Jihad (Struggle, effort, endeavour) - Part 11

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('Jihad' - Struggle, effort, endeavour. [Muhammad Prophet For Our Time Glossary

pg. 217].)

 

 

Jihad - Part 11

 

(p.155) Umm Salamah quickly became the spokesperson for the women of Medina.

[44] Muhammad's living arrangements, which had physically positioned his wives

at the epicenter of the community, had given Muslim women a new vision of their

role. 'A'isha and Hafsah were still young girls, and were sometimes flighty and

selfish, but Umm Salamah was a very different proposition. Shortly after her

marriage, a deputation of women asked her why they were mentioned so rarely in

the Qur'an. Umm Salamah brought their question to the Prophet, who, as usual,

took time to reflect upon it seriously. A few days later, while she was combing

her hair in her apartment, she heard Muhammad reciting a revolutionary new surah

in the mosque:

 

Men and women who have surrendered,

Believing men and believing women

Obedient men and obedient women

Truthful men and truthful women

Enduring men and enduring women

Men and women who give in charity

Men who fast and women who fast,

Men and women who guard their private parts

Men and women who remember God oft--

For them God has prepared forgiveness

And a mighty wage. [45]

 

(p.156) In other words, there was to be complete sexual equality in Islam; both

men and women had the same duties and responsibilities. When the women heard

these verses, they were determined to make this vision a concrete reality in

their daily lives.

 

God seemed to be on their side. Shortly afterwards, a whole surah was dedicated

to women. Women were no longer to be bequeathed to male heirs as though they

were camels or date palms. They could themselves inherit and complete with men

for a share in an estate. [46] No orphan girl should be married to her guardian

against her will, as though she were simply moveable property. [47] As had been

customary during the pre-Islamic period, women retained the power to initiate

divorce proceedings, though the husband could refuse to comply. In Arabia, the

groom traditionally presented a dowry to his bride, but in practice this gift

had belonged to her family. Now the dowry was to be given directly to the woman

as her inalienable property, and in the event of divorce, a man could not

reclaim it, so her security was assured. [48] Qur'anic legislation insisted that

the individual was free and sovereign--and that also applied to women.

 

In seventh century Arabia, this was a shocking innovation, and the men of the

ummah were furious. God was taking away their privileges! They were ready to

fight for him to the death, but now he was demanding sacrifice in their personal

lives! (p.157) The Medinese were particularly incensed; were they expected to

divide their farms to give women a share? " How, " they asked, " can one give the

right of inheritance to women and children, who do not work and do not earn

their living? Are they now going to inherit just like men who have worked to

earn that money? " And was the Prophet seriously telling them that even an ugly

girl could inherit a fortune? " Yes, absolutely, " replied Muhammad. [49] Some

tried to find a loophole in the legislation, but the women complained to

Muhammad and the Qur'an supported them. [50]

 

The women made another demand: since raiding was so crucial to the economy, why

could they not bear arms, too? Once again, Umm Salamah brought their question to

the Prophet. [51] This went right to the heart of the ghazu [acquisition raid]

economy. A woman who was taken prisoner during a raid was valuable booty; she

could be sold, married, used for labor, or forced into prostitution. If women

were allowed to fight instead of waiting passively to be taken prisoner, there

would be a huge reduction of ghazu income. The controversy split the community

and Muhammad was besieged by angry men who felt that Allah was emasculating

them. 'Umar especially could not understand the Prophet's ridiculous leniency

towards women. But Muhammad stood firm and insisted that God had made his will

clear.

 

But the women had chosen the wrong moment to make their move. There was no way

that the men would accept this at a time when the ummah faced extinction. The

laws of inheritance and divorce remained in place, but Muhammad found that his

enemies in Medina were making political capital out of this radical legislation

and that he was opposed at this crucial juncture by some of his closest

companions. (p.158) Matters came to a head over the question of wife-beating.

[52] The Qur'an forbade Muslims to inflict violence upon one another, and the

women began to complain to the Prophet when their husbands hit them, demanding

that they be punished as the Qur'an prescribed. Some even started to refuse sex

to their abusive husbands. Muhammad was revolted by the very idea of violence

towards women. " The Prophet never raised his hand against one of his wives, or

against a slave, nor against any person at all, " Ibn Sa'd recalled. He " was

always against the beating of women. " [53] But he was ahead of his time. Men

like 'Umar, Ibn Ubayy, and even the gentle Abu Bakr beat their wives without

giving the matter a second thought. Knowing that Abu Sufyan was mustering a

massive army against Medina, Muhammad had to give way in order to retain the

loyalty of his men. " Very well, " he told his indignant companions, " beat them,

but only the worst of you will have recourse to such methods. " [54] A revelation

seemed to give husbands permission to beat their wives but Muhammad did not like

it. [55] " I cannot bear seeing a quick-tempered man beat his wife in a fit of

anger, " he said. [56] Yet again, the conflict with Mecca had compromised his

vision and forced him to adopt a course of action that, in more normal

circumstances, he would have preferred to avoid. The Qur'anic legislation about

women is intertwined with verses about the war, which inevitably affected

everything that happened in Medina at this time; Muhammad knew that he had no

hope of surviving a Meccan onslaught with disaffected troops.

 

Muhammad (Prophet For Our Time)

Chapter 4, 'Jihad', p. 155-158

Karen Armstrong

Harper Perennial - London, New York, Toronto and Sydney

ISBN-13 978-0-00-723248-2

ISBN-10 0-00-723248-9

 

Notes:

 

[44] Tabari, 'Tafsir' (Cairo, n.d.), 22:10; Mernissi, 'Women and Islam', 115-31.

In some versions, all Muhammad's wives, not simply Umm Salamah, take the

initiative.

 

[45] Qur'an 33:35.

 

[46] Qur'an 4:37.

 

[47] Qur'an 4:23.

 

[48] Qur'an 2:225-240, 65:1-70.

 

[49] Tabari, 'Tafsir', 9:235; Mernissi, 'Women and Islam', 131-32; Ahmed, 'Women

and Gender in Islam', 53.

 

[50] Qur'an 4:19.

 

[51] Tabari, 'Tafsir', 8:261; Mernissi, 'Women and Islam', 132.

 

[52] Mernissi, 'Women and Islam', 154-59.

 

[53] Ibn Sa'd, 'Tabaqat', 8:205.

 

[54] Ibid.

 

[55] Qur'an 4:34.

 

[56] Ibn Sa'd, 'Tabaqat', 8:204.