Islam is unfortunately, often targeted as one of the greatest oppressors of women. It’s a pity that people end up battling against a faith that actually agrees with them and overlooks the real problem - the backward cultures that need to be educated.
What we need to overcome are the Arab, African and Indian rituals and rites that demean girls and women, not the tenets of a faith that has upheld women, given them freedom and rights at a time when the world considered them worthless and placed them as dispensable members of society.
Of course, with all the horror tales going around, it’s difficult to believe that I’m not a biased Muslim gushing about her faith. I need to support my claims with facts.
So this month, I’m dedicating my article to remembering the women who have supported and sustained Islam with their strength, courage, intelligence and unshakeable faith.
Let us begin at the beginning (it’s always a great place to start :) ):
a) Hawwa (Eve)
Hawwa was the first woman to be created by God. She represented the missing half of humanity. Not only was she essential to the formula of procreation, but also to the completion of society.
Social experiments and studies today tell us that men and women are different. That the characteristics and natural inclinations of one complement the other. Yet, most faiths told us this centuries ago. It’s only in the place a woman occupies in society that there has been disagreement.
In Islam, both Adam and Hawwa shared the responsibility of going against the order of God. They were both sent down to earth, and seperated from each other.
Traditions state that Adam was so saddened by this that he spent many days weeping and mourning the loss of his wife. It was only after he wept and prayed on the Mount of Arafa that God finally reunited him with Hawwa.
Thus, the mountain became a place of Mercy and Muslims pray there during the Hajj festival for their own desires and needs.
b) Maryam the daughter of Imran.
Maryam (Mary) is one of the most respected women in Islamic history. She was given in the service of God from childhood and looked after by her uncle, Zakariya. An entire chapter of the Qur’an is named after her.
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