the importance of the woman

8/2/2019 The Importance of the Woman

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By the noble Shaykh Al

Allamah Muhammed ibn

Salih Al Uthaymeen

UmmSoraiya Halima Al-Italiyyah



From the book “The importance of the woman’s role in bringing about rectification in her

community” The role of the woman in rectifying her community is one of great importance due to the

fact that the rectification of a community will be attained in two ways:

The first: Externally:

This is the rectification that will take place in the market places, businesses, in the masajid

and in other places that are primarily outside of the home. Essentially, the men of the

community are the ones who will bring about this type of rectification due to the fact that

they are the ones who shoulder the external problems outside of the home.

The Second: Internally:

This is the rectification of a community that will be attained from within the home, and for

the most part, it is related to those duties and obligations Allah has made the woman

responsible for and entrusted her with. Hence, the woman in Islam is the primary educator

and nurturer of the home, just as Allah The Glorified and The Magnificent said, while

addressing the wives of the Prophet – sallallahu alayhi wa sallam:

ث و ف ن ق و ه ر و ٱ ط ٱ و ة ڪ زم ٱ ثا ء و ة صم ٱ ق ٱ و و ٱ ـ م ٱ ج ث ذ م ٱ دي ا ۥ

و ي ث ا م ٱ ل ٱ س م ٱ ع

“And stay in your houses, and do not display yourselves like that of the times of ignorance,

and perform the Salat and give the Zakaat and obey Allah and His Messenger. Indeed

Allah only wishes to remove Ar-Rijs (i.e. evil deeds and sins) from you O members of the

family (of the Prophet) and to purify you with a thorough purification” (Soorah Al-Ahzab 33:33)

After what has preceded from this verse, we are totally confident and have no fear saying

that half of the rectification of a community is totally dependent upon the woman. This is

because of two important factors:




community” The first:

The incontestable fact that women outnumber men!! Rather, they are the majority of the

children of Adam, and even the Sunnah of the Prophet – sallallahu alayhi wa sallam –

alludes to this fact. This is not absolute though, perhaps it differs from one place to another

and from one time to another. It is possible that women could outnumber men in a

particular place and the opposite could be the same in another place. Likewise, women

could outnumber men in a particular time period and the opposite could be the same at

another time. In any case, the woman plays a significant role in rectifying her community.

The second:

This factor alone clearly exhibits the importance of the woman’s responsibility and

obligation of rectifying her community.

In order for the Muslim woman to achieve rectification of her community it is essential for

her to possess a few intricate qualifications and characteristics that will assist her in

shouldering this tremendous task. We will present a few of these components:

The first component: Righteousness and Piety

The woman, herself, should be righteous and pious so that she can set a good example and

be a standard role model for the sisters in her community. But now the question is: how

can the woman attain this level of integrity? Every woman should know that she will never

reach this level of probity and virtue except through sound knowledge. What I mean by

this is the legislative knowledge of the Qur’an and Sunnah, which has to be, acquired

either, from books, if she has the ability to attain it in that manner, or directly from the

Ulamaa (i.e. scholars), whether they are men or women.

In our present time, it is very easy for a woman to obtain knowledge directly from the

scholars by way of recorded lectures and lessons found on cassette tapes. These tapes, and

all praise is for Allah, play a very essential role in guiding communities towards what is

good and correct if, in fact, they are used for this purpose. Therefore, knowledge is an




community” essential characteristic that will assist the woman in attaining piety and righteousness, as

there is no possibility for rectification without knowledge.

The second component: Articulation and Eloquence

Meaning, Allah bestows on the woman eloquence in speech and the ability to express

herself clearly. She can eloquently articulate and clarify what she holds in her heart, which

may possibly be the same feelings that others have, but lack the volubility to express them.

Or perhaps, they are capable of expressing and articulating these feelings, however, in a

manner that is ambiguous and lack the fluency necessary to get the point across. Thus,

rendering the objective of rectifying her community verbally unattainable.

Based on this we ask: What will bring about this articulation and clarity of the feelings that

a woman may hold in her heart, in a manner that is appropriate and commensurate with

the level of the one whom she is addressing? I will reply to this by saying that in order for

the woman to attain this quality, it is essential for her to learn the sciences of the Arabic

language, its style, grammar and matters, even if it is not an intensive course, in order that

she develops the ability to articulate and express herself using appropriate terms and

expressions that will convey her feelings to the hearts of the women she is addressing.

The third component: Wisdom

The woman should be wise and savvy when it comes to giving da’wah and conveying

knowledge to the woman she is addressing. The people of knowledge explain Hikmah (i.e.

wisdom) to mean; putting something in its appropriate place. It is a true blessing from

Allah, The Glorified, The Most High, upon the slave that He bestows on him wisdom.

Allah, The Mighty and Majestic says:

ء ش ح م ٱ ؤ ي ه ا ڪ ا و ٱ د ح م ٱ ت ؤ ي و

“And He grants wisdom to whomever He pleases, and he to whom wisdom is granted, has

been given an abundant of good…” (Soorah Al Baqarah 2:269)

How many errors have been made, and how many objectives have been forfeit, due to the

absence of wisdom!! An example of wisdom in giving da’wah to the religion of Allah, The

Mighty and Majestic, is to address the individual whom you are giving da’wah to, in a




community” manner that is commensurate with his social status. Hence, if he is ignorant, then he is to

be dealt with in a manner that will complement his level of ignorance. However, if he is a

person of knowledge and intellect, but you notice signs of negligence and carelessness in

certain acts or aspects of the religion, then his situation should be assessed and dealt with

accordingly. Likewise, if he is a learned individual and you notice signs of arrogance and

obstinacy towards the truth, then he should be dealt with accordingly. Hence, all of these

things have to be taken into consideration.

In summary, people are generally categorized, based upon what has preceded, into three

types:

1. Ignorant

2. Learned but negligent of certain aspects of the religion

3. Learned but arrogant and obstinate towards the truth

Consequently, it is not possible nor is it intelligent for us to equate one with the other,

instead, it is imperative that we put every individual in his/her proper place. And because

of this, when the Prophet – sallallahu alayhi wa sallam – sent Mu’ath Ibn Jabal –

radiyallahu anhu - to Yemen he said to him:

…. ك ا قلٱب ما

“Indeed you are going to a people from the people of the Book….” (This is a well known hadeeth of

Mu’ath Ibn Jabal (Radiyallahu anhu) found in Sahih Al Bukhari and Muslim)

The Prophet – sallallahu alayhi wa sallam – mentioned this to Mu’ath so that he would

know their condition ahead of time, in order to equip himself accordingly. This would

enable him to address them in a manner commensurate with their level of knowledge.

the importance of the woman

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