Surah 1-2 - YasSarNal QuR'aN

Al-Baqarah (The Cow) | THE FAMILY: THE FOUNDATION OF HUMAN SOCIETYinfanticide was widespread in Arabia, and those who survived would suffer crueltyand degradation throughout their lives. Women were bought and sold like animals;mares and she-camels were sometimes considered more precious! They would sufferwhen they were married; and they received grossly unfair treatment when divorced.Divorced women were not allowed to remarry without their former husband’spermission, nor were they allowed by their families to return to their husbands ifthey wished to be reconciled. Generally, women were looked down upon in Arabia,as indeed in other societies.When Islam came, it brought fresh principles and values that recognized womenand afforded them a status comparable to that of men. It elevated marriage to areligious duty, preserved women’s human dignity, and established for them specificrights when they were married and when they were divorced. These principles andvalues were a gift from God to both men and women, guaranteeing for themfundamental human, social and legal rights they had neither demanded nor eventhought possible.Thus, as the end of the waiting period approaches, a husband should either takehis wife back into the marriage, with no ill-feelings and with a sincere intention totreat her kindly and sympathetically; or allow the waiting period to elapse and thedivorce to take effect without causing any harm or injustice to the divorced wife ordemanding any compensation from her.This would ensure that a man would not be able to abuse his prerogative todivorce at the expense of his estranged wife, as with the case of the man fromMadinah referred to earlier, and as seems to have been the custom among Arabianmen before Islam.To emphasize this further and purge men’s hearts of evil and selfishness, theQur’ān appeals to the noblest of feelings and to man’s sense of shame and honourand fear of God: “Do not retain them out of malice in order to hurt them. He who does sowrongs his own soul. Do not take God’s revelations in a frivolous manner. Remember theblessings God has bestowed upon you, and all the revelation and wisdom He has bestowedupon you from on high in order to admonish you. Fear God and know well that He has fullknowledge of everything.” (Verse 231)Keeping a wife against her will, or mistreating her, would be akin to harmingoneself, because she is a fellow human being, with dignity and feelings. A manwould be doing himself injustice, too, by allowing himself to act in defiance of God’sguidance and teachings.When it comes to marital relations and divorce, Islamic teachings arestraightforward and clear, aimed at building social life on complete honesty andintegrity. Men who abuse divorce, which God has permitted a last resort solution, in309