SPIRIT OF ISLAM DECEMBER 2018

7 Spirit of Islam Issue 72 December 2018 iron and steel, immune to rough treatment. They are like ribs; fragile and delicate. It is best to let them be, in their natural state. If one treats them as though they were tough metal, one will only break them. Thus, when God says that He created man’s mate from the same soul He means simply that women are of the same species as men. God created them that way so that there should be harmony between the two sexes. If men and women had been derived from different species — then the two would have been unable to get on together. Family life would have lacked peace and harmony; men and women would have been unable to struggle hand in hand to build a better world. As far as the saying of the Prophet likening women to a rib, it is a parable illustrating the need to treat women gently on the basis of their particular natural constitution. The Prophet of Islam delivered this advice time and again, in various ways and it is something that he himself practised throughout his life. During the time of the Prophet, women used to attend the night prayer. Sometimes they used to take their small children along with them. The Prophet used to pay special attention to strict and full observance of prayer. Yet so great was his consideration for women that sometimes, when he heard babies crying, he would cut short the prayer. He said that “Sometimes I stand up for prayer, with my intentions being to do a long one. Then I hear a baby cry, so I cut short the prayer, not wanting to make things difficult for the child’s mother. (Bukhari) o Dr. Farida Khanam hub@thespiritofislam.org Dawn Follows the Night After the night comes the dawn, so that in its light individuals may continue their journey without a break.