Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

"Islaam subjugates women" Please expound on this statement.

1)Wife beating is endorsed in the Holy Quraan.

2)A wife cannot divorce . It is the husbands decision to grant divorce . Also clarify the above points.

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Answer:

Islaam subjugates women

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and who-ever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your comment: "Islaam subjugates women". Please expound on this statement.

One of the most blatant lies and falsehood of this so-called educated society is that ‘Islam subjugates women’, whereas Islam in fact honors and raises women.

We must understand that the same Creator who created everything between the heavens and the earth, is the same Creator who created man and women, and honored them to be His slave-servants. The One Who Created women is the One Who created their nature, and no one understands the nature of women better than the One Who Created them. The same All Merciful, All Knowing Lord also made laws for everything in this universe according to their nature. We must also understand that whatever laws Allah makes, they are based on His Wisdom and His Knowledge, although sometimes humans in their weak and finite knowledge fail to understand the full wisdom behind these laws.

Contrary to the popular belief on this un-godly world, man and women are not equal, but rather they are balanced! Each has a set of responsibilities laid down upon them by the Creator so that the harmony and peace in a family can be established for the betterment of society.

To give you a simple example, just imagine how much we trust the knowledge of a doctor when it comes to our physical health. If he says that some things are good for us to consume, even though we might hate the taste, we accept his decision. At times, we even trust his judgment when he recommends that some parts or our bodies are to be amputated in order for us to survive. These decisions of our doctor might be right or wrong for us, but most times we trust his judgment… which is often times nothing more than his experience and knowledge.

But are we ready to implement the laws and commands of our All Knowing, All Wise, All Merciful Lord in our lives, knowing fully well that each of His laws and commands are based on absolute wisdom?

Islam has made the structure of the family as a foundation of a peaceful Islamic society. The duties assigned to man are according to his nature and capabilities, and the duties assigned to women are according to her nature and capabilities. Each has its own sets of duties and each have rights on each other. And all these assigned duties and rights are not made by man, but rather by the same Wise and Merciful Lord, Who created them.

Today’s un-godly society has subjugated women by making her compete on unfair terms with man, not Islam. They have coerced her into playing a role in society, which is not rightfully and morally hers; and in this process the very foundation of a peaceful and harmonious family life has been threatened. The very people who are foremost in propagating the ‘liberation of women’ are the ones who have allowed the modern women to be subjugated! Islam wills to honor women, but it is this un-godly society who has made the women a slave to their blatant lies.

Your Comment: Wife beating is endorsed in the Holy Quraan.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verse 34: Men are the managers of the affairs of the women because Allah has made the one superior to the other, and because men spend out of their wealth on women. Virtuous women are therefore obedient; they guard their rights carefully in their absence under the care and watch of Allah. As for those women whose defiance you have cause to fear, admonish them, and keep them apart from your beds, and beat them. Then, if they submit to you, do not look for excuses to punish them; note it well that there is Allah above you, Who is Supreme and Great.

To say that ‘wife beating is endorsed’ in the Holy Quran, is to give the wrong impression to the statement! It gives the impression that this beating is encouraged; and nothing but the opposite is true. Beating the wife is absolutely discouraged in Islam, and is not considered a virtue by any means. Yes, there is an allowance, but only in absolutely extreme circumstances, after all the other channels have been exhausted! And that too only when the wife defies her husband and refuses to accept his authority. The first step according to the wisdom of the Quran aayah is to admonish and reason with them. If that fails, Allah advices us to keep away from forming any physical relationships with them for a limited number of days as a form of punishment. If that too fails, then Allah advices men to beat them. But this beating is not the black-n-blue beating that we witness in today’s times, but rather a light beating on the back and away from the face… more as a sign of displeasure, than to submit any pain to the women. If that too fails, then there is a command for arbitration. And if that too fails, only then should one start the proceedings for a divorce.

If one tries to understand the wisdom behind these laws, one will realizes how much importance Allah has placed on keeping the family united in Islam. Compare that to today’s un-godly world, where close to half the marriages end in a divorce, and the subsequent pain, humiliation, and sorrow its brings to the families concerned and the innocent children!

One must understand that this beating is not allowed just because the food has not been prepared properly, or because of some other petty issue. It is only allowed in the extreme case where the women defies the authority of her husband on a regular basis and there is absolute disharmony in the marriage. This beating is permissible only as a means of avoiding the sickness and pain of separation and divorce! Anyone who beats his wife should remember that Allah is watching over everything, and if one beats the women without cause, he will be severely accountable to Allah on the Day of Qiyamah.

If one looks at the statistics of where a women gets beaten more often: whether in an Islamic society or by those who champion the cause of ‘women’s rights’, he will realize that the women is most abused, humiliated, assaulted, beaten, hurt, raped and killed in these very western, un-godly societies! May Allah protect our mothers and our daughters and our wives from this humiliation, and honor them to live under the Mercy and Grace of Allah in Islam.

It is indeed unfortunate that the same unscrupulous people who have championed ‘women’s rights and liberties’, and labeled Islam with baseless atrocities, are the same ones who have propagated the destruction and sanctity of the family structure in society! So much so, that today a huge multitude of people refuse to establish a family, and prefer to live alone… which is un-natural to say the least!

Your Comment: A wife cannot divorce . It is the husbands decision to grant divorce .

This statement is not true. In Islam, both the husband and wife have the right to initiate a divorce. Only the means and procedure are different. The wife has the full right to initiate a divorce for any reason; the only difference being that she has to go to a Shariah court to move for a divorce. This is termed ‘khula’ in Islam.

In Islam, because the financial burden of the marriage, the ‘mehr’, and all the expenses related to the marriage and thereafter are all laid on the man, the man has the right to pronounce the divorce, knowing full well that he will stand to loose a lot more if he divorces his wife. If the woman initiates the ‘khula’ or divorce, she will have to pay back the ‘mehr’ and other expenses occurred by the man, but if the man pronounces the divorce, she does not have to pay a penny. It is unfortunate that we have adopted the pagan customs, and transferred some of the marriage expenses from the man to the women, whereby the man demands the ‘dahej’ or dowry, etc. This has nothing to do with Islam, and thus Islam cannot and should not be blamed for this. Time and time again, Allah admonishes the believing man and the believing woman to fear Allah in fulfilling all their duties, and giving the ordained rights to one another.

Thus in Islam, a man or a woman can initiate a divorce, although the procedures are different.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan