ভূমিকা
Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books The Status of Women in Islam Islam and Women's Rights by Muhammad Jawad Bahonar Introduction The story of woman's rights and her liberty is one of the live and attractive issues being discussed over the last few years in the Eastern circles. Islamic countries are also faced with this debate, and different societies have different views in this regard, positive and/or negative.
Occasionally the matter extends beyond the limits of a debate and quietly enters the field of action making some special appearances in the Islamic environment. This issue of freedom and equality of rights is occasionally extended to such lengths; rightly or wrongly, that it reaches sensational limits, sometimes to the extent of being dangerous and repulsive.
Naturally in these discussions or actions, the name of Islam is also dragged in and various interpretations of the Islamic viewpoint are made in this regard. Some say that Islam is totally opposed to any liberty or progress for women and declare that Islam regards woman as a lowly weakling totally captive in the hands of man, deprived of all rights and social privileges.
She, according to them, has no right to property or dignity, not even in the selection of her husband and determination of her own destiny. She is deprived of the blessing of letters and is required to stay, with her eyes and ears closed, in the corner of her house, detached from society, to obediently perform every whim of her husband. She is condemned to live the life of a miserable creature that has no wider role to play in the human society.
The life envisaged for her is the mean life of a helpless captive condemned to live and die without rights and without dignity. This is one type of thinking in regard to Islam's view of women's rights. There is another group of extremists who feel that they can stretch Islamic laws in accordance with their whims and fancies and make the sacred laws of Islam march in step with their own imagination at all cost.
They feel that Islam has granted all sorts of rights and freedom to woman so as to permit her to intervene in all social spheres along with men, working shoulder to shoulder with him. At times she is pictured as being present on the battlefront and, sometimes, supposed to decorate the seat of a deputy or a minister. She may roll up her sleeves and work to launch missiles, hold the command of an army or sign a treaty of peace.