Allah (SWT)
lifted from women the obligation of working to provide and
support themselves and their families. He made this obligation
particular for men alone. Allah (SWT) commanded men to be
responsible for the care of women during all stages of their
life.
While
she is a child, she is under the care of her father. This
responsibility is not lifted except by her marriage or
(his/her) death, nor does it cease after she reaches a certain
age as occurs according to the laws in many nations.
After
she marries, the responsibility falls on her husband so long as
she is under his care due to the contract of marriage.
If she
has neither father nor husband, the responsibility of her care
falls on her brother who assumes the role of her father when he
is not present; and if she has no brother then whoever is her
closest male relative from whom she would inherit and whom
would inherit from her (would assume the role of her father).
If she
has no male relative, the obligation falls upon the Muslim
community. The responsibility of her care is a communal
obligation and if none fulfills that duty, all have sinned.
Furthermore even if she is wealthy, Islam has dropped from her
the obligation of assuming care of anyone. With the presence of
her husband (or for that matter her parents), it is not
required that she spend upon her children unless she seeks to
do such as an act of righteousness, kindness and maintaining
ties of the womb. She is not obligated to work in order to take
care of herself or her children.
This
lifting of the obligation of working for the purpose of
providing for herself was in order to preserve her from being
degraded, as many jobs that are sought to gain livelihood
entail humiliation and hardship. Likewise this responsibility
was lifted to preserve her from temptation and mixing with men
and because this is from the specialization that Allah (SWT)
has made as a law for His creation.
If a
woman were charged to work in order to provide for her
livelihood in addition to her natural duties of pregnancy,
child birth, and breast feeding this would be an obligation
above what she could bear and would be an injustice to women.
Otherwise this work would be at the expense of her natural
duties of pregnancy, birth, breast feeding and raising her
children. This is exactly what has occurred with all nations
that have deviated from what Allah (SWT) has made a natural
state among His creation.
In
these non-Muslim societies, men are pleased with this situation
as this gains for them greater gratification with women and
drops from them a considerable amount of the responsibility of
working and supporting their women and children. This is
obviously a selfish attitude on the part of men. Sadly many
women are pleased with this situation of combining working
outside the house to support themselves, and their natural
duties of pregnancy, child birth, and breast feeding.
We may
ask, what is the economic, moral, or social value for women
working in factories, armies, cleaning streets and airports,
repairing trains, cleaning public restrooms, as security
guards, driving taxis, and all other occupations?
This is
all from the wretched life that Allah (SWT) has warned whoever
distances himself from His way. Allah (SWT) has said:
"But
whosoever turns away from My Reminder (neither believes in this
Quran nor acts on its orders, etc.) verily, for him is a life
of hardship, and We shall raise him up blind on the Day of
Resurrection. He shall say: "O my Lord! Why have you raised me
up blind, while I had sight (before)." (Allah) will say:
"Like this, Our Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, leassons,
signs, revelations, etc.) came unto you, but you disregarded
them (i.e. you left them, did not think deeply in them, and you
turned away from them), and so this Day, you will be neglected
(in the Hellfire, away from Allah's Mercy)." (Ta-Ha
20:124-126)
Although Islam has not obligated a woman to work to seek a
living and has appointed someone to be responsible for her
during all the stages of her life, Islamic law has given her
the right (so long as she has reached the age of maturity and
is competent) to own and dispose of her properties without any
guardianship over her (whether that be her father, husband or
anyone else).
She has
the right to own all forms of property, to buy and sell, give
gifts and charity, and all forms of expenditure (without
wastefulness) so long as it is her wealth and her acquisition.
However if she if incompetent, Islam does not distinguish
between men and women in declaring someone legally incompetent.
Islam gave women the right to own and dispose property, so that
by this she could be a full legal personality possessing the
full right to administer her wealth. Islam provides her with
specific sources to acquire wealth, like the dower,
inheritance, gifts, and all other lawful means for acquiring
wealth.
As a
woman in Islamic law is not required to maintain herself or
others, she was given half of what men receive in inheritance
in view of the fact that she is not responsible for the
maintenance of anyone and to replenish men's wealth who alone
are responsible to work and provide maintenance.
In this
matter, Islam opposed the un-Islamic practice that forbade
women to inherit under any circumstance because they did not
maintain anyone or fight against any enemy. Allah (SWT) sent
down in His Glorious Quran: "There is a share for men and a
share for women from what is left by parents and those nearest
related, whether, the property be small or large - a legal
share." (An-Nisa 4:7)
Without
doubt those who claim that Islam is unjust towards women
because it gives them half of what men receive in inheritance
are ignorant of the distribution of rights and obligation in
the pure, just Islamic law. Allah (SWT) says: "Do they then
seek the judgement of (the Days of) Ignorance? And who is
better in judgement than Allah for a people who have firm
Faith." (Al-Ma'idah 5:50)