Sermon's Title: And the Male is Not Like the Female
Themes of the Sermon:
1- Men and women are equal in the foundation of responsibility.
2- Men have been granted a degree of virtue and rank over women.
3- Allah has assigned women specific rulings and rights.
The relationship between men and women is one of complementarity and mutual support.
All praise is due to Allah, Who revealed the Book without crookedness, and whose words are complete in truth and justice. I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah alone without partner, and I bear witness that Muḥammad is His servant and messenger. May Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, abundantly.
To proceed: Fear Allah, servants of Allah, with true piety, and be mindful of Him in secret and in open, as He said:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ
“O you who believe, fear Allah as He should be feared, and do not die except in submission [to Him].” [Āl ʿImrān: 102].
Servants of Allah:
One day Umm ʿUmārah al-Anṣāriyyah came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: “I see everything mentioned only for the men, and I do not see that women are mentioned in anything.” Then this verse was revealed:
إِنَّ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَالْمُسْلِمَاتِ وَالْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ وَالْقَانِتِينَ وَالْقَانِتَاتِ وَالصَّادِقِينَ وَالصَّادِقَاتِ وَالصَّابِرِينَ وَالصَّابِرَاتِ وَالْخَاشِعِينَ وَالْخَاشِعَاتِ وَالْمُتَصَدِّقِينَ وَالْمُتَصَدِّقَاتِ وَالصَّائِمِينَ وَالصَّائِمَاتِ وَالْحَافِظِينَ فُرُوجَهُمْ وَالْحَافِظَاتِ وَالذَّاكِرِينَ اللَّهَ كَثِيرًا وَالذَّاكِرَاتِ أَعَدَّ اللَّهُ لَهُمْ مَغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا
“Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and believing women, the obedient men and obedient women, the truthful men and truthful women, the patient men and patient women, the humble men and humble women, the charitable men and charitable women, the fasting men and fasting women, the men who guard their chastity and the women who guard it, and the men who remember Allah often and the women who remember Him—Allah has prepared for them forgiveness and a great reward.” [al-Aḥzāb: 35] (al-Tirmidhī).
The generation of the Companions, men and women alike, was unique. Umm ʿUmārah heard the Qur’an being recited and saw that most of its address was in the masculine form, with women included implicitly, yet she longed to see women mentioned explicitly in the merits of Islam and faith. So Allah revealed these clear verses.
Allah, the Lord of all, men and women alike, revealed His books and sent His messengers to the children of Adam to bring them from darkness into light. He made God-consciousness the measure of superiority, saying:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ وَأُنْثَى وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ
“O mankind, indeed We created you from male and female, and made you into peoples and tribes so that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most pious of you. Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.” [al-Ḥujurāt: 13].
He commanded both men and women to have faith and to perform righteous deeds. They are equal in the foundation of religious responsibility, and equal in reward and punishment before Allah. He said:
وَمَنْ يَعْمَلْ مِنَ الصَّالِحَاتِ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنْثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَأُولَئِكَ يَدْخُلُونَ الْجَنَّةَ وَلَا يُظْلَمُونَ نَقِيرًا
“And whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while being a believer—those will enter Paradise and will not be wronged even as much as the speck on a date seed.” [al-Nisāʾ: 124].
And He said:
الزَّانِيَةُ وَالزَّانِي فَاجْلِدُوا كُلَّ وَاحِدٍ مِنْهُمَا مِائَةَ جَلْدَةٍ
“The woman and the man guilty of fornication—flog each one of them a hundred stripes.” [al-Nūr: 2].
The Prophet ﷺ established a great principle when he said: “Indeed, women are the twin halves of men.” (al-Tirmidhī). This means that the foundation is the equality of the rulings of the Sharīʿah between them, unless evidence indicates an exception or specification. Every command or prohibition in the religion of Allah is general, applying to both men and women, and every virtue and every punishment applies likewise to the doer, whether man or woman.
However, the All-Knowing, All-Wise Lord, whose words and religion are complete in truth and justice, did not make absolute equality between men and women. Rather, He gave men certain rulings exclusive to them, and gave women certain rulings exclusive to them.
When the light of Sharīʿah dimmed, and the clouds of misguidance overshadowed, voices arose calling the people to notions that contradict both nature and religion, demanding absolute equality between men and women. Following them, impostors came to attribute such claims to the religion of Allah. But is this truth or falsehood?
There is a great difference between equality and justice. Justice, upon which the heavens and earth were established, is giving each their due right and placing things in their proper place. Equality, however, is treating two things the same.
The intelligent agree that equality is just only when both sides are identical in every respect. If they differ, then equality becomes injustice. If you had two children, one old and the other young, or one healthy and the other sick, would equal treatment in food and expense be justice? Allah has stated in His Book a decisive verse:
وَلَيْسَ الذَّكَرُ كَالْأُنْثَى
“And the male is not like the female.” [Āl ʿImrān: 36].
The woman differs from the man in physical, bodily, and psychological traits—something no rational person denies. Thus Allah said, describing the nature of woman:
أَوَمَنْ يُنَشَّأُ فِي الْحِلْيَةِ وَهُوَ فِي الْخِصَامِ غَيْرُ مُبِينٍ
“Or one who is brought up in adornments and in dispute is not clear.” [al-Zukhruf: 18].
The male sex is superior in essence to the female sex: more complete in intellect, sounder in judgment, and stronger in body. For this reason Allah made prophethood exclusive to men, and made the testimony of a woman half that of a man. He said:
وَاسْتَشْهِدُوا شَهِيدَيْنِ مِنْ رِجَالِكُمْ فَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُونَا رَجُلَيْنِ فَرَجُلٌ وَامْرَأَتَانِ مِمَّنْ تَرْضَوْنَ مِنَ الشُّهَدَاءِ أَنْ تَضِلَّ إِحْدَاهُمَا فَتُذَكِّرَ إِحْدَاهُمَا الْأُخْرَى
“And call to witness two men from among you; and if two men are not available, then a man and two women from those you accept as witnesses, so that if one of them errs, the other may remind her.” [al-Baqarah: 282].
The Prophet ﷺ also established that general authority belongs to men, saying: “A people who entrust their affairs to a woman will never prosper.” (al-Bukhārī).
And Allah gave man authority (qiwāmah) over woman—a responsibility and an honor—by which He entrusted men, through their inherent qualities, to exercise guardianship, protection, maintenance, and care over women. Allah said:
الرِّجَالُ قَوَّامُونَ عَلَى النِّسَاءِ بِمَا فَضَّلَ اللَّهُ بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَى بَعْضٍ وَبِمَا أَنْفَقُوا مِنْ أَمْوَالِهِمْ
“Men are guardians over women by what Allah has favored some of them over others and by what they spend from their wealth.” [al-Nisāʾ: 34].
Allah has granted the husband rights over his wife, and granted the wife rights over her husband. Yet He elevated the husband above his wife by a degree, as He said:
وَلَهُنَّ مِثْلُ الَّذِي عَلَيْهِنَّ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَلِلرِّجَالِ عَلَيْهِنَّ دَرَجَةٌ وَاللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ
“And due to them is similar to what is expected of them, according to what is reasonable. But men have a degree over them, and Allah is Almighty, All-Wise.” [al-Baqarah: 228].
Servants of Allah:
Whoever reads the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Prophet ﷺ sees with certainty that although the foundation is equality between men and women in religious responsibility, there are rulings where women differ from men, in consideration of their innate nature and what they were created upon—out of justice and mercy from Allah, for He said:
لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا
“Allah does not burden a soul beyond its capacity.” [al-Baqarah: 286].
Islam has relieved women from prayer and fasting during menstruation and postpartum bleeding, and obligated them after purification to make up the fasts but not the prayers. He did not obligate them to attend Friday prayers or congregational prayers, nor jihad and battle. ʿĀʾishah, Mother of the Believers, said: “I asked the Prophet ﷺ about jihad, and he said: ‘Your jihad is Ḥajj.’” (al-Bukhārī).
He obligated men to provide for their families and children in kindness, but did not obligate this upon women. He said:
وَالْوَالِدَاتُ يُرْضِعْنَ أَوْلَادَهُنَّ حَوْلَيْنِ كَامِلَيْنِ لِمَنْ أَرَادَ أَنْ يُتِمَّ الرَّضَاعَةَ وَعَلَى الْمَوْلُودِ لَهُ رِزْقُهُنَّ وَكِسْوَتُهُنَّ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ
“Mothers shall breastfeed their children for two complete years, for whoever wishes to complete the nursing. And upon the father is their provision and clothing according to what is reasonable.” [al-Baqarah: 233].
Sharīʿah also specified rulings for women that do not apply to men. It permitted them things not permitted for men, and prohibited them things made lawful for men. It is established that the Prophet ﷺ took silk in his right hand and gold in his left, then said: “These two are forbidden for the males of my Ummah.” (al-Nasāʾī).
He forbade a woman to travel without a maḥram, forbade her from going out displaying adornment or wearing perfume, and forbade her from marrying a non-Muslim.
In Islam, women have rights just as men have rights, but these rights are legislated by Allah in harmony with the nature and responsibilities of each gender.
In inheritance, Allah allotted women a share as He allotted men:
لِلرِّجَالِ نَصِيبٌ مِمَّا تَرَكَ الْوَالِدَانِ وَالْأَقْرَبُونَ وَلِلنِّسَاءِ نَصِيبٌ مِمَّا تَرَكَ الْوَالِدَانِ وَالْأَقْرَبُونَ مِمَّا قَلَّ مِنْهُ أَوْ كَثُرَ نَصِيبًا مَفْرُوضًا﴾
“For men is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave, and for women is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave, be it little or much—a prescribed share.” [al-Nisāʾ: 7].
Yet He decreed for the male a portion equal to that of two females, saying:
يُوصِيكُمُ اللَّهُ فِي أَوْلَادِكُمْ لِلذَّكَرِ مِثْلُ حَظِّ الْأُنْثَيَيْنِ
“Allah instructs you concerning your children: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females.” [al-Nisāʾ: 11].
This corresponds to the obligations Allah placed upon men, such as the dowry and maintenance, for Allah is Just and Wise.
He also placed the contract of marriage, divorce, and return in the man’s hand, because of his stronger reasoning and distance from emotional sway. Yet at the same time, He gave custody of children in case of divorce to the mother, due to her stronger mercy and compassion. A woman once came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said: “O Messenger of Allah, this son of mine—my womb was his vessel, my breast was his source of drink, and my lap was his shelter. Now his father has divorced me and wants to take him from me.” So the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to her: “You have more right to him as long as you do not marry.” (Abū Dāwūd).
Even in marital rights, each has rights appropriate to their role: of the man’s rights is obedience, and of the woman’s rights is provision and kind companionship.
The Prophet ﷺ said in his Farewell Sermon to his Companions: “Indeed, you have rights over your women, and your women have rights over you. Your right over them is that they should not allow into your beds anyone you dislike, nor permit into your houses anyone you dislike. Their right over you is that you treat them kindly in their clothing and food.” (al-Tirmidhī).
And the Prophet ﷺ said: “If a woman prays her five, fasts her month, guards her chastity, and obeys her husband, it will be said to her: Enter Paradise through whichever gate you wish.” (Aḥmad).
May Allah bless me and you in the Noble Qur’an, and benefit me and you with what is in it of verses and wise remembrance. I seek Allah’s forgiveness for me and for you, so seek His forgiveness, for He is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
The Second Sermon:
All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, his family, his Companions, and all those who follow him. To proceed:
In the pre-Islamic era, women were treated as possessions—they were inherited but did not inherit. ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “By Allah, in the pre-Islamic days we did not consider women to have any say, until Allah revealed about them what He revealed, and granted them their share.” (al-Bukhārī and Muslim).
Indeed, by His justice, Allah has given each one their due right. The believer submits to the ruling of Allah and feels no discomfort or constraint regarding it. He, exalted is He, said:
وَلَا تَتَمَنَّوْا مَا فَضَّلَ اللَّهُ بِهِ بَعْضَكُمْ عَلَى بَعْضٍ لِلرِّجَالِ نَصِيبٌ مِمَّا اكْتَسَبُوا وَلِلنِّسَاءِ نَصِيبٌ مِمَّا اكْتَسَبْنَ وَاسْأَلُوا اللَّهَ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمًا
“And do not wish for that by which Allah has made some of you exceed others. For men is a share of what they earn, and for women is a share of what they earn. And ask Allah of His bounty. Surely Allah is All-Knowing of all things.” [al-Nisāʾ: 32].
Masculinity is a quality praised in men and blameworthy in women, while femininity is a quality praised in women and disgraceful when attributed to men. If either departs from their natural disposition, they incur Allah’s anger and curse.
ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās, may Allah be pleased with them both, said: “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ cursed men who imitate women, and women who imitate men.” (al-Bukhārī).
The relationship between man and woman is one of complementarity, not conflict; of loyalty, not enmity. Both are commanded to worship Allah and uphold His religion according to what He has charged each with. Allah said:
وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتُ بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاءُ بَعْضٍ يَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَيُقِيمُونَ الصَّلَاةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ الزَّكَاةَ وَيُطِيعُونَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ أُولَئِكَ سَيَرْحَمُهُمُ اللَّهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ
“The believing men and believing women are allies of one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong, establish prayer, give zakāh, and obey Allah and His Messenger. It is they upon whom Allah will have mercy. Indeed, Allah is Almighty, Wise.” [al-Tawbah: 71].
O Allah, grant victory to Islam and honor the Muslims, and destroy the criminal disbelievers. O Allah, send tranquility into the hearts of those striving in Your cause, deliver Your oppressed servants, and raise high the banner of the religion, by Your might, O Mighty, O Strong.
O Allah, grant us security in our homelands, rectify our leaders and those entrusted with our affairs, and entrust our rule to those who fear You, obey You, and seek Your pleasure.
Our Lord, grant us good in this world and good in the Hereafter, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire.
