بِسمِ اللّٰہِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِیْمِ
مَنْ سَلَكَ طَرِيقًا يَلْتَمِسُ فِيهِ عِلْمًا سَهَّلَ اللهُ لَهُ بِهِ طَرِيقًا إِلَى الْجَنَّة
Allah Almighty makes the path to paradise easier for him who walks on it for getting knowledge.
[Narrated by Muslim in al-Sahih, 4:2074 §2699.]
اَلسَّلامُ عَلَیْکُمْ وَ رَحْمَۃُ اللّٰہِ وَ بَرَکَاتُہُ
In Islam, Education for women enjoys the same importance as that for men. It is apparent from the Holy Qur’an and hadiths that the acquisition of knowledge is obligatory for both men and women.
The Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) said:
طَلَبُ الْعِلْمِ فَرِیْضَۃٌ عَلَی کُلِّ مُسْلِمٍ
Acquisition of knowledge is binding on all Muslims (both men and women without any discrimination). [Narrated by Ibn Maja in al-Sunan, 1:81]
The study of the life of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) also shows that he himself made special arrangements for the education and training of women.
Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri reports that some women said to the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him): ‘men have gone ahead of us (in terms of acquisition of knowledge). Therefore, appoint a special day for our benefit as well.’ The Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) fixed one day for them. He (blessings and peace be upon him) would meet them on that day, advise them and educate them about commandments of Allah Almighty. [Narrated by al-Bukhari in al-Sahih, 1:50.]
The view that only women can teach other women seems to be a misnomer. This is evident from the above mentioned hadith that the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) himself made arrangements for the education and training of women as one day was particularly specified for women in the Prophet’s Mosque. If the rules of attire and dress are properly observed then men can teach female students under Sharia.
Women acquired knowledge and performed a range of functions during the period of Prophethood.
‘A’isha al-Siddiqa, the wife of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him) and mother of the faithful, was a highly educated lady. She was a great scholar and intellectual. She was a narrator of hadith and a great jurist as well. She is believed to have reported 2,210 traditions. Amongst all male hadith-narrators, the only ones who narrated more traditions than ‘A’isha al-Siddiqa are Abu Hurayra, ‘Abd Allah b. ‘Amr and Anas b. Malik (may Allah be well pleased with them). This fact illustrates that education for women is nothing new today rather it began with the advent of Islam itself.
‘A’isha bint Talha (may Allah be well pleased with her) reports: I stayed with ‘A’isha. People from every city would come to me including the old ones (who would put forward questions) because they knew that I am her servant. And the students who were young would treat me like their sister and would present gifts (to ‘A’isha through me). Many would also write me letters (so that I could reply them back after soliciting answers from ‘A’isha. I would submit: O aunt! Mr so and so has written a letter and there is his present as well. ‘A’isha would say in reply to this: O daughter! Answer his query and give him present in exchange as well. If you have nothing to give, let me know, I will give. So she would return (the present in exchange and I would send it back along with the letter). [Narrated by al-Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad.]
Umm ‘Atiya (may Allah be well pleased with her) says: I participated in six battles with the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace be upon him). I would pursue the Ghazis in their tracks, cook food for them and do dressing for the injured and make arrangements for treatment of the diseased. [Narrated by al-Bukhari in al-Sahih, 1:333 §937 & 2:595]
Women were part of the parliament (majlis al-shura) during the period of ‘Umar b. al-Khattab (may Allah be well pleased with him). [Narrated by ‘Abd al-Razzaq in al-Musannaf, 6:180 §10420.]
Women were designated as ambassadors to other countries during the rule of ‘Uthman (may Allah be well pleased with him), . [Related by al-Tabari in Tarikh al-Umam wa al-Muluk, 2:601.]
If a nation wishes to be successful and move towards a sustainable reality, the women of that society must be given every opportunity to attain knowledge and education which is not only her due but a right that has been ordained to her by Almighty Allah.
At present, the crunch and quandary that the current Muslim society is suffering from is very disheartening and distressing. The situation demands serious contemplation and reformatory action. Today, we can hardly find a place in our society to declare it evil-free and ideal. The main reason behind it is our negligence in practicing the high Islamic values. We are gradually losing touch with the pure principles and enlightened teachings of our religion.
History bears witness to the fact that as long as the Muslims followed the law of Allah and His Messenger (Blessings and Peace be upon Him) and lived by it, they rose to prominence in the world, became victorious and led the world. We need to appraise as to why we are sinking in humiliation and degradation despite the fact that we are Muslims even today, we do have faith in Allah and His Messenger (Blessings and Peace be upon Him), and we do believe in the divine word of the Qur'an.
The main reason for our present disarray and disorder is that, despite being Muslims, we are distancing ourselves from the teachings of the Qur'an and Hadith. We are forgetting them. We need to wake up and work hard for our revival.
The question, how to work to revive our condition and in which direction we should step forward, may crop up in our minds. So let us now talk about finding a solution. We should know that the development of every nation and country depends on knowledge and awareness. Education, awareness and training of every member of the society is of fundamental importance for the formation of a just and developing society. While education for men is necessary, it is also indispensable for well-being of our society that we suitably educate and train the women who form a half of our society.
It is evident from the teachings of the Qur'an and Hadith that Islam has made the education of women necessary.
Islamic law imposes the same rights and duties on both men and women and both are equally obligated and responsible for the discharge of their duties. Nobody can perform his duties properly unless he is well aware of what they are. Therefore, it is impossible for a Muslim to perform his responsibilities as desired by his Master unless he acquires Islamic knowledge. That is why Islam has made the acquisition of knowledge equally obligatory for both men and women.
We must know that knowledge is light and it leads to guidance, whereas ignorance is the darkness that leads to misguidance. Therefore, we must strive for the best education and training (Tarbiyyah) of every member of our society to save him from going astray.
Even in the blessed era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, full attention was paid to the education and training of women. Hazrat Umar ibn Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) had issued this edict during his caliphate: “Teach your women Sūrah an-Nūr." Within it are clear instructions regarding the social manners to which a believer must adhere in both his public and private life.
With a view to providing women an opportuniy to acquire knowledge that is useful to them in both this life and the life hereafter, Suffah Smart School has come forward with its extension "Jamia Suffah Lil Banat". Initially "Online Alima Course" has been started in order to help them acquire the most needed education with the ease of staying at home. Women are the backbone of the society. An educated woman can inculcate good manners, moral values and the sense of responsibility in the members of her family. She can make an ideal family, have positive impact on the society and contribute successfully to nation building.
So, the girl or the woman who aims at being adorned with the most valuable knowledge is invited to join our "Online Alima Course".