The 'Burying' Of Muslim Women in the Modern World - Islam for Muslims

The burying of Muslim women
“For what sin was she buried?”
This ayah in Surah at-Takwir brings to mind images of little girls
being buried under the Earth, by the very people who were meant
to keep her alive. Allah and His prophet eradicated such a vile
injustice towards His creation with this succinct perfect verse,
damning the practice of female infanticide. We, as a people, who
also know of this practice in it’s current form in some parts of the
world; thank Allaah that such a practice is no longer common
among us.
Or is it?
Until I attended a lecture by Dr. Mohammad Akram Nadwi – an
Islamic scholar and author of 25 books ranging from fiqh, hadith
and Arabic language – I was convinced that such a practice of
burying girls alive was no longer relevant to the current
atmosphere within the ever growing Muslim diaspora. But then
the Sheikh made a statement that could only wake me up further
to a truth, which should be the wisdom of learned men.
He said that this ayaah is still very much relevant today. Because
little girls are still being buried. Though no longer was this
physically enacted- their minds, their efforts, their contributions,
their very souls are being buried under the rubble of misogyny,
misguided fatwas, and discrimination.
Reading the book Muhaddithaat by Dr. Nadwi in which he
collected the accounts of women scholars in Islaam- a book as a
result of 15 years of research- you are shown a world that no
longer exists. At all. The semblance of this world is so far from
our minds ,it feels fictitious. A world where women were
respected for their contribution to the most important force on
Earth- the religion of Allaah. This covered a dearth of knowledge
and thinking.They were not barred from teaching in the masjid-
let alone barred from entering them!
Their opinions were heard, respected and accepted- even by the
head of the judiciary court. Amatur ibn Abdur Rahman – she was
considered one of the best muhaddithah (muhaddith refers to a
specialist who profoundly knows and narrates hadeeth) of her
time- once corrected the ruling of a Qadi (Judge) when he
sentenced a Christian man to hand amputation though he had
stolen less than one quarter of a dinar. The Qadi accepted her
knowledge of hukm derived from the hadeeth and reversed his
ruling.
According to Dr. Nadwi, 1/3rd of religion of Allaah was taught,
preserved and passed down by the women.
Fatima bint Ibrahim (d.711 hijri) from Damascus studied the
hadeeth from the best muhaddith at that time; Zabilee .He taught
Sahih al-Bukhari in the Prophet’s mosque twice. Men and women
travelled far and wide to attend his class. After his death, Fatima
Ibn Ibrahim was asked to teach Sahih Bukhari- the most
important source of legislation after the Quran. In it are rulings
on personal, family matters, ascending to matters of the state.
She taught men and women alike sitting opposite the burial site
of the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalaam. Its significance? She
sat where her teacher once sat.
Muslim women in the current reality of the world seem forced
into one of the two worlds – one dominated by the West where
her identity as a Muslim is buried under the pressure of ridicule
and hostility for little more than her dress. They have no desire
for her to succeed, though claiming otherwise, for how could
they continue with their narrative of her robed oppression. Or the
other world dominated by Muslim men where her identity can be
hidden behind a wall of grumbling disapproval, set off by
religious unchecked edicts confining her to her face veil and her
ability to achieve paradise only through pleasing others.
Both extremes are so far beyond the history of her place in Islam
– one could easily believe one needs the other in order to give
them respective oxygen.
But of course, these women raise generation after generation.
And it would not be too far-fetched a claim to assert that this
exact ‘burial’ of women has contributed heavily to our demise in
our lands fueling corruption, confusion and ignorance. And no
doubt is one of the tragedies of our time when we speak of being
in a declined state. So I wonder, how can this same revival of
Islam, also perpetuate this element of decline? Why is the culture
of misogyny still passed down to our sons by those charged with
telling the whole story of Islam and its glory?
According to Dr. Nadwi- this will only change once Muslim men
start to change their attitude towards women and start to
emulate the Prophet and the Rightly Guided Caliphs in how they
gave respect and position to women. It saddens me that other
men cannot see this truth also.
In my mind this requires education of men from a young age of
what a woman is and what her role in this world must be. Just
like a man’s role is not only confined in taking care of his wife
and children- so too for a woman.
The ahadeeth on the role of a woman as a wife and mother are
highlighted so often by our shuyukh that we believe there are no
other roles of women. What purpose would this serve if it is not
done within context of the whole picture. How many times have
we heard from shuyukh the story of Umm Haram- the companion
of the Prophet who asked to join the naval expedition?
Even though they were in the middle of Arabia, far away from
sea, it was her insight that led her to believe that Islaam will
spread and a naval army will be formed. Her desire was to join
one and asked the prophet if her dream will come true. He did not
question her desires, or tell her that her place is at home. Instead
he made her joyous informing her that her dream will come true.
She later on married who eventually became a commander of the
first naval army of the Muslims and she accompanied him! Now
today, if a Muslim woman desires to do anything beyond her
home and household duties- she is discouraged and even
shunned in some communities. She has become invisible.
Buried.
Until the Muslim world recognises that you can’t build a nation by
keeping half of it in a state of ignorance and lethargy – we will
remain in this state.
“To educate a man is to educate an individual, but to educate a
woman is to educate a whole nation.” -Malcolm X –
Nada Umm Nour