لطفا منتظر باشید ...
Women in
a Qur'anic Society
Lois Lamya ' al-F'aruqi Vol I
The topic of this paper was chosen out of the conviction that humanity
is suffering today from a number of serious social problems related to
women and to the interrelations of the two sexes in society. Although these
problems may be more pronounced, disturbing, more debilitating for some
of us than for others, there are probably few if any regions of the contemporary
world whose citizens have not felt in some way the repercussions of these
problems. Therefore, there is a pressing need for exploring possible solutions.
The problem of women is linked, for the present study, with the Qur'an,
and what I have called the "Qur'anic society," out of strong conviction
that the Qur'an offers the most viable suggestions for contemporary social
reform which can be found in any model or any literature. Many of you may
be puzzled by the title of this paper-"Women in a Qur'anic Society." You
may ask yourselves, "Why didn't she say "Women in Muslim Society" or even
"Women in an Islamic Society?" Let me explain why the expressions "Muslim"
and "Islamic" were rejected for this paper, and how the use of the rather
unusual appellation, "Qur'anic society," is justified.
There are at least three reasons for my choice of that title. The first
of these derives from the concern that many beliefs and practices have
been labelled "Muslim" or "Islamic" without warranting those names. There
are approximately 40 nations of the world which claim to have a Muslim
majority population and therefore to be exemplary of "Muslim" or "Islamic"
societies. This of course results in a great deal of confusion as the question
is asked: Which of these regions represents most faithfully the true "Islamic"
society? Among Muslims that question is most frequently answered by the
claim that their own national or regional society is the truest to the
intentions of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
Non-Muslims, on the other hand, and especially the Western anthropologists
who travel around the world to investigate the customs and mores of its
peoples, tend to treat each variation within the Muslim World as equally
valid. This results from their adherence to what I call the "zoo theory"
of knowledge. Adherents of that theory regard all Muslims-and of course
similar treatment of other non-Western people is discernible-as different
species within the human zoo. The "zoo theory" protagonists go to the field,
record and snap pictures of every strange or exotic practice they see and
hear; and for them, this is Islam or Islamic practice. A trip to another
part of the Muslim World with the ubiquitous devices for recording and
photographing generates a different body of materials documenting superficial
variations in customs. But this, too, is Islam or Islamic practice for
the "zoo theory" investigator or ethnographer. There is far too little
effort spent on understanding Islam as a whole. As a result, the basic
premise of scepticism and relativism is confirmed in the mind of the researcher;
and he/she returns home convinced that there is not one Islam, but scores
of Islams existent in the world. In like fashion, the researcher reports
that there are many definitions or descriptions of the status and role
of women in Muslim society. Each one of the resultant definitions or descriptions
is dubbed as "Muslim" or "Islamic" even if we as Muslims may hold some
of these practices to be distortions or perversions of our principles and
beliefs by the misguided or uninformed among us.
It was partly to avoid confusion with these variant descriptions and
misunderstandings that I have chosen the appellation "Qur'anic" for the
present discussion. In this way, I hope to move beyond the limited relevance
and particularism of a "zoo theory" of investigation to a presentation
which avoids such fragmentation and is ideologically in conformance with
the true prescriptions of Islam. In regard to matters so determining of
our destiny and very existence, we can never be satisfied with mere reportage
about certain human animals in the "zoo" who are statistically "Muslim"
or whose customs have been labelled as "Islamic." Those designations have
sometimes been misapplied. "Qur'anic," on the other hand, is a term which
is unequivocal. It points clearly to the topic of this paper.
Secondly, "Qur'anic society" was judged to be the most suitable title
for it orients us towards discovering those core principles in the Qur'an
itself which form the underlying framework for our societies throughout
the Muslim World. It is the society based on Qur'anic principles which
is the goal of all of us, even though we may unknowingly deviate from time
to time from those principles. It is the conformance to a Qur'an-based
society for which we must all work if the Muslim peoples are to enjoy a
felicitous future. It is not an Indonesian, Pakistani, Saudi Arabian, Egyptian
or Nigerian version of that society that we should regard as indisputable
norm, but one firmly based on the teachings of the Holy Qur'an. Only therein
can we find a proper definition of woman's role in society. Since it is
these teachings which are the subject of my paper, "Women in a Qur'anic
Society" seemed the most proper title.
Thirdly, I wish by this choice of title to emphasize that we should
regard the Holy Qur'an as our guide in all aspects of our lives. It is
not only the prime source of knowledge about religious beliefs, obligations,
and practices, it is also the guide, whether specific or implied, for every
aspect of Islamic civilization. In the centuries of past glory, it determined
the political, economic, social and artistic creativity of the Muslim peoples.
If we are to succeed as members of an Islamic society in the coming decades
and centuries, it must again determine our thinking and our actions in
an all-inclusive way. Din is not limited to the Five Pillars of the shahadah,
salat, siyam, zakat, and the hajj. Din in fact defies simple equation with
the English term "religion," for the former's significance penetrates into
every nook and cranny of human existence and behaviour. Surely it should
be our goal to relate every action to our Din. We can only do this by allowing
the Holy Qur'an to in-form and re-form every realm of our lives.
As a step in this direction, let us consider what the Qur'an has to
teach us about the society towards which we should be striving, and ponder
its effect on the position of women. What are the basic characteristics
of a Qur'anic society which particularly affect women?
Five characteristics - which seem basic, crucial and incontrovertible
- of Qur'anic society will be considered. Although they are presented in
a series, each one rests upon the others and affects them. The interdependence
of these five characteristics makes it difficult to speak of any one of
them without mention of the others, and of course they do not and cannot
exist in isolation from one another.
1. EQUAL STATUS AND WORTH OF THE SEXES
The first of these characteristics of a Qur'anic society which affect
women is that both sexes are held to be equal in status and worth. In other
words, the Qur'an teaches us that women and men are all creatures of Allah,
existing on a level of equal worth and value, although their equal importance
does not substantiate a claim for their equivalence or perfect identity.
This equality of male and female is documentable in the Qur'an in passages
pertaining to at least four aspects of human existence and interaction.
A. Religious Matters
The first of these Qur'anic confirmations of male-female equality are
contained in statements pertaining to such religious matters as the origins
of humanity, or to religious obligations and rewards.
1. Origins of Humanity. The Qur'an is devoid of the stories found in
the Old Testament which denigrate women. There is no hint that the first
woman created by God is a creature of lesser worth than the first male,
or that she is a kind of appendage formed from one of his ribs. Instead,
male and female are created, we read, min nafsin wahidatin ("from a single
soul or self") to complement each other (Qur'an 4:1; 7:189). Whereas the
Torah or Old Testament treats Eve as the temptress of the Garden of Eden,
who aids Satan in enticing Adam to disobey God, the Qur'an deals with the
pair with perfect equity. Both are equally guilty of sinning; both are
equally punished by God with expulsion from the Garden; and both are equally
forgiven when they repent.
2. Religious Obligations and Rewards. The Qur'an is not less clear in
commanding equality for men and women in its directives regarding religious
obligations and rewards. We read:
Lo! Men who surrender unto Allah, and women who surrender, and men
who believe and women who believe, and men who obey and women who obey,
and men who speak the truth and women who speak the truth, and men who
persevere (in righteousness) and women who persevere and men who are humble
and women who are humble, and men who give aims and women who give alms,
and men who fast and women who fast, and men who guard their modesty and
women who guard (their modesty), and men who remember Allah and women who
remember-Allah hath prepared for them forgiveness and a vast reward. (33:35)
B. Ethical Obligations and Rewards
Secondly, the Qur'an reveals to mankind the desired equality of the
two sexes by establishing the same ethical obligations and rewards for
women and men.
And who so does good works, whether male or female, and he (or she)
is a believer, such will enter Paradise and they will not be wronged the
dint in a date-stone. (4:124)
Whosoever does right, whether male or female, and is a believer,
him verily We shall quicken with good life, and We shall pay them a recompense
according to the best of what they do. (16:97)
If Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala had not deemed the two sexes of equal status
and value, such explicit statements of their equality in ethical obligations
and rewards would not have been made in the Qur'an.
C. Education
Although the more specific commands for the equal rights of women and
men to pursue education can be found in the hadith literature, the Qur'an
does at least imply the pursuit of knowledge by all Muslims regardless
of their sex. For example, it repeatedly commands all readers to read,
to recite, to think, to contemplate, as well as to learn from the signs
(ayat) of Allah in nature. In fact, the very first revelation to Prophet
Muhammad (S) was concerned with knowledge. In a Qur'anic society, there
can never be a restriction of this knowledge to one sex. It is the duty
of every Muslim and every Muslimah to pursue knowledge throughout life,
even if it should lead the seeker to China, we are told. The Prophet (S)
even commanded that the slave girls be educated, and he asked Shifa' bint
'Abdillah to instruct his wife Hafsah bint 'Umar. Lectures of the Prophet
(S) were attended by audiences of both men and women; and by the time of
the Prophet's death, there were many women scholars.
D. Legal Rights
A fourth evidence in the Qur'an for the equality of men and women is
its specification of legal rights which are guaranteed for every individual
from cradle to grave. Unlike the situation in the West, where until the
last century it was impossible for a married woman to hold property on
her own, to contract with other persons, or to dispose of her property
without the consent of her husband, the Qur'an proclaims the right of every
woman to buy and sell, to contract and to earn, and to hold and manage
her own money and property. In addition to these rights, the Qur'an grants
woman a share in the inheritance of the family (4:7-11), warns against
depriving her of that inheritance (4:19), specifies that the dower (mahr)
of her marriage should belong to her alone and never be taken by her husband
(2:229; 4:19-21,25) unless offered by the woman as a free gift (4:44).
As with any privilege, these rights of women carry corresponding responsibilities.
If she commits a civil offence, the Qur'an tells us, woman's penalty is
no less or no more than that of a man in a similar case (5:41; 24:2). If
she is wronged or harmed, she is entitled to compensation just like a man.
It is clear that the Qur'an not only recommends, but is even insistent
upon, the equality of women and men as an essential characteristic of a
Qur'anic society. The claim of the non-Muslim critics that Islam denigrates
women is denied emphatically by the Qur'an. Similarly denied are the arguments
of certain Muslims that women are religiously, intellectually and ethically
inferior to men, as Jewish and Christian literatures had earlier maintained.
2. A DUAL SEX RATHER THAN UNISEX SOCIETY
Now let us consider the second basic characteristic of the Qur'anic
society which affects the position of women. This is found in the directives
for a dual sex rather than a unisex society. While maintaining the validity
of the equal worth of men and women, the Qur'an does not judge this equality
to mean equivalence or identity of the sexes.
Probably all of you are familiar with the contemporary move toward unisex
clothes and shoes, unisex jewellery and hair styles, unisex actions and
entertainments. In fact, it is often difficult in America to decide whether
one is looking at a boy or a girl. This results from the current notion
in Western society that there is little if any difference between the two
sexes in physical, intellectual and emotional endowment; and that, therefore,
there should be no difference in their functions and roles in society.
The dress and the actions are but superficial evidence of this deeper conviction.
Accompanied by a downgrading of the qualities and roles traditionally associated
with the female sex, this current idea has generated a unisex society in
which only the male role is respected and pursued. Although meant to bring
a larger measure of equality for women, the idea that men and women are
not only equal, but equivalent and identical, has actually pushed women
into imitating men and even despising their womanhood. Thus it is generating
a new type of male chauvinism. Tremendous social pressures have resulted
in stripping women of their role-responsibilities formerly performed by
them, and they are forced to live a life devoid of personality and individuality.
The society based on the Qur'an is, in contrast, a dual-sex society
in which both sexes are assigned their special responsibilities. This assures
the healthy functioning of the society for the benefit of all its members.
This division of labour imposes on men more economic responsibilities (2:233,
240-241; 4:34), while women are expected to play their role in childbearing
and rearing (2:233; 7:189). The Qur'an, recognising the importance of this
complementary sexual assignment of roles and responsibilities, alleviates
the greater economic demands made on male members of the population by
allotting them a larger share than women in inheritance. At the same time
it grants women the right to maintenance in exchange for her contribution
to the physical and emotional well being of the family and to the care
she provides in the rearing of children. The unisex ideology generates
a competitive relationship between the sexes which we find in America and
which is disastrous for all members of society: the young; the old; the
children; the parents; the single and the married; the male and the female.
The dual-sex society, by contrast, is a more natural answer to the question
of sexual relationships, a plan encouraging co-operation rather than competition
between the sexes. It is a plan which has been found suitable in countless
societies through history. Only in very recent times did the idea of sexual
non-differentiation or identity achieve prominence, and then primarily
in the Western society. Even the medical evidence for mental or emotional
difference between the sexes is suppressed in Western research, for it
threatens the prevailing trends of thought. How long this socially disastrous
movement will continue before it is rejected as bankrupt is not known.
But certainly we as Muslims should be aware of its deficiencies and dangerous
consequences, and make our societies and young people aware of the disaster
caused by it.
Protagonists of the unisex society have condemned the dual-sex human
organisation as dangerous for the well-being of women. If dual sex means
that one sex is superior to the other, such a situation could have arisen.
But in the true Qur'anic society, toward which we all aspire to move, this
is not possible. As we have seen above, the Qur'an advocates eloquently
the equal status of women and men at the same time as it recognises their
generally relevant differences of nature and function. Thus while acknowledging
the religious, ethical, intellectual and legal equality of males and females,
the Qur'an never regards the two sexes as identical or equivalent. It justifies
this stand in its assignment of variant responsibilities and its provisions
regarding inheritance and maintenance which match those responsibilities.
3. INTERDEPENDENCE OF THE MEMBERS OF SOCIETY
The third characteristic of the Qur'anic society which is strongly assertive
of women's position is the insistence on the interdependence of the members
of society. Contrary to the contemporary trend to emphasize the rights
of the individual at the expense of society, we find the Qur'an repeatedly
emphasising the interdependence of the male and female as well as of all
members of society. The wife and husband, for example, are described as
"garments" (libas) of each other (2:187), and as mates living and dwelling
in tranquillity (33:21;see also 7:189). Men and women are directed to complement
each other, not to compete with each other. They are the protectors of
each other (9:71). Each is called upon to fulfil certain assigned responsibilities
for the good of both and the larger group.
In order to insure this interdependence which is so necessary for the
physical and psychological well-being of both men and women, Allah, in
the Holy Qur'an, stipulated the reciprocal or mutual duties and obligations
of the various members of the family-men and women, fathers and mothers,
children and elders, and relatives of all degrees (17:23-26; 4:1, 7-12;
2:177; 8:41; 16:90; etc.). The care of and concern for other members of
society is equally a duty of the Muslim.
It is not righteousness that you turn faces to the east and the west;
but righteous is he who believes in Allah and the Last Day and the angels
and the Scripture and the prophets; and gives his wealth, for love of Him,
to kinsfolk and to orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and to those
who ask, and to set slaves free ... (2:177)
The Qur'an thereby instils in the Muslim a sense of a place within,
and responsibility to society. This is not regarded or experienced as a
repression of the individual. Instead the Muslim is constantly encouraged
in this interdependence by experiencing the benefits it brings. The economic,
social and psychological advantages of such close relationships and concerns
within the social group provide more than ample compensation for the individual
to sublimate his/her individualistic aspirations. The anonymity and lack
of social interdependence among its members in contemporary Western society
have caused many serious problems. Loneliness, inadequate care of the aged,
the generation gap, high suicide rates, and juvenile crime can all be traced
back to the ever-worsening breakdown of social interdependence and the
denial of the human necessity for mutual care.
4. THE EXTENDED FAMILY
Closely intertwined with interdependence is the fourth basic characteristic
of the Qur'anic society which serves to improve male-female relations.
This is the institution of the extended family. In addition to the members
of the nucleus that constitutes the family- mother, father and their children-the
Islamic family or 'a'ilah also includes grandparents, uncles, aunts and
their offspring. Normally Muslim families are "residentially extended;"
that is, their members live communally with three or more generations of
relatives in a single building or compound. Even where this residential
version of the extended family is not possible or adhered to, family connections
reaching far beyond the nuclear unit are evident in strong psychological,
social, economic and even political ties.
The extended family solidarity is prescribed and strengthened by the
Holy Qur'an, where we find repeated references to the rights of kin (17:23-26;
4:7-9; 8:41; 24:22; etc.) and the importance of treating them with kindness
(2 :83; 16: 90; etc.). Inheritance portions, for not only the nuclear family
members but those of the extended family as well, are specifically prescribed
(2:180-182; 4:33,176). Dire punishment is threatened for those who ignore
these measures for intra-family support (4:7-12). The extended family of
Islamic culture is thus not merely a product of social conditions, it is
an institution anchored in the word of God Himself and buttressed by Qur'anic
advice and rules.
The extended family is an institution which can provide tremendous benefits
for both women and men when it exists in conjunction with the other basic
characteristics of a Qur'anic society.
1) It guards against the selfishness or eccentricity of any one party,
since the individual faces not a single spouse but a whole family of peers,
elders and children if he or she goes "off course."
2) It allows for careers for women without detriment to themselves,
spouse, children or elders, since there are always other adults in the
home to assist the working wife or mother. Career women in an Islamic extended
family suffer neither the physical and emotional burden of overwork nor
the feeling of guilt for neglecting maternal, marital or familial responsibilities.
In fact, without this sort of family institution, it is impossible to imagine
any feasible solution for the problems now facing Western society. As more
and more women enter the work force, the nuclear family is unable to sustain
the needs of its members. The difficulties in the single parent family
are of course magnified a hundred-fold. The strain that such family systems
put on the working woman are devastating to the individual as well as to
the marriage and family bonds. The dissolutions of families which result
and psychological and social ramifications of the high divorce rate in
America and other Western nations are the growing concern of doctors, lawyers,
psychiatrists and sociologists as well as, of course, of the unfortunate
victims of these phenomena.
3) The extended family insures the adequate socialisation of children.
A mother's or father's advice in a nuclear or single parent family may
be difficult to be followed by an unruly or obstinate child, but the combined
pressure of the members of a strong extended family is an effective counter
to non-conformance or disobedience.
4) The extended family provides for psychological and social diversity
in companionship for adults as well as children. Since there is less dependence
on the one-to-one relationship, there are less emotional demands on each
member of the family. A disagreement or clash between adults, children
or between persons of different generations does not reach the damaging
proportions it may in the nuclear family. There are always alternative
family members on hand to ease the pain and provide therapeutic counselling
and companionship. Even the marriage bond is not put to the enormous strains
that it suffers in the nuclear family.
5) The extended family or a'ilah guards against the development of the
generation gap. This social problem arises when each age group becomes
so isolated from other generations that it finds difficulty in achieving
successful and meaningful interaction with people of a different age level.
In the 'a'ilah, three or more generations live together and constantly
interact with one another. This situation provides beneficial learning
and socialisation experiences for children and the necessary sense of security
and usefulness for the older generation.
6) The 'a'ilah eliminates the problems of loneliness which plague the
isolated and anonymous dwellers in the urban centres of many contemporary
societies. The unmarried woman, or the divorced or widowed woman in an
Islamic extended family will never suffer the problems that face such women
in contemporary American society, for example. In a Qur'anic society, there
is no need for the commercial computer dating establishments, the singles'
clubs and bars, or the isolation of senior citizens in retirement villages
or old people's homes.
The social and psychological needs of the individual, whether male or
female, are cared for in the extended family.
As marriage-bonds grow more and more fragile in Western society, women
tend to be the chief victims of the change. They are less able to re-establish
marriage or other bonds than men, and they are more psychologically damaged
by these losses.
7) The extended family provides a more feasible and humane sharing of
the care of the elderly. In the nuclear family unit, the care of the elderly
parent or parents of one spouse may fall entirely on one individual, usually
the mother of the family. She must provide for the extra physical care
as well as for the emotional well-being of the elderly. This is a tremendous
burden on a woman who probably has children's and husband's needs to attend
to as well. If she is a working mother, the burden can be unmanageable;
and the elderly are put in an old peoples' home to await death. With the
shared responsibilities and duties that the extended family provides, the
burden is significantly lightened .
5. A PATRIARCHAL FAMILY ORGANIZATION
The fifth basic characteristic of a Qur'anic society is that it is patriarchal.
Contrary to the goals of the Women's Liberation movement, the Qur'an calls
for a society which assigns the ultimate leadership and decision-making
role in the family to men.
Any society is made up of smaller organisations of humans, governments,
political parties, religious organisations, commercial enterprises, extended
families, etc. Each of these organs needs to be stable, cohesive and manoeuvrable
if it is to be beneficial to its constituents. In order to acquire these
characteristics, the organisation must assign ultimate responsibility to
some individual or some group within its ranks.
Therefore, the citizens may vote, parliament may legislate, and the
police may enforce the law; but it is ultimately the head of state that
carries the burden of making the crucial decisions for the nation, as well
as the onus or approval, i.e., the responsibility, for those decisions.
In like manner, the work of a factory is conducted by many individuals,
but all of them are not equally capable of making the ultimate decisions
for the company. Neither is each employee equally charged with the responsibility
for the organisation's success or failure.
The family also has need for someone to carry the burden of ultimate
responsibility for the whole. The Qur'an has assigned this role to the
most senior male member of the family. It is this patriarchal assignment
of power and responsibility which is meant by such expressions as "wa lil
rijali 'alathinna darajatun " (2.228; see supra, pp. 40, 41), and "al-rijalu
qawwdmuna 'ala al-nisa'i.... " (4:34). Contrary to misrepresentations by
the Qur'an's enemies, these passages do not mean the subjugation of women
to men in a gender-based dictatorship. Such an interpretation shows a blatant
disregard of the Qur'an's repeated calls for the equality of the sexes
and for its command to show respect and kindness to women. The passages
in question point instead to a means for avoiding internal dissension and
indecision for the benefit of all family members. They advocate for a patriarchal
society.
In addition, we would draw attention to the use of the word qawwamun
in the statement, al-rijalu qawwamuna 'ala al-nisa'i ... (4:34). Certainly
the verb qawwama, from which the verbal noun qawwamun is derived, does
not imply despotic overlordship. Instead, the term refers to the one who
stands up (from qama, "to stand") for another in a protective and benevolent
way. If an autocratic or domineering role for the male half of the society
had been meant, there are many other verbal derivatives which would have
been more applicable, for example, musaytirun and muhayminun Other instances
of the Qur'anic use of the term qawwamun confirm this supportive rather
than authoritarian or tyrannical meaning of the term (see 4:127-135; 5:9).
Ascription of a different significance to the passage in question is, therefore,
ideologically inconsistent as well as linguistically unsupportable.
Why should the Qur'an specify male leadership for the 'a'ilah, i.e.,
a patriarchal family, rather than a matriarchal organisation? The Qur'an
answers that question in the following manner:
Men are in charge of women, because Allah has made the one of them to
excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support
of women)....(4:34)
Physical and economic contributions and responsibility are, therefore,
the Qur'anic reasons for proposing a patriarchal rather than a matriarchal
society.
Some Westerners, confronted by the problems of contemporary society,
are beginning to ask such questions as: Where can we turn for help? What
can we do in the face of the present social disintegration? It is a time
of despair and searching as Western society reels under the blows of steadily
increasing personal disorientation and societal dissolution.
What can we do as Muslims to help? First of all, we must build true
Qur'anic societies throughout the Muslim World. Without these, we cannot
establish equitable and viable accommodation for the interaction of men
and women in society. In addition, we cannot hope to establish in the coming
generations a respect for and loyalty to our societies and their accompanying
institutions if pseudo-Islamic societies are the only ones we are capable
of producing and maintaining. Pseudo-Islamic measures or institutions are
actually anti-Islamic; for they posit a model which cannot be respected,
and attach to it the label of "islam" in the minds of many Muslims as well
as non-Muslim. this results in a wrongful transfer of the onus of the faulty
institution to the religion of Islam itself.
We must educate our fellow Muslims-and especially the youth for they
are the leaders of tomorrow-with regard to the importance and viability
of their (Qur'anic traditions concerning women, the family and society.
Despite the failure of alternative contemporary Western social patterns,
some Muslims seem to hanker after the Western brand of sexual equality,
its unisex ideas and modes of behaviour, overemphasis on individualism
or personal freedom from responsibility, and the nuclear family system.
We must awake to the dangers which accompany such social ideas and practices.
If the consequences of these ideas and practices are not pointed out and
combated, we are doomed to an unfortunate future as such social experiments
are to fail ultimately.
But even this is not an adequate response for us as Muslims. As vicegerents
of Allah on earth (2:30), it is our duty to be concerned about the whole
world and about all of God's creatures. In the light of the command to
propagate the will of Allah in every corner of the earth, we should not
neglect to suggest or offer the good that we know to others. It is time
for Islam and the Muslims to present their solutions of the problems of
contemporary society, not only to the Muslim audience, but to the non-Muslim
audience as well. This can and should be done through the living example
of true Qur'anic societies in which the problems of men and women are resolved.
It should also be done through informative writings and discussions by
our scholars which could be made available to Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
There is no better way to serve the will of Allah and the whole of mankind.
There is no better da'wah than such offering of a helping hand to the struggling
victims of contemporary society.
