WOMEN SCHOLARS AND SAINTS OF EARLY ISLAM

DAY 9

WOMEN SCHOLARS AND SAINTS OF EARLY ISLAM 

If one were to go by the conservative narratives of Islam, it can be safely assumed that Muslim women are the most victimized. And that has been the biggest disservice to Islam by those who claim to represent 'true' Islam. When we dig into history with a feminist lens we find that we have a lot to feel happy and proud about. Given below are a few short narratives of women in early Islam who till date inspire us and give us hope that an alternative gender just narrative is possible. 

Sayida Nafisa 

She was a descendent of Prophet Mohammed, a scholar and teacher of Islam. She was the teacher of Imam Shafi who is the founder of the Shafi school of jurisprudence. She read his funeral prayers as willed by him. She had studied the Quran and studied Islamic jurisprudence in depth. She was extremely intelligent. She was an ascetic and went without food for days. Many miracles are attributed to her. Among the many titles given to her, some notable ones are ‘Rare Woman of Knowledge’, ‘Leading Woman in Deriving Fatwas and Rulings’

Fatima Fudayliya 

She was an 18th century scholar of hadis and a jurist. She was also an expert of usul, fiqh and tafseer. Many muhaddits (narrators of hadis) received certificates from her. She was also a calligrapher and founded a library in Mecca.

Fakhrunnisa Shuhda Abu Nasr 

She was a 10th century scholar, muhaddith (transmitter/interpreter of hadis) and calligrapher. She got the title of Shuhda Bagdadiya (Writer of Baghdad). She was so thorough that it was considered a mark of pride if one was allowed a session with her. She gave speeches on history, linguistics and literature. She was known for her erudition, calligraphic art and oratory. It is believed that thousands of students, dignitaries and scholars attended her funeral.

Al-Shifa bint Abdullah

Another women scholar in 7th century!! She was a companion of Prophet Mohammed. She had the reputation of being a wise woman. She was called Shifa because she practised folk medicine. At that time barely 20 people knew to read and write and she was one of the first woman to acquire that skill. She taught calligraphy. Prophet Mohammed and Caliph Umar are known to have consulted her on business matters and market place.

Sughra Al Darda

She was a 7th century jurist and scholar in Damascus. She held classes and taught Islamic law and theology. She said, sitting and debating with scholars is the best way to worship Allah! She issued a fatwa allowing women to pray in the same position as men. In Bahrain, a centre for teaching quran, hifz and tajwid for women is in her name.

Bibi Hajra

As the world celebrates Eid uz Zuha let us remember Bibi Hajra. She was left in a deadly desert alone with an infant Ismail by her husband Ibrahim, on the command of God. She did not give up, wail or cry. She ran from one mountain to the other to call out to traveling caravans for water. This to and fro movement, safa-marwa, is what the world does today as they perform Haj. She was visited by angel Jibrael, leader of all angels, to help her discover zamzam. She allowed a tribe to benefit from the water and that is how the city of Mecca came to being.

Hazrat Hajra, strong, determined, positive woman, never to give up, who is responsible for zamzam, eternal water spring in a desert, for paving the way in setting up city of Mecca, visited by millions every year and most important for being the initiator of a civilisation!

Hazrat Aisha 

For us Muslim feminists Hazrat Aisha is the ideal; intelligent and brave!! She held close to 1200 hadis over which she was consulted by even the early male caliphs. Prophet Mohammed is known to have said, take half the knowledge about Islam from Aisha. She played a significant political role after his death. She even led a war. She accompanied the Prophet in military expeditions and engaged in pre-war negotiations!

Umme Salma 

We inherit our legacy to ask questions from Umme Salma, wife of Prophet Mohammed. Thanks to her, we have a verse in Quran which unequivocally establishes the equality of women and men. She asked the Prophet one day, why are men addressed in the Quran and not women? The revealed verse is 33:35, ‘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.

Hazrat Khadija 

All those who want women to stay at home, bear and rear children, stay away from education and livelihood have a lot of explanation to do! How do they want us to view Hazrat Khadija? She, wife of Prophet Mohammed, was a successful businesswomen, first Muslim and first to believe in the prophethood of Mohammed, proposed marriage to him when he was 25 and she 40. She spent from her immense wealth to feed and support converts to Islam; very much a public figure.

Sukayna 

Why do we know so less about Sukayna-daughter of Rabab and Hussain, granddaughter of Fatima and Ali and great granddaughter of Prophet Mohammed? She was known for her beauty-an explosive mixture of physical attractiveness, critical intelligence and caustic wit. She made her husband sign a contract to remain monogamous and when he violated it, she took him to court. She stipulated in her marriage contract the right to disobey her husband.

Views of Fatima Mernissi 

‘Every women who came to Medina when the Prophet was the political leader of the Muslims could gain access to full citizenship, status of Sahabi, Companion of the Prophet. Muslims can take pride that in their language they have the feminine of that word, Sahabiyat, women who enjoyed the right to enter into councils of the Muslim umma, to speak freely to its Prophet-leader, to dispute with the men, to fight for their happiness and to be involved in the management of military and political affairs’

It cannot be that we demand democracy, equality, justice in public life but not in the private sphere of the family. Nothing much has changed. In the early years of Islam, ‘men were prepared to accept Islam as a revolution in relations in public life, an overturning of political and economic hierarchies, but they did not want Islam to change anything concerning relations between sexes. They were at ease with pre-Islamic traditions’. The same holds today, we regale and we should about the all the egalitarian principles but stop short of its application on gender relations, in private and public sphere. 

Padhai and Kamai, education and money are two keys to liberation of all women, especially Muslim women. Fatima Mernissi says in ‘Women and Islam’-‘The access of women as citizens to education and paid work can be regarded as one of the most fundamental upheavals in our societies in 20th century. By laying siege to the places considered until then the private preserve of men and the privilege of maleness-the school and workplace- women opened everything up to question, in personal as well as in their public role’.

Reference 

Fatima Mernissi, ‘Women and Islam’‬