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