134TH EDITION OF VOICE OF THE MIMBARR 29-01-1447 AH/25-07-2025 CE
THE MUSLIM WOMAN: HER ROLES IN THE SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF ISLAM
Bismillah Ar-Rahman Ar-Rahim
Glory be to Almighty Allah (SubhanaHu Wa Ta'ala (SWT)), the Creator of all species in genders of male and female for definite roles cutting across facets of life. He is Ever Commendable and of Immeasurable Mercy. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon the soul of the noble Messenger Muhammad (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam (SAW)), the unequal champion of women cause of social life and benefits. The same is extended to all deserving followers of his path till eternity. A woman is third to none in human creation and she represents part of meadows and sweetness of life the dearth of whom life remains not only stagnant but also disproportional.
Who trivialises women's role in human society? Could there be any human being without the pre-occupation by woman? Could there be any civilization without the impetus of women in the society? What effect has undermining the maximum development of women in contemporary society? Are the roles of women in any way less commensurate with that of men in the society? Can the world survive without the complimentary efforts of female gender? What becomes of a society with acute multiplicity of women gender? What is the Islamic take on the disequilibrium level of both genders in the society. All these form the focrum of the discourse in this edition.
Questions like these are easily raised but fielding practical answers to them remains rather complimentary. The roles assigned to men find imperatives also in women folks with special regard to socio-religious duties to the exclusion of the natural and generational roles. These include the roles of procreation, upbringing and other special human duties. Aside from this, women are generally put on the same pedestal of equality with male counterparts (Qur'an 33:25).
In fact, Islam makes priori roles of women in some quarters as an edge over male counterparts. The similarity in roles as enshrined in the holy Qur'an 33:25 mentioned above on equality of rewards on several actions notwithstanding, women enjoy series of priviledges. As a daughter, she is taken care of by father with full support, nurture and affection till marriage. On transfer to a husband, the latter assumes full responsibilities of being her benefactor. He provides for all her needs as a continual benefactor and sponsors. Qur'an 4:34 is more categorical on that.
Bearing pregnancy gives her yet another natural role. Parental affections necessary to sustain extention of human species begins from here after normal relationship. Child-bearing, breastfeeding, educating and guiding the child go a long way in shaping the society. A woman enjoys varieties of cares from nick-names as Abake, Abike, Anike, Ashake, Atoke, Ajike and lots more from parents and relatives. New bride in the family stylishly coin names for her from her complexion, stature and disposition in form of 'Awe lewa, Idi ileke, Opelenge, Ibadi-aran' among other admirable and respect-laden appellations. In the society, she later becomes useful vesle in various callings appealing to her gender and tenderness. Such professions as teaching, nursing, social work and trading are part of women's calling.
Woman assumes position of wife under the care of a man to whom the full responsibilities of taking care of her is transfered. That she earns money may not be a license to be excluded from the man's care. In fact as customary to a woman nature, her possession of treasure does not stand in her way to man's regular gesture. This is sarcastically refered to in (Tapa-Nupe)'s cosmology where man is refered to husband as 'Nda' meaning 'Benefactor of woman' as against wife 'Nna' 'Beneficiary, Devourer and Spender' of man's fortune.
Furthermore, there are lots more benefits accrued to a woman within the fold of Islam. She is at liberty to adopt the spouse's name after marriage; she can still bear her father's name. It becomes experimental in the event of husband's death, she must not be held to aback from going to marry another man all in the bid to retain the former family's name. She acts in the advisory capacity to her husband. She does not go to the war front and in case situations warrant such, she assumes supporting, welfare staff and possibly mere energizer. She must not carry arms in order not to be soft target for enemies. Targeting her and other weak persons along with fruit bearing trees and other economic advantageous sites amounts to war crime. Women are spared from being killed in order to make it possible to generate new life through the remaining few men left after the war and to be gender balanced again. A woman is privileged to be off-Salat without repaying the number of missed Salat during the menstrual flow in a month. Above all, despite all mentioned above she stands to have multiple inheritance as emanating from her parents and the number of husbands she got married to and died.
This notwithstanding, a woman remains under the care of the eldest son of a deceased husband after the demise of her benefactor. This as a matter of fact does not mean she should be denied of remarrying within or outside the family after the rites of widowhood is observed as far as Islam is concerned. In another development not too hostile to civilization, categorization of women into bad and good exposes us to mannerism and choice of virtue or otherwise. Yet, her child(ren) will be invariably exposed to the result of her choice of behaviour. Allah (SWT)'s typical examples of wives of Prophets Nuh and Lut symbolize awful situation in their dealings thereby inheriting them doom as contrary to wife of Fir'awn (King Pharau), the tyrant whose wife was portrayed as being blessed despite the cruelty melted to her by the tyrant King.
It is on this account that the matter of women is more venerated contrary to that of men as it is evident in a complete chapter being dedicated to women in the glorious Qur'an (Suratu n Nisai Qur'an 4). To this end, a big congratulations to the women wing of the Ipaja Branch of Ansar-Ud-Deen, basically on your anniversary on Sunday 27th July, 2025. If to extol women's virtues is implied, your contributions to the Branch in no small measure remains appreciable as it should attract other women segments in the community. This corroborates a line of poetry which is aptly said: ŁŁŁ ŁŲ§ŁŲŖ Ų§ŁŁŲ³Ų§Ų” Ł
Ų«Ł ŁŲ°Ł # ŁŁŲ¶ŁŲŖ Ų§ŁŁŲ³Ų§Ų” Ų¹ŁŁ Ų§ŁŲ±Ų¬Ų§Ł meaning: If women were to be like this good; men surely would have been overthrown.'
However, perpetuating this gesture appears a task that must be accomplished and this is by no other means than giving and encouraging your daughters on marriage to Muslims of good characters. The noble Messenger (SAW) enhorts that: 'Whenever a man of a religion and of good character approaches you to seek your daughter's hand in marriage, marry them.' What is rampant currently in most Muslim families is Muslim girls marrying non-Muslims which may not be far from materialism or being selective. Else, efforts in the way of religion of Islam might result in vain should the daughter be taken away into non-Islamic formations. The whole lot of training becomes useless for she is bound to train her children in the husband's way. It sounds more ironical that contradictory religious focus plays key roles in the proliferation of Single Mother, Baby Mama, Slay Queen syndrome and Chronic Spinsters which tends to increase the number of unmarried women in the society. By extension, children from such nuclear families tend to be confused and on the long run lulled into crimes of various magnitude. The society stands to be pure if from the micro unit, the bedrock of which is good woman, good children emanate to the general macrocosm. This is where we shall draw curtain till another edition. Till then, stay safe and remain blessed.
#THEMUSLIMWOMAN
#WOMENADVANTAGES #HERSOCIALDEVELOPMENTINISLAM
DR. RAZAQ BOLAWAYE UTHMAN, IMAM & MISSIONER ANSAR-UD-DEEN SOCIETY OF NIGERIA IPAJA BRANCH LAGOS STATE NIGERIA.
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