Women in Islam assume a great significance in terms of respect and dignity. While many non-Muslims see Muslim women dressed in complete body covering in a lose over garment as a sign of oppression and violation of human rights, they fail to understand how much respect the Muslim women get from their menfolk both inside and outside of their household. Our last post was about "The higher pedestal for women as MOTHERS in Islam," as a premise to write more about status of women in Islam.
Today, we will talk of the blessings that daughters bring to their parents and how they would pave their way to Jannah / Paradise on the Day of judgement, as mentioned by Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. This post is even applicable for parents today who dislike the birth of daughters and even are ashamed to break the news to their relatives that they have been blessed with a daughter.
Those interested in history would know that the era before advent of Islam in Arabia was the worst as far women were concerned. The girl babies used to be buried alive right upon their birth and the women in general were nothing but means of amusement and satisfaction of sex of their men. Even they paraded around the Kaabah during the annual rituals.
It was after the advent of Islam, that Prophet Muhammad ﷺ strictly disallowed burial of girls born to Muslim parents and later when Islam prevailed over the entire Arab, this unholy and gruesome practice was abolished altogether. Please refer to our earlier post "When the girl-child buried alive shall be asked for what offence was she killed" that explains these gruesome traditions and its abolishment.
Today we share a hadith attributed to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ as mentioned in This Hadith is mentioned in Sunan Ibn Majah / Book (33) of Etiquette كتاب الفتن / Chapter # 3 Honoring one's father and being kind to daughters /باب بِرِّ الْوَالِدِ وَالإِحْسَانِ إِلَى الْبَنَاتِ) as Hadith number # 3669. Besides references are also given to other hadiths that hinge on the same theme.
Uqbah bin Amir said, I heard the Messenger of Allah(ﷺ) say:
"Whoever has three daughters and is patient towards them, and feeds them, gives them to drink, and clothes them from his wealth; they will be a shield for him from the Fire on the Day of Resurrection.'"
Grade: Sahih (Darussalam)
Arabic Text:
حَدَّثَنَا الْحُسَيْنُ بْنُ الْحَسَنِ الْمَرْوَزِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ الْمُبَارَكِ، عَنْ حَرْمَلَةَ بْنِ عِمْرَانَ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عُشَّانَةَ الْمَعَافِرِيَّ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ عُقْبَةَ بْنَ عَامِرٍ، يَقُولُ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ يَقُولُ " مَنْ كَانَ لَهُ ثَلاَثُ بَنَاتٍ فَصَبَرَ عَلَيْهِنَّ وَأَطْعَمَهُنَّ وَسَقَاهُنَّ وَكَسَاهُنَّ مِنْ جِدَتِهِ - كُنَّ لَهُ حِجَابًا مِنَ النَّارِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ " .
Imagine when baby girls were deemed a source of shame and buried alive, the Prophet came to rectify this grave wrong and brought relief and solace to mothers who had to part within their baby girls they had taken pains to bear them in their wombs for nine months and then bid them farewell forever.
As for the number of daughters, someone asked the Prophet, what if they are two daughters only. He replied, “[He gets that reward,] even if they are [only] two. “Some of those present believed that had the Prophet been asked about only one daughter, he would have answered that the reward was applicable too. (Authenticated by Al-Albani)
In another hadith, Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (pbuh) said: If anyone has a female child, and does not bury her alive, or slight her, or prefer his male children to her, Allah will bring him into Paradise.
The last hadith is specially for parents who prefer sons over daughters. In fact, it should be the other way around. Daughters bring blessings to their parents and blessed are those parents who welcome the baby girls, bring them up well and marry them off. Such are the parents who can be rest assured of being shielded from the hell fire and entered into Jannah.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
You may refer to our reference page: Hadiths related to Muslim Women for more Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ about Muslim women
Please also refer to our reference page: Sunnah and Hadith of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to know more about sunnah / Hadith of Prophet of Allah. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.
Disclaimer: The material for this post has been collected from the references as given below. If anyone differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors. If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.
If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook
Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on social media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Qur'ān - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.
