There is only one answer to this. Those who fear God should take upon themselves the responsibility of unilaterally showing patience. In spite of experiencing violence they themselves will be free of it. This is the only way a society devoid of violence can be established. According to the Quran, when Qabil wanted to kill Habil, Habil said:
“Even if you raise your hand to kill me, I will not raise my hand to kill you. I fear God the Lord of the Universe.” (The Quran, 5: 28)
This is the ultimate example of unilateral patience in the face of violence, as established by Habil, the son of Adam. According to the Hadith, the Prophet of Islam said: 'In later times there will be political degeneration but you should never confront your rulers'. One of the companions asked, 'If they should come into our homes to kill us, then what should we do?' The Prophet replied, 'You become the better of the two sons of Adam'. That is, even though you face death at the hands of others, you should not attempt to kill them.
The only way to form a peaceful society is that individuals unilaterally refrain from using violence.
From the Quran, we understand that Adam and his spouse were expelled from Paradise and made to settle on earth. During the early part of their life on earth, there was a serious conflict between their two sons Qabil and Habil which led to the killing of Habil by Qabil. The Quran says that after this incident, God decreed that:
Whoever killed a human being except as a punishment for murder or for spreading corruption in the land shall be regarded as having killed all mankind, and that whoever saved a human life shall be regarded as having saved all mankind. (The Quran, 5: 32)
Such severe words have not appeared in the Quran for any other crime. From this we can understand that in the eyes of God, the most heinous of crimes is to commit a violent act against another human being. In this matter if there is any exception it is only for an established government after a judicial process. For common man, there is no exception in this matter.
This strict forbidding of violence is because violence is against the system of nature. The order of nature established by the Creator gives full freedom and opportunity to every man and woman to do as they please. But violence and conflict destroys this very fabric of nature. Violence is an interference in the order of nature established by the Creator and such interference is without doubt the most serious of crimes.
Source: Spirit of Islam May 2014
This is a negative approach to the subject. In reality, Satan is a source of struggle for human beings. If there were no struggle, there would be no development at all. The development of a person’s mind is a result of his response to challenging situations. If there were no Satan, there would be no field of struggle left for an individual, his mind would not unfold and he would not be able to tap into his potential.
Satanic temptations give a person the opportunity to develop resilience and patience by not succumbing to them. According to a verse of the Quran, man is asked to seek refuge from the temptation caused by both Satan and man’s own soul. The verse is as follows:
Say, ‘I seek refuge in the Lord of people, the King of people, the God of people, from the mischief of every sneaking whisperer, who whispers into the hearts of people, from jinn and men.’ (The Quran 114: 1-6)
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
God created the first man, Adam, and initially inhabited him in the garden of Paradise. He was told that he could live in Paradise with full freedom but with only one condition. In Paradise he was forbidden from approaching a particular tree or eating of its fruit. (The Quran, 2: 35)
This was the original forbidden tree of Adam's motherland. However, according to the Quran, Adam was unable to remain patient, and he ate from the fruit of the forbidden tree (The Quran 20: 121). He failed the ‘test’ that God had given him in Paradise. As a result of this action, he was banished from the garden of Paradise and sent to live on earth.
Nevertheless, as far as the test for man is concerned, it remains the same here on earth also. The difference between the two is that in Paradise there was only one forbidden tree, and in this world, there is a jungle of ‘forbidden trees’. The return to Paradise for man will only be on the condition that he does not partake of the fruit of the forbidden trees. Now, for man to fulfill this condition, he has to be extremely cautious, because while originally, he had to avoid only one tree, here it is necessary for him to refrain from a jungle of forbidden trees.
An account of things that are forbidden can be found in the Quran and Hadith. In the present age, the list of such things which lead man astray from the straight path has become very extensive. Such a comprehensive list of forbidden things cannot be compiled. Man has to now live very cautiously in this world. Whenever he comes across something that is a distraction from the straight path, he should immediately recognize it and shun it completely.
In this world, all such things take the place of a ‘forbidden tree’ that make man forget God and neglect the accountability of the Hereafter. Only the one who examines his life and continuously introspects will be able to save himself from these ‘forbidden trees’.
Source: Spirit of Islam April 2014
Paradise is the answer to man’s search. Man finds himself in a world where he has the status of a strange and unique exception. Every component of the vast universe is complete in itself. Here, it is only man who lives in contradiction. Other than man, the whole of the universe is a zero-defect universe. It is only man whose life seems defective.
All around the rest of the universe, there is certainty. However, in the world of man, there is tremendous uncertainty. No fear exists in the rest of the universe, but man is always afflicted by fear and apprehension. In the rest of the universe, satisfaction prevails, while in man’s life, dissatisfaction abounds. In the rest of the universe, all things get what they require, but man is the only creature in the world who does not always get what he wants. The rest of the universe is evil-free, but man, exceptionally, is afflicted with the ‘problem of evil’.
Paradise is the answer to this seeming conundrum. The concept of Paradise tells us that all those good things that are there for the rest of the creation are fully available for man too, with the only difference that the rest of the universe gets what it desires in the world of ‘today’, while man will get all that he wishes in the world of ‘tomorrow’ (the Hereafter), that is in eternal Paradise.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
Man has been given an unlimited sense of enjoyment, but the objects from which he can derive endless pleasure have been kept in the second stage of his life—in the world that comes after death. In the first stage of his life—in the present world—man discovers his ability to pursue pleasure. In the life after death, if he had led a righteous life in this world, he could obtain all the objects of pleasure. That is to say, in the pre-death phase of life in this world, he will experience the desire for pleasure, and in the post-death stage, he can experience the full experience of pleasure in Paradise.
In line with His creation plan, the Creator of the world has given man an initial introduction in this present world to the pleasures one will enjoy in Paradise. In this way, He conveys to man that if he wants to experience pleasure for all eternity and in the most total sense, he should create a strong desire for this and perform such actions as will hold him deserving of Paradise.
What should one do to become deserving of Paradise in the Hereafter? To put it briefly, man should make himself a purified soul. He must purify himself of every negative emotion. He should save himself from becoming a victim of greed, selfishness, jealousy, dishonesty, falsehood, anger, revenge, hate, and other negative feelings. He should develop a lofty, entirely positive character that makes him worthy of living in the neighbourhood of God in Paradise. He must be transformed into an angelic person or a divine personality.
Man’s life is divided into the pre-death and post-death phases. A tiny portion of man’s life is kept for the first phase, while the rest—which carries on for all eternity—is in the post-death phase. If man’s story is seen only in the pre-death phase, it will appear as a meaningless tragedy. However, if a man’s story is seen in the light of the period after death, it will seem meaningful.
In line with this creation plan of God, man stands at a very critical juncture. He has to choose between two alternatives. One option is to use the available opportunities in the present world according to God’s creation plan and then become eligible to live amidst eternal joy in Paradise. The other option is to lead a life of heedlessness in this world and be eternally deprived of pleasure in the next phase of life.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
By birth, every person possesses two contradictory qualities. On the one hand, everyone desires to build a dream world, a world per their ideals, where they can spend their ‘tomorrow’—their future—in joy and peace. However, on the other hand, even if he acquires all sorts of objects of pleasure, every person cannot obtain this desired ideal world of his. Boredom, loss, illness, accidents, and old age are the story of many people in this world. Moreover, finally, every single person has to face the event of death.
Every person is born with the conception of an ideal world deeply embedded in his mind. However, almost everyone dies, taking with him many seemingly beautiful desires unfulfilled before he can obtain his desired world.
In this world, a particular principle prevails. It is the principle of pairs. Here, everything exists in the form of pairs. Everything becomes complete when two of a pair join together. For instance, there are negative and positive particles in the atom. In the world of plants, there are male plants and female plants. Likewise, there are males and females in the world of animals and humans.
This global natural principle can be called the ‘pair principle’. This principle tells us that everything makes itself complete by joining with its pair in this world.
In this universal principle lies the answer to the issue of the nature of this world referred to above. There must be a pair world that complements this present world in the universe. Along with this world, another world must exist; only by getting this other world will the present world complete its being.
In light of the above observation, the reality of the world of the Hereafter can be recognized as true. The world of the Hereafter is that pair-world joining which the present world completes its being. Without joining this pair world, our present world would be as incomplete as all other things in this universe would be without their pairs.
Our world is part of a pair. This world and the world Hereafter form a pair. After accepting this other world in the Hereafter, man’s existence becomes complete. The significance and meaningfulness of everything can now be seen. Everything now falls into place.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
The greatest calamity afflicting our world is that one million people die every day. No one knows, of those who are alive today, who will be dead tomorrow. Every one of us shall taste death, but no one knows when death will come. We do not know which of our fellow men will leave this world tomorrow, and who will remain to receive this message.
Every man born in this world has to enter another world after death. In this world, man has been granted all the opportunities as a matter of test. Whatever man receives in the next world will be purely based on his deeds in this world. This means that before death, man has been given many things and opportunities, whether or not he deserves them. After death, one will receive in the Hereafter only what he deserved on the basis of his performance in this life.
Death is not the end of our lives; it is the beginning of our real life. After death man will be brought before the Lord for final judgement. The angel who is to announce the Last Day is ready and waiting with the trumpet in his hand for God to give the order to sound it. This will be a most terrifying time for man. He will want to speak, but will be struck dumb. He will want to walk, but his legs will not carry him. All disparity between men will disappear on the Day of Judgement. Fear of God will seal everybody’s tongue. Injustice will benefit no one; truth will be inescapable. Man will stand alone, answerable for his actions.
Man has many concerns in this world, but after death he will be concerned with one thing alone: saving oneself from being deprived of God's blessings. If one has ample time at one’s disposal, one engages in many tasks. But if time is short then one concentrates on the most important task.
No time is fixed for death. It can come at any moment. This fact makes death an even more delicate issue. Everyone is on the move and everyone’s journey ends in death. Death means eternal bliss for some and eternal deprivation for others. Fortunate are those who find themselves on the threshold of Heaven at the time of death; they will dwell in eternal bliss; they will know neither grief nor apprehension.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
If a farmer wants to harvest a crop the day he plants the seeds, he will lose the seeds and be deprived of a harvest. The same is true of both the world of 'today' (this world) and the world of ‘tomorrow' (the Hereafter). The world of 'today' is the place for engaging in action, while the world of 'tomorrow' is the place for receiving the results of one's actions. Therefore, if a person wants to obtain his 'reward' in this world, he will not be able to do the needed activities for a happy life in the world of 'tomorrow'. Thus, he will not only lose this world, but he will also lose his only opportunity to build his next world.
Few people realise this, however. In this world itself, they want to obtain things—such as complete fulfillment or ideal justice and peace—that can be had only in the next world. Because of this, they lose both. Wise is he who earns the world of' tomorrow' through the world of 'today'. He knows that if he gets stuck in the allurements and entanglements of the world of 'today', he will deprive himself of true success in the next world, the world of 'tomorrow'.
Suppose you are on a journey and want to enjoy all the comforts that a person can enjoy only at home during that time; you will naturally not be able to fulfill this desire. From this, one can understand the issue of the world of 'today' and the world of 'tomorrow'. This world is a place for a temporary halt, and the next world is your eternal home. The world of 'today' is the path on the journey, and the world of 'tomorrow' is the final destination of this journey. God has made this world the place for engaging in action and the Hereafter for obtaining the results of our efforts.
If, while on a journey, you want to obtain the comforts you can enjoy only when you are at your destination, you are bound to deviate from your path. In the same way, if you desire that in the world of 'today' itself, you should obtain the results of your actions, which is possible only in the world of 'tomorrow', your planning will go haywire.
Wise is he who understands this difference between the world of 'today' and the world of 'tomorrow'. Therefore, he does not desire those things before death that one can find only in life after death.
It is imperative to recognise this fact. One must be realistic. One must not run after desires because desires will not take one to any destination other than destruction. Every person nurses an ocean of desires; these desires in themselves are not wrong. However, the place for fulfilling these desires is the world of 'tomorrow', not the world of 'today'.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
Man is an eternal being. However, his life is divided into two periods or phases: the period before death (generally, a maximum of 100 years) and the period after death (which carries on eternally). The life in the first phase is spent in this world, and the life in the second phase is spent in the world of the Hereafter.
Today’s world—the present world—is like a thick jungle. Here, there are flowers and, along with them, thorns. In the world of tomorrow—that is the Hereafter—the ‘flowers’ and the ‘thorns’ will be separated from each other. After this, an eternal world will emerge, one part of which will have, as it were, only ‘thorns’ (Hell), and in the other part, only ‘flowers’ (Paradise). In today’s world, everyone has the opportunity to make his eternal fortune. The record of their life in this world will determine whether they will be settled in the world full of thorns or the eternal garden of flowers.
Dividing people into these two groups continuously happens in this world. Through the record of their life (or, in other words, based on the character that they are building in this world), each person is declaring, as it were, which of the two groups he is eligible to be included in after his death—the group that will be settled amidst the thorns or the group that will be placed among the flowers. The conditions of this present world are the means for this personality development. Every person is passing through this process. Someone is developing a thorny personality for himself, while someone else is developing a flower-like character. These two groups of people do not appear to be distinct and separate in today’s world. However, in the world of tomorrow, they will be separated from each other. One group will be admitted into eternal Paradise, and the other group will be consigned to eternal Hell.
In the present world, every person faces negative experiences. If someone habitually takes an unpleasant experience as something negative, he will develop a negative personality. In contrast, if someone can convert a negative experience into a positive one, it is the best way to create a positive character.
Source: God’s Creation Plan
The formula given in the Quran for social reform and social betterment is simply that everyone is accountable to God. Accountability, indeed, is the bedrock of Islam: it is the ideal solution to the problem of anarchy in society and the misuse of freedom. Freedom has to be accepted as being necessary for development. If there is no freedom, there can be no development. Without freedom, there is no progress. But we cannot afford unlimited freedom.
The formula given in the Quran for social reform and social betterment is simply that everyone is accountable to God.
There is a very interesting story in American history. When America became free, an American citizen ran out into the street and, in jubilation, started swinging his arms as he walked along. Quite by accident, he hit a passer-by on the nose. The man who was hit, an elderly person, asked him why he had hit him. He replied that now he was free to exercise his freedom.’ The elderly person retorted, ‘Your freedom ends where my nose begins!’ The Christian, as well as the Islamic formula, goes thus: We may exercise our freedom, but we are not free to hit other people on the nose.
Source: Spirit of Islam March 2013
Accountability comes from the monotheistic concept of God. This belief instils the fact in people's minds that their freedom is not absolute and that God will take account of everyone's words and deeds on the Day of Judgement. God is continuously watching every person. God watches all of us constantly.
It is this understanding that makes a person God-fearing. When an aggregate of such people come together, they form a righteous society. Conversely, a society without accountability to God will fall prey to total anarchy.
Belief in God is necessary for the proper conduct of human life. Man repeatedly falls prey to temptations that cause him to give in to injustice and oppression. Only a living belief in God's omniscience can be a firm check on that tendency. It is only belief in God that can genuinely discipline him.
The necessity of belief in God for an individual and society is definite proof of God's existence. The fact that the proper conduct of human life is impossible without belief in God itself proves that God exists and that each person is accountable to Him.
Belief in God gives man certainty. It disciplines his life. It gives him the confidence and assurance that if he abstains from evil in his daily life and follows the path of virtue, he will simultaneously obtain benefits. First, he will be saved from God's chastisement. Second, he will earn an eternal reward for righteous living in eternal Paradise from God.
The belief in accountability to God is a belief in human progress. It acts as a powerful incentive for the perfection of humanity. This belief puts human life on the path of Truth so that it will never stop until the journey ends.
We enjoy freedom. We make decisions and take action of our own free will. The question is how to make sure we make the right decisions and take the right action. How can we make ourselves accountable?
History shows the ineffectiveness of all worldly measures in this connection—whether social pressure, law enforcement, or reformation. It is not possible for people on their own to bind themselves to moral values or to adhere to justice. This is possible only when they are convinced that they are under a super-power—a living and powerful God who is perfect, and just.
The concept of a living and powerful God is necessarily accompanied by the concept of accountability. God is just, and everyone will answer to Him for their actions. We will answer to Him for our actions. This guarantees that we think right, and do right. And this gives us the conviction that we will receive God’s eternal reward if we always think right, and do right.
Source: Spirit of Islam January 2013
Remembering God is interwoven in your being like energy. You and energy are apparently separate, but in fact both are one and the same. So, at every moment there are bounties of God all around you which you can remember. If you awaken in yourself this consciousness at every moment, then you are remembering God at every moment. This is a way in which you can be engaged in the constant zikr of God.
In a report contained in the Sahih al-Bukhari, the Prophet’s wife Aisha reports that the Prophet used to remember God on each occasion by making it a point of reference for God’s remembrance. So, for the Prophet, remembering God, or zikrullah, and other tasks were not two separate activities, rather both were intermingled.
The human mind has enormous potential. An American writer, Walt Whitman, has said: “I am large enough to contain all these contradictions.” He said this in a different context. However, this saying applies here as well. While being engaged in different tasks throughout the day, we can be engaged in zikr as well, reflecting on God’s bounties in the context of the tasks we are doing or the things we are seeing. Zikr means living with divine consciousness. When you have attained this state of consciousness, at every moment you will be in a state of zikr, even though you may not be uttering any specific words.
Sometimes, you may find yourself lamenting the past, experiencing negative feelings and thinking about negative experiences. In this way, your mind is diverted from zikr of God. This is a very common occurrence. But you can convert even this into a means to remember and thank God. If you have had some painful or negative experience in the past, when you recall it today you can convert it into something to be thankful to God. You can think of it as yet another reason for shukr, or thankfulness to God. You can thank God that He did not make you stay on in that negative moment, and that, instead, He made you reach a better situation today. So, in this way, you can even make the memory of a negative or painful experience into yet another opportunity to engage in zikr or remembrance of God.
Source: Spirit of Islam May 2019
The Quran repeatedly tells us to remember God. This is what is known as zikrullah. One should remember God as often as one can. There may be some distractions in which you are engaged or some work in which your mind is focused, but even these may also lead, in an indirect manner, to the remembrance of God. When your own divine feelings, your remembrance of and love and praise for God, take expression in words, which is zikr. These words could be in your own language or in the Arabic language.
It is very simple to remember God—to engage in zikr—and it is also quite natural. For instance, when you are walking, you can bring to your mind the fact that you are doing so entirely because of the blessings of God. While outdoors, you see the sun up in the sky, and you remember that it is God who is providing you sunlight. You breathe in fresh air while taking a stroll and you remember that it is He who is supplying you with oxygen. When you set your foot down on the ground and lift it up, you remember that it is He who has created gravity, otherwise you would be floating in the air and would not be able to walk on the ground at all. You bring to your mind the realization that without these divine blessings—of sunshine, of the air, of gravity—you would not be able to go out for a stroll. If you recount all these divine bounties associated with your walk, then you are remembering God, you are engaging in zikr while walking. So, in this way, at every moment, no matter what activity you may be engaged in—you can be doing zikr, remembering God, praising, glorifying and thanking Him.
This is a way in which you can engage in zikr—remembrance of God— throughout your daily life, not just for a few minutes a day, but rather, all through the day.
Source: Spirit of Islam May 2019
One of the commandments of the Quran is given in these words: “Believers, remember God with much remembrance.” (33:41) According to this Quranic verse believers must remember God very much, every day and every moment. This is the greatest teaching of the Quran, and it is the highest form of worship. One who does this will be blessed with the greatest reward from God Almighty.
What is meant by ‘much remembrance’ of God? Remembrance does not refer to the mere repetition of some words, but it is in the sense of thinking and living in God and His blessing. Much remembrance, or zikr-e-kathir, is not a kind of lip service. It is rather a high kind of intellectual activity and a sign of God realization. Remembering God much, is a result of a chain reaction in the thinking process; that is, a series of thoughts in which each thought causes the next one. Zikr-e-kathir, or much remembrance, is a result of creative thinking.
It is a product of a prepared mind. If you possess a prepared mind, then your mind is bound to get activated at every experience or observation. You will start discovering one aspect of God-realization after another. In this way a chain reaction will be initiated in your mind.
It is this intellectual activity that is called zikr-e-kathir in the Quran. For example, if it is raining, a believer will very soon present his shukr, that is, acknowledgment to God. Then he will start thinking further: what caused this downpour? He will discover the natural processes that resulted in rain. He will then think that when the water was in the ocean, it was salty, but when it took the form of downpour, it turned into fresh water.
So step by step, he will discover how God created various processes which finally provided him water to drink. This is an example of chain reaction in thinking, and through this chain reaction, one by one, you start discovering aspects for realization of God. If you are a prepared mind, then this process will continue without limit.
This chain reaction of zikr will enhance your maarifah, that is, realization. It will improve your relationship with God, increasing your wisdom and power of analysis. According to the Quran, believers are given a unique blessing, that is, they are able to add faith to their faith (48: 4). This is a direct result of the above kind of chain reaction. This chain reaction of zikr is very important for personality development. A believer increases his divine spirituality through this process.
Source: Spirit of Islam December 2014
Zikr means remembrance of God. Remembrance of God is one of the basic teachings of Islam. Forgetfulness of God shows indifference, whereas remembrance of God shows attentiveness to the divine will.
Such remembrance is a natural reality. A human being at every moment, experiences such things as are directly related to God. That is, he observes the sun and the moon, the rivers and the mountains, the air and the water,—and sees that everything has been created by God. Similarly, all the creatures that he sees in the world are reminders of the Creator. Right from the earth to the heavens, all things are reflections of God’s beauty and perfection. With their entire existence, they testify to God’s being. As such, they draw a person towards his Creator.
At every moment, an individual is reminded of God by the things amidst which he spends his days and nights in this world. Influenced by these things, his heart and mind overflow with spiritual feelings of remembrance of God.
Throughout his life a person repeatedly experiences such a connection with God, as causes him to ponder upon his existence, and his heart is filled with the sense that it is God who has created him in the best of moulds and given him all kinds of abilities in abundance. These feelings come to his lips in various ways in different words again and again. This is a true form of remembrance.
A person in his daily life has to come to grips with various ups and downs, and undergo different kinds of experiences, both pleasant and unpleasant. At these times, he focuses his attention on God. Again and again, he remembers God in different words.
In this way, during his daily worship, he repeats aloud various words and phrases. These words are sometimes derived from the Quran and Hadith, and at other time, in acknowledgement of his Lord’s beneficence, they spring spontaneously to his lips. All this is remembrance of God.
Source: The Spirit of Islam
At several places the Quran exhorts us to be on our best behaviour with parents; to pay their dues, and, even when scolded by them, to refrain from angry retorts; we should never be found lacking in loving them or in serving them. That is to say: we should at all times conduct ourselves with the utmost propriety, regardless of how our parents treat us.
According to a Hadith, a man approached the Prophet and asked, “O Prophet, who is more deserving of my good behaviour?” The Prophet said, “Your mother.” The man then asked, “Who after that?” The Prophet again said, “Your mother.” The man again repeated the question and the Prophet again said, “Your mother.” When the man asked the Prophet a fourth time, the Prophet replied, “Your father.” (Sahih Muslim, Hadith No. 2548)
A mother undertakes the great hardship of bearing and bringing up her children. Islam gives importance of a mother.
Source: Spirit of Islam July 2013
The Quran says that men are in charge of, that is, they are ‘maintainers’ of women (4:34). This leads to a common misconception that Islam gives a higher status to men then women. According to this verse of the Quran, it does not mean that men have a distinctive status over women – being maintainers of women has never been intended as a form of discriminatory treatment, it rather concerns the practical management of the home, for which the man is held responsible. However, this does not mean that a woman will never be allowed to shoulder these responsibilities. If she finds that she can bear this burden, no objection will be raised from any quarter. One example of this can be found in the Quran with reference to the people of Sheba. They lived in Yemen. The famous dam of Marib made their country very prosperous and enabled it to attain a high degree of civilization. The Quran tells us that they were ruled by a woman (27:23) without disapproving of her rule. Bilqis, the Queen of Sheba was very wise and sagacious, even more so than the men in her court. She did not want to embroil her country in war, while the men advised her to confront her enemies, namely, Solomon’s army. Abdullah Yusuf Ali writes: “In Bilqis we have a picture of womanhood, gentle, prudent, and able to tame the wilder passions of her subjects.”
It is an accepted principle with the commentators of the Quran that when the Quran reports something without any disapproval, that means that has been approved of by the Quran.
So when we look at this incident in the light of the Quran, we find the status of woman even higher than that of men. A woman is in charge of men and she has shouldered this responsibility with greater efficacy.
Thus the example of the Queen of Sheba having found mention in the Quran shows that rulership is not man’s monopoly. A woman can be a ‘qawwam’ over a man and the Quran has itself testified to it.
Source: The True Face of Islam
Women are at liberty to work in Islam. In fact, in the early period of Islam, both the sexes were fully active in different fields of life, from housework to agriculture and horticulture, and from worship in the mosque to the battleground. Everywhere women were visible and active. Gradually there came about a division of labour, which is justifiable not only biologically and physiologically, but also in terms of the ensuing social benefits. One such important benefit is that they can see each other’s lives objectively, without that personal involvement which tends to cloud their judgment and lead to a damaging emotionalism. They are better able to counsel each other coolly and wisely, to give moral support at critical moments, and to offer the daily encouragement with which every successful union should be marked.
In Islamic history, there are many examples of women giving invaluable help to their husbands in critical situations. One of the most notable was Khadijah, the wife of the Prophet of Islam who successfully brought the Prophet back from a state of fear and trembling to a state of normalcy after his receiving the first divine revelation in the solitude of the Cave of Hira from the Archangel Gabriel. She was able to reassure him that his life was not, as he feared, in danger, as she herself was emotionally detached from the incident. She observed: “God will surely never forsake you. You are kind to your kin; you always help the weak; you take care of whoever crosses your threshold; you solace the weary; you speak the truth.” The reassurance that Khadijah gave to the Prophet of Islam on this occasion was one of the most significant contributions to the furtherance of Islam.
Then it occurred to Khadijah that she had best make enquiries of some learned Christians, who, well versed as they were in the scriptures, were bound to have knowledge of revelation and prophethood. She went first to a rahib (hermit) who lived near Mecca. On seeing her, the priest asked, “O noble lady of the Quraysh, what has brought you here?” Khadijah replied, “I have come here to ask you about Gabriel.” To this the rahib said, “Glory be to God, he is God’s pure angel. He visits prophets: he came to Jesus and Moses.” Then Khadijah went to another Christian called Addas. She put the same question to him, and he too told her that Gabriel was an angel of God, the very same who had been with Moses when God drowned the Pharaoh. He had also come to Jesus, and through him God had helped Jesus.
Then Khadijah hastened to Waraqah ibn Nawfal, a Christian convert who had translated part of the Bible into Arabic. When she had finished telling him of what Muhammad had seen and heard, Waraqah exclaimed, “Holy, holy! By the Master of my soul, if your report be true, O Khadijah, this must be the great spirit who spoke to Moses. This means that Muhammad must be the Prophet of this nation.” On a subsequent visit, Khadijah brought Muhammad to meet Waraqah ibn Nawfal. Muhammad related the events exactly as they had taken place and, when he had finished, Waraqah said, “By the Master of my soul, I swear that you are the same Prophet whose coming was foretold by Jesus, son of Mary.” But then Waraqah sounded a note of warning: “You will be denied and you will be hurt. You will be abused and you will be pursued.” He nevertheless immediately pledged himself to the Prophet: “If I should ever live to see that day, I should surely help you.”
Islam gives liberty to women to work. Islam considers men and women as equal in respect, but different in role.
Source: The True Face of Islam
