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Surah al Imran 45

[And mention] when the angels said, "O Maryam, indeed Allah gives you glad
tidings of a word from Him, whose name will be the Messiah, Isa, the son of
Maryam well known in this world and the Hereafter and among those
brought near(to Allah).
Some people today assume that women in Islam are oppressed and
have no rights. However, evidence from numerous sources falsify these
baseless accusations and show that women actually hold a high and
important position in Islam.
Before the advent of Islam, mankind was at its worst. Their corrupted
culture and traditions caused people to go astray and act in any manner they
pleased. During those dark days, women held no value. The Jews of that time
would state that women are the curse of Allah because of the incident
related to Hawa (A.S.) and Adam (A.S.).The Jews claimed that had Hawa

(A.S.) rejected the whisperings of Shaitan, then Adam (A.S.) would not have
been punished and sent down to Earth. However, this statement is false
because fate had been decreed this way, that they were both to be sent
down to earth for an appointed time and that is what had to take place. It
was during the days of ignorance where people in Arabia began a tradition
filled with cruelty. Some Arabs would take their newborn daughters and bury
them alive. They felt that daughters were of no benefit to them, and the best
way to get rid of them was to bury them before they even have a chance to
live. Allah (swt) mentions in the Quran
(Sura takwir Ayaat 8 and 9)

And when the girl child who was buried alive is asked for what sin was
she killed.
From this, one can see that the people during these dark days lacked
knowledge and to get rid of these traditions, Allah sent our Rasul (S).
Islam shows the importance and significance of women in numerous
ways. One example is that when Rasul (S) received his first revelation and
felt terrified and was in shock. He didnt know where to turn to, and so the
person he found ready to console him was none other than his wife, Khadija
(ZR.A.). He could have gone to his close friend, Abu Bakr (R.A.) but, instead
he went to seek comfort from his beloved partner. Not only did he first turn
to her for her comfort but she was also the first one to know about Islam,
which resulted in her being the first to accept Islam.

Islam came to abolish heinous crimes like the burying of the daughters.
Allah had put a stop to this cruel act and instead rewarded those parents
who would raise their daughters with proper Akhlaq and then later marry
them off to a righteous man. Nabi (S) had said, Whoever has a daughter
and teaches her good akhlaq and marries her off to a pious man, then she
will be the protection for him from the hell fire. In another narration it has
been said, Whoever has two daughters and he teaches her good akhlaq and
marries her off to a pious man then Jannat will become wajib on him. This
proves to the parent that by having daughters and educating them in the
proper manner and marrying them into a righteous family is a means of
making a successful and complete society.
Women in Islam always have been active and played a crucial role in
building the foundation of this religion. They would try their best to help
however they can. During the campaigns of the Muslims, the Sahabiyat
would help the wounded by patching up the wounds. They would rise to help
whenever they were needed. Another way they helped build the foundation
of Islam is by educating the other Muslims. One famous Sahabiyat narrated
about 2,110 Ahadith. This was Aisha (R.A.) Aisha (R.A.), wife of our dear
Rasul (S) has taught many Sahabas about Islam, and it is mentioned that the
knowledge of Aisha (R.A.) is so vast that no Sahabas knowledge can be
compared to hers. Aisha (R.A.) also holds the specialty to have ayahs of the
Quran revealed because of incidents concerning her. It was because of her
that the ayah of Tayammum was revealed. Due to her, many travelers are

able to do travel without the stress of not having water. Another specialty of
Hadhrat Aisha (R.A.) was that she had memorized the Holy Quran. There
were many other Sahabiyyyat who had the privilege to memorize this Holy
Book such as Sayyida Hafsa, Umm Salama, and Umm Waraqah.
Educated women were not seen only during the time of our Rasul (S)
but were also seen in future generations. The daughters of Imaam Ahmad
bin Hanbal, each had written great books by their own hands, one of the
versions of Bukhari, Nuskha-e Kareemiyyah, is named after his daughter. In
addition, amongst the teachers of Imam Shafiee many of them were found to be women and one
of them was Muhadditha Nafeesa who was famous in Cairo, Egypt The mother of Imam
Shafiee (r.h) played a major role in his education and upbringing, bearing the absence of his
father to provide all his necessities. He became an orphan at a very young age, and it was
through her continuous encouragement, never ending strong will, and sacrifice he attained much
in his youth.
Islam not only gave women education but also produced women
educators, and there has been no difference made between a female
narrator, i.e Raawiya in the chains of AHaadeeth, and in taking Fataawa from
the ummahaatul mumineen.
There have been incidents where some sahaba accepted Islam
through the women of their household. The famous story of Hazrat Umar
(R.A.)s acceptance of Islam was through his sister, Fatima (R.A.). Another
incident is when Ikrahamah (ra) accepted Islam because of his wife, Umme
Hakim. Also, Talha (R.A.) accepted Islam through his wife, Umme Saleem.

Another example of a great woman is of Hazrat khansa (ra). In the

battle of qadsiya Hazrat, khansa advised her four sons to go in the path of
Allah and fight till the end. Despite the love she had for her children, she
sent them to be sacrificed in the path of Allah, knowing that they might not
return. So all four sons fought until they all were martyred. When this news
reached Hazrat khansa, she was patient and had hope for their reward.
Islam is the first religion that gave women rights. Islam gave women
the right to inherit their father after they were considered an inherited object
in the pre Islamic era. Islam allowed the women to see the light and escape
the darkness. Although men and women have different roles, the reward
given to each is the same. Allah (SWT) mentions in the Quran in Surah Ahzab
Ayat 35:

Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and
believing women, the obedient men and obedient women, the truthful men
and truthful women, the patient men and patient women, the humble men

and humble women, the charitable men and charitable women, the fasting
men and fasting women, the men who guard their private parts and the
women who do so, and the men who remember Allah often and the women
who do so - for them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward.
After mentioning the respect Islam gives to women, now we must help them understand
their responsibility and remind them of their important role in the Ummah by teaching their
children proper Deen and helping their husbands become better Muslims and so on. Otherwise,
this will just be a talk that speaks about how good women are. Derive the point home and make
them take something back with them that will inspire them to do more for their Deen.
May Allah open to us the doors of his mercy and unfold for us the treasure of his
knowledge by his mercy! May He increase our knowledge and guide us towards the right path.
And may we be like those Sahabiyat who dedicated their life in the path of Allah to become role
models for the future generations. Ameen!