The religion of
Islam is often covered in a negative manner in the media within western capitalist
nation-states. These consolidated
Zionist owned networks in the west continuously spread negative influences and
slanted reports which contain many various criticisms and accusations which
paint the religion as negative. Two
heavily covered areas of criticism are based on accusations of gender
inequality and the repression of women.
As Americans, we should ensure that when weighing the topic of Muslim
women and the early history of women in Islam, it is very important to
understand, and respect, cultural relativity during the consideration
process. Two of the most popular areas
for western criticism toward Islam are Islamic polygamy and the Hijab. It is important to remember that these
cultural norms are not exclusive to Islam, and have been shaped by geographic
norms and values that pre-date Islam altogether.
Islamic
Polygamy
The
majority of citizens in the West view Islamic polygamy as based merely on the
assumption that women do not have equal rights in Islamic societies and that
this polygamy is based merely on physical desire, harems and gender slavery. In reality, the original concept of Islamic
Polygamy was a result from war and conflict, and the death of many Muslim men,
during the early origins of Islam as “Muslims experienced many battles against
the pagans of Arabia, Jews, Christians and other tribes. As a result, Muslims
had a major loss in number of men, which left behind it a number of widows,
mothers and orphan females in need” [1].
With this being understood as collective welfare, the instruction
contained in Quran verse 4:3 becomes much clearer: “And if you fear that you
cannot act equitably towards orphans, then marry such women as seem good to
you, two and three and four; but if you fear that you will not do justice
(between them), then (marry) only one or what your right hands possess; this is
more proper, that you may not deviate from the right course”[2]. Many Muslim women, depending on geographic
cultural differences do not question the norm of polygamy, nor do they see it
as cultural or social repression. This
is a solid example of cultural relativity.
In addition, Polygamy is not exclusive to the religion of Islam as it
can be traced back and found in the Torah and Old Testament, along with several
pagan religions that pre-date Abrahamic monotheism.
The
Quran Surah entitled “the Women” is an amazing piece of scripture dealing with
legislation considering marriage contracts and male-female relations in early
Islamic society. Legislative topics
covered in this Surah range from divorce and property ownership to death
inheritances and marriage dowries. While
origins of Islamic polygamy are easily identified due to early conflict and a
depopulation of Muslim providers, Quran passages on the topic of desertion such
as “Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them to
excel others and because they spend out of their property; the good women are
therefore obedient, guarding the unseen as Allah has guarded; and (as to) those
on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them, and leave them alone in the
sleeping-places and beat them” make it very difficult to call the Quran a
beacon of gender equality[3]. At the
same time, passages of similar repressive nature towards women can be found in
the scriptures of all three Abrahamic religions.
The Hijab
One
element that gets an excessive amount of negative press and criticism in
western societies is the hijab and the requirement for Islamic women to cover
their heads and bodies. This protective
practice appears in the Quran as revealed to Muhammad: “O Prophet, tell your
wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over
themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will
be known and not be abused. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful”[4]. Looking closely at the revelation itself, it appears
that the reference about the covered female ‘being known’ is a reference to her
appreciation as a human being instead of a beautiful physical object. A second reference on the evolution of Hijab
is found within the Hadith of Sahih Bukhari: “The wives of the Prophet used to
go to Al-Manasi, a vast open place (near Baqi` at Medina) to answer the call of
nature at night. `Umar used to say to the Prophet "Let your wives be
veiled," but Allah's Apostle did not do so. One night Sauda bint Zam`a the
wife of the Prophet went out at `Isha' time and she was a tall lady. `Umar
addressed her and said, "I have recognized you, O Sauda." He said so,
as he desired eagerly that the verses of Al-Hijab (the observing of veils by
the Muslim women) may be revealed. So Allah revealed the verses of
"Al-Hijab"[5].
Here, once again, cultural
relativity must be applied. Take a
moment to consider how Muslim women living in the east, and also Muslims in the
west, might view western teenage girls, especially in the United States, who
run around in public places with their bodies barely covered. Again, when considering the Islamic hijab,
the covering of a female is not exclusive to Islam and “has a long history in the
Judeo-Christian tradition. Catholic nuns engage in the practice, of course, and
there are several references to the practice in both the Old and New
Testaments”[6]. As we noted in the
Quran, Surah 33:59, the basic ideology behind females covering their heads and
bodies is to provide them protection from the eyes and actions of the predator
and to prevent physical desires that could disrupt collective society, prayer
and individual morals, and overall submission to God. The same motive is not the case in the early
Christian scripture of Corinthians 11:3-9 where gender inequality is openly present:
“[3] But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the
head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. [4] Every man praying or prophesying, having
his head covered, dishonoureth his head.
[5] But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered
dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. [6] For if the woman be not covered, let her
also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her
be covered. [7] For a man indeed ought
not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the
woman is the glory of the man. [8] For
the man is not of the woman: but the woman of the man. [9] Neither was the man created for the woman;
but the woman for the man”[7].
Notes
1. Nouchkioui, Fatima, The
History of Head Covering and Polygamy Practice In Islam, Yale-New Haven
Teachers Institute, Accessed on May 19, 2013 from
http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/2011/2/11.02.03.x.html
2. Quran 4:3
3. Quran 4:34
4. Quran 33:59
5. Hadith Sahih Bukari 1.148
6. Emory University, Department
of Post-Colonial Studies, accessed on May 19, 2013 from
http://postcolonialstudies.emory.edu/women-islam-and-hijab/
7. Corinthians 11:3-9
SUPPLEMENTAL
The First Four Caliphates
SUPPLEMENTAL
The First Four Caliphates
As seems to be the
case with all man-made religions or reform movements throughout history, when a
mass reform has occurred in history under the name of religion it has only been
a matter of time before the original concepts and efforts of reform are reversed
into regulated power and transformed into a political machine that often
resembles the organization, influences or institutions that the original movement
once strived to change. This was the
case with the religion of Judaism and the religion of Christianity, and was
also the situation surrounding Islam. Students
of history can easily see the political regulation of the religion of Islam, as
it expanded and became transformed into an Islamic state, beginning shortly
after Muhammad’s death. The first four
caliphates were short lived, the Islamic empire greatly expanded, and an increasing
political splintering and enhancement of regulated policies can be noted during
this period early Caliphate period.
Abu Bakr: 632-634 CE
The political
split in Islam which would emerge in 656 CE, especially regarding Muslims under
the emerging Islamic state structure, was evident from the beginning between
the Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims. This
split among early Muslims, which is still evident today, can be seen after the
death of Muhammad as “the majority accepted Abu Bakr as the first caliph, but a
small group believed that Muhammad wanted his son-in-law, Ali, to lead the
Muslims”[1]. From the beginning, a
political man-made conflict was in place to poison any future collective
empire: The Shi’ites believed that Muhammad had named his son-in-law, Ali, to
become his successor, while Sunni Muslims supported Abu Bakr.
Abu Bakr only held
the title of Caliph, or deputy of God, for two years and his largest challenges
came in the form of the Bedouins and further Islamic expansion past Mecca and
Medina. The Bedouins had adopted Islam
under Muhammad, but quickly renounced the religion after Muhammad’s death and
led a troublesome revolt entitled in the history books as the Ridda, which was
crushed in 633 CE. With the Ridda broken
and the vast majority of Arabia under Islamic rule, Bakr turned focuses on the
further expansion of Islamic rule.
Umar: 634-644 CE
Before his death,
Abu Bakr appointed Umar, another of the prophet’s father-in-laws, as his
successor as caliph. The appointment was
not physically challenged by Sunni Muslims, but at the same time the
appointment further deepened internal Sunni-Shi’ite divide. Umar certainly carried on the Islamic offensive
for territorial gains for the expanding Islamic state with conquests “in Syria,
which he took from the Byzantines in 635. Damascus, an important city in Syria,
fell to the Muslim forces that year, and Jerusalem - considered by Muslims,
Christians, and Jews alike to be a holy city - followed in 637”[2]. Under Umar’s decade-long rule and the Islamic
expansion of territory, which now spanned from Persia to Egypt, new tax
systems, the Kharaj and Jizya, were introduced throughout the early empire. While the Kharaj was a tax on agricultural
lands, the Jizya was a tax aimed towards all non-Muslim subjects, subjects who
enjoyed rights in exchange for taxation under the early Islamic empire, in
order to fund the expanding empire.
Under Umar’s caliphate, Islamic expansion met fierce resistance in
Persia. In 644 CE, Umar was assassinated
by a Persian Christian. It would be a
preview of future resistance.
Uthman: 644-656 CE
With the
unforeseen murder of Umar, the third Caliph, Uthman, was selected by a council
of elders. As early forms of political
imperialism can be seen in the Islamic expansion under Umar, the increase of
political elements within the Islamic state continued under Uthman. The expansion of the empire continued under
Uthman, but not without internal strife and discontent. Uthman was heavily criticized for the
shrinking treasury of the empire, and also for attempting to consolidate the
various scriptures of Quran lessons into one official state sanctioned Quran,
which created strong suspicions of tampering with original passages in those
scriptures. In 656 CE, in similar
fashion to Umar’s fate, Uthman was assassinated in his home by Egyptian rebels. With the event of his murder, the caliphate
passed to Ali, whom Shi’ite Muslims had believed was the rightful successor of
Muhammad from the beginning, and instantly the Islamic world was ripped into
internal strife.
Ali: 656-661 CE
The
self-proclaimed caliphate of Ali was challenged from the beginning by Uthman’s
cousin Mu'awiya, along with other candidates, which resulted in bloody civil
battles being fought during the years 656 CE and 658 CE. Mu'awiya proclaimed a separate caliphate
from Jerusalem and received support from Egyptian and Syrian forces. When Ali was murdered in 661 CE, Mu'awiya
succeeded in establishing the first Islamic dynasty under the name of his
family: the Umayyad Dynasty.
Conclusion
The short history
of the first four caliphates was not lengthy in years, but the gradual political
expansion and the constant human desire for more and more power are quite evident
in this history. The many basic lessons
of reform that the prophet Muhammad once taught had been conveniently used and twisted
into an organized religion woven into an expanding state empire resembling the
same issues that Muhammad spoke against.
The same political evolutions can be seen with the history of the Hebrew
tribes after the establishment and success of the Kingdom of Judah, and with
the early Christian church after it was adopted by the Roman Empire, and even
more so during the middle ages with the emergence of the Holy Roman Empire. This is obviously the nature of man.
Notes
1. University of Calgary. The Islamic World to 1600, The Caliphate and
the First Islamic Dynasty, Abu Bakr, Sunni vs Shi’a, 1998. Accessed on May 26, 2013 from
http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/islam/caliphate/
2. University of Calgary. The Islamic World to 1600, The Caliphate and
the First Islamic Dynasty, Umar, 1998.
Accessed on May 26, 2013 from
http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/islam/caliphate/
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