as a blanket to cover up their
personal crimes, sins and shameful deeds. Similarly, there are
many individuals who are counted as Muslims, as they declare
by their lips and tongues that "There is no deity worthy of
worship but Allah Alone, and Mohammad (peace and blessings of
Allah be upon him) is the slave servant, and Messenger of
Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala)". However, these individuals stop
at this point only and do not perform their Islamic duties,
practice their commitment to Islam in terms of the good morals
that Islam calls for. They may lie, deceive, cheat, and commit
various kinds of sins and crimes, which are neither condoned
nor accepted by Islam, of which they claim to be a part.
Islam is a
wholesome religion. It is so vast, yet simple to apply. There
are individuals who strive throughout their entire lifetime to
be good Muslims, to attain the best and most perfect level of
practice, seeking the pleasure of Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala),
in all that they do. On the other hand, there are individuals
who have shortcomings, commissions and omissions which they
deserve to be punished for in this world and in the hereafter.
However, no one can accuse such sinners and label them
"condemned and outside the fold of Islam, because of the sins
they have committed." Such individuals are called, in
accordance with Islamic teachings and terminology "'Asee", a
sinning disobedient person who is neglecting the commands of
Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala), the instructions and beautiful
teachings of Allah's Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be
upon him) and the general Islamic teachings.
It is
understood that "lacking something, such as wealth, happiness
or morals, will not enable the lacking person to share with
others what he does not own." This principle applies to Islam
as well.
For those who
are keen to learn more about Islam, our advice to them is to
seek knowledge from those who are well-known for their
knowledge, understanding and practice of Islam onto their own
lives. Our advice is "not to ask a non-practicing Muslim
anything about Islam." Such a person, definitely, will mislead
you.
Surface
knowledge of Islam is also very dangerous, harmful and
detrimental. Reading a few books about Islam, regardless of
whether they are reliable sources or not, will not qualify a
person to pass verdicts and disseminate sound knowledge about
Islam and its practices. Following the opinions of others
blindly is also very dangerous and harmful. It is compulsory
to seek unbiased opinions about Islam.
Finally, I
request every non-Muslim with a sound mind and heart to read a
bit of information about Islam from reliable sources that are
knowledgeable, God-fearing and well known as honest Muslim
writers. It is good and beneficial knowledge to those who do
not know anything about Islam. For those who already know
something about Islam, it can only increase their knowledge
and Islamic education. Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala), stated in
the Glorious Quran (2:256) which the meaning of is translated
as:
“There is no compulsion in religion. Verily, the Right Path
has become distinct from the wrong path. Whoever disbelieves
in the 'Taghut' (anything worshipped other than Allah and
believes in Allah, then he has grasped the trustworthiest
handhold that will never break. Allah is the All-Hearer,
All-Knowing.”
[99] This Hadith was reported by Ahmad.
