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Verses of
Al-Qur'an
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Ahadith of the Holy Prophet
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Obligations in the Light of the Qur'an and Hadith
I ‑ VERSES
OF THE QUR'AN
Obligations
of the Muslim Woman have been highlighted by the Qur'an in its following
verses:‑
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And be
steadfast in prayers; practise regular charity; and bow down your heads
with those who bow down (in worship). (2:43)
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The
mothers shall give suck to their offspring for two whole years. (2:233)
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Men are
the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one
more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their
means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient, and guard in
(the husband's) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those
women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill‑conduct, admonish them
(first), .(next), refuse to share their beds, (and last) beat them (lightly):but
if they return to obedience, seek not against them means (of
annoyance):for Allah is Most High, Great (above you all). (4:34)
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It is He
Who created you from a single person, and made his mate of like nature,
in order that he might dwell with her (in love). When they are united,
she bears a light burden and carries it about (unnoticed). When she
grows heavy, they both pray to Allah their Lord, (saying):"if Thou
givest us a goodly child, we vow we shall (ever) be grateful." (7:189)
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And say to
the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their
modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except
what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils
over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands,
their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands'
sons, their brothers or their brother's sons, or their sisters' sons or
their women, or the slaves whom their right hands possess, or male
servants free of physical needs, or small children who have no sense of
the shame of sex; and that they should not strike their foot in order to
draw attention to their hidden ornaments. And O ye Believers! Turn ye
all together towards Allah, that ye may attain bliss. (24:31)
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O
Prophet! when believing women come to thee to take the oath of fealty to
thee, that they will not associate in worship any other thing whatever
with Allah, that they will not steal, that they will not commit adultery
(or fornication), that they will not kill their children, that they will
not utter slander, intentionally forging falsehood, and that they will
not disobey thee in any just matter,‑ then do thou receive their fealty,
and pray to Allah for the forgiveness (of their sins):for Allah is
oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful. (60:12)
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II ‑
AHADITH OF THE PROPHET
Ahadith of
the Prophet (may Allah's peace be upon him) of Islam on the obligations
and duties of Muslim woman are:‑
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Abu Omamah reported from the Messenger of Allah‑who used to say: Next to
fear of Allah the believer finds nothing good for him than a virtuous
wife. If he bids her, she obeys him; if he looks at her she gives him
pleasure; if he gives her a promise, she fulfils it, and if he is absent
from her, she guards herself and his property. (Ibn Majah)
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Jaber‑b‑Abdullah
reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Fear Allah regarding women.
Verily you have married them with trust of Allah and made their private
parts lawful with the word of Allah. You have got (rights) over them
that they entertain nobody to your beds which you dislike. If they do
this, give them a beating without causing injury. They have got (rights)
over you in respect of their food and clothing according to means.
(Bukhari and Muslim)
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Anas
reported that the Messenger of Allah said:When a woman says her five
(prayers) and fasts her month, and guards her private parts, and obeys
her husband, let her enter Paradise by whichever door she likes. (Abu
Nayeem in Hilya)
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In his
famous Farewell Address, delivered at Arafat on the occasion of last
pilgrimage in 10 A.H., the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)
declared: "Well then, people! verily there are rights in favour of your
women which are incumbent upon you, and there are rights in favour of
you which are incumbent upon them. As to what is incumbent upon them in
your regard, is that they should not let your beds be trampled by others
than you, should not allow those to enter your houses whom you do not
like without your authorization, and should not commit turpitude. If
they do commit that, then God has given you permission to reprimand
them, to separate yourself from them in beds, and to strike them but not
hard. If they abstain and obey you, then it is incumbent upon you to
provide their food and dress in accordance with good custom. And I
command you to treat women well, because they are like captives in your
houses, possessing nothing for themselves, and you, on your part, take
them as a deposit from God, and permit yourselves the enjoyment of their
persons by means of a word of God. Have therefore the fear of God with
regard to women, and I order you to treat them well. Attention! Have I
communicated? O God, be witness!" (Ibn Hasham quoted by Dr. Hamidullah)
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Ayesha
reported that Asma'a daughter of Abu‑Bakr came to the Messenger of Allah
while there were thin clothes on her. He approached her and said O
Asma'a! when a girl reaches the menstrual time, it is not proper that
anything on her should remain exposed except this and this. He hinted on
her face and palms. (Abu Daud)
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Anas
reported that the Messenger of Allah said: Search for knowledge is
compulsory upon every Muslim male and Muslim female. (Ibn Majah)
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Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah was asked: Who among women
‑is the best? He replied: she who gives pleasure to him (husband) when
he looks, obeys him when he bids, and who does not oppose him regarding
herself and her riches fearing his displeasure. (Nisai)
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Abu Omamah reported that the Messenger of Allah said: There are three from
whom their prayer and prayer‑call are not accepted‑a fugitive slave till
he returns, a woman who passes the night while her husband is displeased
with her, and a leader of a people while they do not like him. [Tirmizi
(rare)]
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III ‑
OBLIGATIONS IN THE LIGHT OF QUR'AN AND HADITH
Rights of
the human beings go along with their corresponding obligations. Since
the rights of women in Islam have been discussed by us in the foregoing
chapters, 'we would now focus on the obligations and duties which have
been assigned to her .by Islam. Briefly stated, following are some of
the obligations which a Muslim woman is supposed to perform:‑
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Her
first and foremost duty is, as is in the case of a Muslim male also, to
worship God. She must believe in Allah alone and must not assign any
partners to Him. She must also believe and testify that Muhammad (may
Allah's peace be upon him) is the Messenger of Allah. She is also
duty‑bound to perform all the religious obligations like prayer,
Zakat, fasting and Hajj. She is obliged to lead her life in
accordance with the teachings of Islam.
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In
addition to her duties to Allah and religion of Al-Islam, a Muslim
woman is also obliged to perform certain duties towards her husband. The
duty of the husband is to provide for the sustenance and livelihood for
his wife and children, while the obligation of the wife is to manage the
household. In the absence of the husband, she must guard herself and her
husband's property. She must be obedient to her husband and must be a
source of love, affection, consolation, satisfaction and peace for her
husband. Duties of the woman to her husband have been briefly referred
to by the Qur'an in its verse No. 34 of chapter 4, while the Prophet of
Islam in his Traditions has explained these duties in detail According
to the Prophet (PBUH), the best woman is she who gladdens her husband
when he looks at her, obeys him when he bids her and does not oppose him
regarding herself and her property. Again the Prophet of Islam said in
respect of women that they should not let the beds of their husbands be
trampled by others, should not commit turpitude and should not allow
those to enter their houses whom their husbands do not like.
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The most
important duty of the woman is child‑bearing and child‑rearing. She is
responsible for bringing up and training the children. Since the
elementary education of the children depends upon the mother, a woman is
required to get education, search for .knowledge and acquire learning.
She must train her children and teach them good manners. Her role in the
character‑building of the children is very important.
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A woman
must guard her modesty, keep chaste and should lower her gaze when she
comes out of her house. She must not disclose her beauty and ornaments,
before strangers, must dress properly anus cover herself. She can only
keep her face and her hands exposed ‑ (For details see the chapter on
Purdah).
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