O' Woman

 Whom do I go to, whom should I ask
For earning my equality
And saving my dignity
Is such a daunting task

I told her soon 'My Dear'
What is that you fear ?
There's nothing to cry and beg
Even if that they always try to take

The dignity and equality you search
To find it you don't need no torch
These gifts you were born with
When you began to breathe

Know this O Woman, O bearer of life
Alike in peace & moments of strife
Never for a moment go to ask
And set yourself on a daunting task

When that you search is not elsewhere to be found
It courses in your veins & your voice's sound
Know your worth under brutal wrath
On rosy gardens and thorny path


Like the light of the sun
Like the white of moon
Like the flow of a brook
Like seeds of a fruit

You were created with pride
Never to confine at someone's side
But go and seize what you wish
Pay no heed to any man made leash


_ _ Anupam Patra
 http://anupampatracontemplates.blogspot.in/

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The story of a beautiful woman-”Just go, there is nothing wrong with this marriage”

Just go, there is nothing wrong with this marriage

There was this beautiful woman, who wanted to get married, but she wanted a very pious husband, so she said that she’ll marry the man who recites the whole Quran every single day, fasts for the whole year and stays awake and worships Allah all throughout the night.

She was a very beautiful woman, and a lot of suitors wanted to marry her, but they knew they couldn’t fulfil the conditions she set. Until this one man stepped forward and said he could fulfil them. So the Imam got both of them married.

After the first night of the marriage, the wife sees that the husband doesn’t recite the whole of the Quran, nor does he fast, nor does he stay awake in the worship of Allah, she decided to let it roll on for a few weeks to see if there were any changes, there weren’t, so she filed a complaint and asked for a divorce.

They are both taken in front of the judge, and the judge asked, ‘What were the conditions of the marriage?’ the man replied ‘They were for me to recite the whole Quran daily, keep fast for the whole year and to worship Allah all throughout the night.’

The Judge asked, ‘ did you fulfil them?

The man calmly answered, ‘…yes.’

The judge answers, ‘you lie, your wife has said that you don’t, that’s why she’s asking for a divorce’.

But the man insisted that he had fulfilled the conditions, so the judge asked, ‘did you recite the full Quran everyday?’

The man answered yes.

The Judge, baffled asked, ‘how? How can you do that?’

The man coolly answered, ‘I recite Surah Ikhlas three times a day and according to Prophet Muhammad (saw), reciting Surah Ikhlas three times is equivalent to reciting the whole Quran.’

[Hadith

Narrated Abu Sa'id Al-Khudri: A man heard another man reciting: Surat-ul-Ikhlas (The Unity) 'Say: He is Allah, the One (112) and he was repeating it. The next morning he came to Allah's Apostle and mentioned the whole story to him as if he regarded the recitation of that Sura as insufficient On that, Allah's Apostle said, "By Him in Whose Hand my soul is! That (Sura No. 112) equals one-third of the Qur'an."  Bukhari (Book #78, Hadith #638)]

The Judge was intrigued, so he asked, ‘how did you fast the whole year?’

The man answered,

‘ I fasted for the whole month of Ramadan, then kept another six fasts in the month of Shawwal, according to Prophet Muhammad (saw), keeping all of the fast of Ramadan then keeping six fasts in the month of Shawwal, is as if you have fasted for the whole year.’

Hadith
	[Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (Allah be pleased with him) reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: He who observed the fast of Ramadan and then followed it with six (fasts) of Shawwal. it would be as if he fasted perpetually.]Hadith 2614-Sahih Muslim

The Judge remained silent, he couldn’t give a reply saying the man was wrong, so finally he asked, ‘ how did you stay awake all night and worship Allah, when your wife saw you sleeping?’

The Judge thought the man wouldn’t be able to answer this one, but the man, cool as a cucumber answered,

‘I prayed Salatul Isha with jamaat, then the next day prayed Salatul Fajr with jamaat, according to Prophet Muhammad (saw), the one who prays Salatul Isha and Salatul Fajr with jamaat, it is as if he had stayed up all night worshipping Allah.’

[Hadith: Uthman bin `Affan (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) saying: "One who performs `Isha' prayer in congregation, is as if he has performed Salat for half of the night. And one who performs the Fajr prayer in congregation, is as if he has performed Salat the whole night.''

[Muslim]
The narration of At-Tirmidhi says: `Uthman bin Affan (May Allah be pleased with him) narrated that he had heard the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) saying: “He who attends `Isha’ in congregation, is as if he has performed Salat for half of the night; and he who attends `Isha’ and Fajr prayers in congregation, is as if he has performed Salat for the whole night.”
Commentary: This Hadith tells us that the reward of performing `Isha’ and Fajr prayers in congregation is so great that it equals the worship of the whole night.]

The Judge sat there looking at the man; the final verdict was about to be released…

He said to the man and his wife, ‘…go, just go, there is nothing wrong with this marriage’…

Source :  http://reflections4muslimahs.blogspot.com

 

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Woman's Inner Beauty

"Beauty is how you feel inside, and it reflects in your eyes. It is not something physical.” Sophia Loren  (Italian film Actress)

    Men and women are equal but not identical. Each of them complements the other in the different roles and functions that they are responsible to. In Islam the individuals should not be judged according to gender, beauty, wealth or privilege. The only thing that makes one person better than another is his or her character. Therefore woman is judged by her character and actions rather than by her looks or physical features.

    Islam ordered the same high standards of moral conduct for men as it is for women. Modesty is essential in a human's life, as well, whether it is in action, morals or speech. A woman who adheres to the tenets of Islam is required to follow the dress code called Hijab (Veil). Islam also commands proper behavior and dress of men, in that they are not allowed to make a show of their bodies to attract attention onto themselves, and they too must dress modestly. They have a special commandment to lower their eyes, and not to brazenly stare at women.

    The Qur'an urges the believing men and women to lower their gaze and guard their modesty and then urges the believing women to extend their head covers to cover the neck and the bosom:

    "Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what ordinarily appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms...." (Qur'an Surah Al Noor: 30, 31).

    The Islamic veil, unlike the veil of the Christian tradition, is not a sign of man's authority over woman nor is it a sign of woman's subjection to man. The Islamic veil, unlike the veil in the Jewish tradition, is not a sign of luxury and distinction of some noble married women. The Islamic veil is only a sign of modesty with the purpose of protecting women, all women.

    The Islamic philosophy is that it is always better to be safe than sorry. In fact, the Qur'an is so concerned with protecting women's bodies and women's reputation that a man who dares to falsely accuse a woman of unchastely will be severely punished:

    "And those who launch a charge against chaste women, and produce not four witnesses (to support their allegations), Flog them with eighty stripes; and reject their evidence ever after: for such men are wicked transgressors (evil doers)"     (Quran Surah Al Noor: 4)

    The Muslim woman does not feel the pressures to be beautiful or attractive, which is so apparent in the Western and Eastern cultures. She does not have to live up to expectations of what is desirable and what is not. Superficial beauty is not the Muslim woman's concern; her main goal is inner spiritual beauty. She does not have to use her body and charms to get recognition or acceptance in society. There are numerous examples of discrimination at the workplace where women are either accepted or rejected, because of their attractiveness and sex. A good example is in advertising, where a woman's body is used to sell products. Women are constantly degraded, and subjected to reveal more and more of themselves.

    Many of the misconceptions of the Muslim woman in the west, particularly her veil stems from Arab and Muslim countries that have deviated from the true doctrines of Islam, and have " mixed up Islamic principles with pre-Islamic pagan traditions". Muslim woman wears the Islam dress code herself to put herself on a higher level and men will look at her with respect and she is noticed for her intellect, faith, and personality, not for her beauty. Some people, especially in the West, would tend to ridicule the whole argument of modesty for protection. Their argument is that the best protection is the spread of education, civilized behavior, and self control. We would say: fine but not enough.

    Something is fundamentally wrong in the society we live in. A radical change in the society's life style and culture is absolutely necessary. A culture of modesty is badly needed, modesty in dress, in speech, and in manners of both men and women. Actually, we all suffer but as Khalil Gibran said:

    "…For the person who receives the blows is not like the one who counts them" in Thoughts and Meditations (New York: Bantam Books, 1960)

    

    By: Nouran Radwan

    

    References:

    Liberation by the Veil, by Sehmina Jaffer Chopra, http://www.islam101.com/women

    Women in Islam Versus Women in the Judaeo-Christian Tradition The Myth and The Reality  By: Sherif Abdel Azim, Ph.D.- Queens University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada, http://www.islamicity.com/
Source : http://www.factofarabs.net/ERA.aspx?Id=314&TID=28

 

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Tears of a woman

A little boy asked his mother, “Why are you crying?”
“Because I need to” she said.
“I don’t understand,” he said.
His mother just hugged him and said, “And you never will.”
Later the little boy asked his father, “Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?”
“All women cry for no reason,” his dad answered carelessly.
The little boy, still wondering why women cry, finally asked the old wise shaikh (scholar). “He surely knows the answer”, he thought.
“Ya Shaikh! Why do women cry so easily?”
The Shaikh answered:
“When Allah made the woman she had to be special. He made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world, yet gentle enough to give comfort.
He gave an inner strength to endure both childbirth and the rejection that many times comes from her children.
He gave her a toughness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up, and take care of her family through sickness and fatigue without complaining.
He gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child hurts her badly.
He gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart. He gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts his wife, but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly.
And lastly, He gave her a tear. This is hers and only hers exclusively to use whenever she needs it. She needs no reason, no explanation, its hers.
You see my son, the beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the beauty of her face, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart – the place where love resides.”

Source : http://reflections4muslimahs.blogspot.com

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