n Pondering the status of women in today's society leads Noor to embrace Islam I come from a Hindu family. We were taught to regard ourselves (i.e. women) as beings who were eventually to be married off, have children and serve the husband — whether he was kind or not. Other than that, I found that there were a lot of things which really oppressed women, such as: If a woman was widowed, she would have to wear a white sari (costume), eat vegetarian meal, cut her hair short and never re-marry. The bride had to pay the dowry (bridal money) to the husband's family. And the husband could ask for anything, irrespective of the fact whether the bride's family can arrange it or not. And if, after marriage, she was unable to pay the full dowry, she would be emotionally and physically tortured. She could even end up being a victim of “kitchen death” — where a woman is set on fire while she is cooking or is in the kitchen. More and more of these instances are taking place. A daughter of my father's friend met the same fate in 2005. In addition to all this, men in Hinduism are treated like gods. This made me see that Hinduism, which is based on superstitions and things that were merely traditional, could not be right. Subsequently, when I came to England to study, I thought here women would not be oppressed. As I started meeting people and making new friends, I learned about this new society and went to all the places my friends went to, to “socialize”. Only then did I realize that all this talk about “equality” was not so true in practice. Women were oppressed in a different, more subtle, way. When I went to the places my friends hung out at, I found everybody interested in talking to me. At first I thought that was normal, but it was only later that I realized how naive I was and recognized what these people were expecting. I soon began to feel uncomfortable, as if I was not myself. I had to dress in a certain way so that people would like me, and had to talk in a certain way to please them. I soon found that I was feeling more and more uncomfortable, less and less myself, yet I could not get out. Everybody was saying they were enjoying themselves, but I don't call this enjoyment. I felt I had to do something to find something that I would be happy and secure with. In these days of so-called “society of equal rights”, you are expected to have a friend from the opposite sex (or else you're weird!). This too is a form of oppression. When I came to Islam, it was obvious that I had finally found permanent security. A religion, a belief that was so complete and clear in every aspect of life. Many people believe that Islam is an oppressive religion, where women are supposed to cover from head to toe and are not allowed any freedom or rights. In fact, women are given more rights in Islam and have been for the past 1,400 years, compared to the only-recently rights given to non-Muslim women in the West. Muslim women have the right to inheritance. They have the right to run their own businesses. They have the full right to ownership, property, disposal over their wealth to which the husband has no right. They have the right to education, a right to refuse marriage as long as this refusal is based on reasonable and justifiable grounds. The Qur'an contains many verses commanding men to be kind to their wives and stressing the rights of women. Islam gives the right set of rules, because they are not made by man. Quite often Muslim women are asked why they cover themselves from head to toe and are told that this is oppression. Well, it is not. In Islam, marriage is an important part of life — the making of the society. Therefore, a woman should not go around showing herself to everybody. Even the man is not allowed to show certain parts of his body in public. In addition, God has commanded Muslim women to cover themselves for their modesty: “ O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (veils) all over their bodies. That will be better, that they should be known (as free respectable women) so as not to be annoyed. And Allah is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Qur'an 33:59) The rules and regulation laid down in Islam by God do not apply to women alone. They are meant for men as well. There is no intermingling between men and women — for the benefit of both. When I put my hijab (veil) on, I was really happy. That is something I wanted to do. I felt a sense of satisfaction — for having obeyed God's command. I felt secure and protected. In fact people respect me more for it. I could really see the difference in their behavior toward me. I did not embrace Islam blindly. I accepted Islam with conviction. I have seen both sides. I know and have experienced what the other side is like, and I know that I have done the right thing. Islam does not oppress women, it liberates them and gives them the respect they deserve. Islam is the religion God has chosen for the whole of mankind. Those who accept it are truly liberated from the chains and shackles of mankind, whose ruling and legislating necessitates nothing but the oppression of one group by another and the exploitation and oppression of one sex by the other. This is not the case of Islam which truly liberated women and gave them an individuality not given by any other authority. Courtesy: www.islamreligion.com __
