She is concerned about the affairs of the Muslims - The Ideal Muslimah

The Muslim Woman and Her Community / Society

She is concerned about the affairs of the Muslims

The Muslim woman who truly understands the teachings of Islam is not concerned only with her own household, husband and children; she takes an interest in the affairs of the Muslims in general. By doing so she is following the guidance of Islam which counts all Muslims as a single brotherhood, and compares them, because of their mutual love, affection and compassion, to a single body: if one part of it suffers , the rest of the body will stay awake in pain.²⁰⁴ Islam also likens the believers to a solid structure, in which some bricks support others.²⁰⁵

Note: 204. Sahih Muslim, 16/140, Kitab al-birr wa'l-silah wa'l-adab, bab tarahum al-mu'minin wa ta'atufihim.

Note: 205. Sahih Muslim, 16/139, Kitab al-birr wa'l-silah wa'l-adab, bab tarahum al-mu'minin wa ta'atufihim.

The modern Muslim woman's concern for Muslim individuals, families, societies and the ummah as a whole, stems from her Islamic character, her adherence to the teachings of Islam, her Islamic world-view, and her sense of the responsibilities that Islam has given to every Muslim man and woman to convey and expound its teachings.

Islamic history is filled with many examples of virtuous women who were renowned for their concern about the Muslims, men and women. One example is the report given by Imam Muslim from Salim, the freed slave of Shaddad, who said:

"I entered upon `A'ishah, the wife of the Prophet (PBUH) on the day that Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas died. `Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr also came in, and performed wudu' in `A'ishah's presence. She said, `O `Abd al-Rahman! Perform your wudu' properly, as I heard the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) say: "Woe to the heels because of Hell-fire."'"²⁰⁶

Note: 206. Sahih Muslim, 3/128, Kitab al-taharah, bab wujub ghusl al-rijlayn.

`A'ishah noticed that her brother `Abd al-Rahman had not washed his heels properly in wudu', and she did not keep silent about what she had seen. She reminded him that it was essential to perform wudu' properly, as she had heard from the Prophet (PBUH). This is an example of the kind of commendable concern that is the duty of every Muslim man and woman whenever there is a need to enjoin what is good or forbid what is evil.

When `Umar ibn al-Khattab (RAA) was stabbed, and he felt that death was near, he told his son `Abdullah: "Go to `A'ishah, say salam to her, and ask her permission for me to be buried in her house alongside the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) and Abu Bakr. So `Abdullah came to her and conveyed this message. She said, "Certainly, he is most welcome." Then she said: "O my son, convey my salam to `Umar, and tell him: Do not leave the ummah of Muhammad without a protector. Appoint a successor to take care of them. Do not leave them untended after your death, for I fear fitnah for them."²⁰⁷

Note: 207. Tabaqat ibn Sa'd, 3/363.

This was a far-sighted, common-sense attitude of concern for the ummah, that they should not be left without a leader to govern their affairs and maintain their unity and security.

In these words of `A'ishah (May Allah be pleased with her), the modern Muslim woman has a prime example which will help her to understand the essence of Islam, her responsibilities towards her religion and her ummah, and the importance of being concerned about the affairs of the Muslims. This will give her insight and understanding that will enable her to undertake her duties of contributing to the revival of Islam and calling Muslim men and women to return to the position of being the Best of Peoples evolved for mankind, as Allah (SWT) wants them to be.

She honours her guest

The true Muslim woman is happy to welcome guests, and hastens to honour them, in response to the call of faith in Allah (SWT) and the Last Day, as the Prophet (PBUH) said:

"Whoever believes in Allah (SWT) and the Last Day, let him honour his guest."²⁰⁸

Note: 208. (Bukhari and Muslim), See Sharh al-Sunnah, 14/312, Kitab al-riqaq, bab hifz al-lisan.

The Muslim woman who honours her guest thus confirms that she is a believer in Allah (SWT) and the Last Day. Therefore this honouring of the guest is called a reward that is given to the guest as if thanking him for the opportunity he has given to his host to do a good deed, put his faith into practice, and please Allah (SWT):

"`Whoever believes in Allah (SWT) and the Last Day, let him honour his guest by giving him his reward.' They asked, `What is his reward, O Messenger of Allah?' He said: `One day and one night. The right of hospitality is three days, and anything beyond that is an act of charity.'"²⁰⁹

Note: 209. (Bukhari and Muslim), See Riyadh al-Salihin, 379, Kitab al-adab, bab ikram al-dayf.

Honouring guests is regarded in Islam as a great deed which is encouraged, and for which the sincere Muslim woman will be rewarded. But Islam regulated it and set limits for it. The "reward" of the guest is one day and one night, then comes the duty of hospitality, which is three days. Anything beyond that is an act of charity which will be recorded among the good deeds of the hospitable, generous woman.

In Islam, honouring the guest is not a matter of choice to be followed or not according to one's mood or personal feelings. It is a duty on the Muslim, man or woman, who must hasten to fulfil this duty as soon as a guest knocks on the door or enters one's yard:

"Accommodating a guest for one night is an absolute duty on every Muslim. Whoever gets up in the morning and finds a guest waiting in his yard has a duty to fulfil, and it is up to him what he will do about it."²¹⁰

Note: 210. Reported by Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad, 2/207, Bab ja'izah al-dayf..

Those who do not like to receive a guest and close their doors to him are not good people, as is stated in the hadith reported by Imam Ahmad, in which the Prophet (PBUH) said:

"There is no goodness in the one who is not hospitable."²¹¹

Note: 211. Reported by Imam Ahmad, 4/155; its men are rijal al-sahih.

Islam has made hospitality the duty of every Muslim man and woman, and considers it to be the guest's right. No Muslim should fall short in carrying out this duty. If a spirit of miserliness has overtaken a people to the extent that they deny their guest his right, then Islam permits the guest to take his right from them. This is seen in the hadith narrated by Bukhari, Muslim and others from `Uqbah ibn `Amir, who said:

"I said, `O Messenger of Allah, you are sending us to people who do not feed us. What do you think about this?' He said, `If you go to a people and they order that something appropriate be brought (i.e., food and drink), then accept it, and if they do not do that, then take the things you as a guest are entitled to, that they should have provided.'"²¹²

Note: 212. Narrated by Bukhari, Muslim and others. See al-Adab al-Mufrad, 2/210, Bab idha asbaha al-dayf mahruman.

Hospitality is a basic Islamic attitude, so you will never find a Muslim woman whose Islam is genuine being stingy to her guest, no matter what her or her husband's cir. Islam has taught her that the food of two people will feed three, and that the food of three will feed four. So she need never worry about an unexpected guest knocking suddenly at her door. Abu Hurayrah (RAA) said:

"The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said: `The food of two people is enough for three, and the food of three is enough for four.'"²¹³

Note: 213. (Bukhari and Muslim), See Sharh al-Sunnah, 11/320, Kitab al-at'imah, bab ta'am al-ithnayn yakfi al-thalathah.

Jabir (RAA) said:

"I heard the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) say: `The food of one is enough for two, the food of two is enough for four, and the food of four is enough for eight."²¹⁴

Note: 214. Sahih Muslim, 14/22, Kitab al-ashribah, bab fadilah al-mawasah fi'l-ta'am al-qalil.

The Muslim woman whose personality has been cleansed and moulded by Islam does not worry about there being too many people at the table, unlike the Western woman who does not receive a guest for whom she has not prepared food in advance. The Muslim woman welcomes her guests even if the visit is unannounced, and invites them to share her family's food, no matter that her own share may be reduced by a few mouthfuls. The true Muslim woman prefers hunger to ignoring the rights of this guest, whom Allah (SWT) and His Messenger have commanded her to honour. Indeed, Allah (SWT) will bless the food of one so that it will become enough for two, and He will bless the food of two so that it will become enough for four, and so on. There is no neefor that dryness and inhospitability from which Western-influenced materialistic people are suffering in both East and West.

The righteous salaf set the highest example of honouring one's guest, so much so that Allah (SWT) Himself commended the way in which some of them honoured their guests. An example of this is the hadith narrated by Bukhari and Muslim from Abu Hurayrah (RAA). A man came to the Prophet (PBUH) and he sent word to his wives (to prepare food). They said, "We have nothing but water." So the Prophet (PBUH) said, "Who will play host to this man?" One of the Ansar said: "I will." So he took the man to his wife and told her: "Honour the guest of the Messenger of Allah." She said, "We do not have anything but the boys' food." He said, "Prepare the food, light the lamp, and put the boys to sleep if they want some supper." So she prepared the food, lit the lamp, and put the boys to sleep. Then she got up as if to adjust the lamp, but she extinguished it. The couple pretended to eat (with their guest), but in fact they went to bed hungry. The next morning, the Ansari went to the Prophet (PBUH), who told him: "Allah (SWT) has commended what you two did last night." Allah (SWT) revealed:

( . . . But [they] give them preference over themselves, even though poverty was their [own lot]. And those saved from the covetousness of their own souls - they are the ones that achieve prosperity.) (Qur'an 59:9)²¹⁵

Note: 215. Fath al-Bari, 8/631, Kitab al-tafsir, bab wa yu'thirun 'ala anfusihim; Sahih Muslim, 4/12, Kitab al-ashribah, bab ikram al-dayf.

The Muslim woman is generous and hospitable, she welcomes guests no matter when they arrive, and never worries about the sudden arrival of guests. In this way she provides the best help to enable her husband to be generous and hospitable like her, welcoming guests and hastening to honour them with a cheerful, smiling face, as the poet²¹⁶ said:

Note: 216. i.e., Hatim al-Ta'iyy, as in al-'Aqad al-Farid, 1/236.

"I smile at my guest and make him smile before he brings in his luggage, as if I had plenty to offer him at the time when I am suffering hardship. Hospitality does not consist of piling up food in front of him; the face of the generous man is the essence of hospitality."

She prefers others over herself

The true Muslim woman prefers others over herself, even if she is poor and does not have much, because Islam teaches its followers to do so. This selflessness is a basic characteristic of the true Muslim, which distinguishes him or her from other people.

The Ansar, (May Allah be pleased with them), were the first pioneers in selflessness after the Prophet (PBUH) himself. A verse of the Qur'an was revealed commending their unique selflessness, which would remain for all time a shining example to humanity of how generosity and selflessness should be. They welcomed their Muhajir brothers, who had nothing, and gave them everything:

( But those who before them, had homes [in Madinah] and had adopted the Faith - show their affection to such as came to them for refuge, and entertain no desire in their hearts for things given to the [latter], but give them preference over themselves, even though poverty was their [own lot]. And those saved from the covetousness of their own souls - they are the ones that achieve prosperity.) (Qur'an 59:9)

The life of the Prophet (PBUH) abounded with selflessness, and he also instilled this attitude in the hearts of the first Muslims. Sahl ibn Sa`d (RAA) reported:

"A woman brought a woven garment (burdah) and said, `I wove it with my own hands for you to wear.' The Prophet (PBUH) took it, as he needed it. He came out to us, wearing it wrapped around his waist. So-and-so said, `Give it to me, how nice it is!' The Prophet (PBUH) said, `Of course.' The Prophet (PBUH) was sitting in a gathering, and when he came back, he folded up the burdah and sent it to that man. The people told the man: `You should not have done that. The Prophet (PBUH) wore it because he needed it, then you asked for it and you knew that he does not refuse requests.' He said, `I did not ask for it so that I could wear it. I asked for it so that it could be my shroud.'" Sahl said: "And (later on) it was his shroud."²¹⁷

Note: 217. Fath al-Bari, 3/143, Kitab al-ja'izah, bab man ista'adda al-kafn and 4/318, Kitab al-buyu', bab al-nissaj.

The Prophet (PBUH) used to feel happy whenever he saw his teaching of selflessness bearing fruits in the Muslims' lives when there was some crisis such as drought or famine. This is seen in his words:

"When a number of their men are killed in battle, or they do not have enough food for their children, the Ash`aris [a tribe] gather whatever they have in one cloth and share it out equally. They belong to me and I belong to them."²¹⁸

Note: 218. (Bukhari and Muslim), See Riyadh al-Salihin, 310, Bab al-ithar wa'l-masawah.

How beautiful is the attitude of selflessness that we learn about from the Ansar, the Ash`aris and others like them! How great is the virtue of the Prophet (PBUH) who implanted this attitude in the hearts of the first generation of Muslim men and women, from whom successive generations of Muslims inherited it until it became a basic characteristic of the Islamic society.