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Have women only been created to satisfy their husbands?

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Have women only been created to satisfy their husbands? Is that the only reason to be a wife? So women don’t have any value?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh.

Just like their male counterparts, women were created for the purpose of worshipping Allah Ta‘ālā; that is, to do what is pleasing to Him and refrain from what is displeasing to Him. Allah Ta‘ālā says:

وما خلقت الجن والإنس إلا ليعبدون

“I have not created jinn and man but to worship Me.” (51:56)

The Qur’an emphasises the point that man and woman are not different in this respect. Consider the following verses:

إِنَّ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَالْمُسْلِمَاتِ وَالْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ وَالْقَانِتِينَ وَالْقَانِتَاتِ وَالصَّادِقِينَ وَالصَّادِقَاتِ وَالصَّابِرِينَ وَالصَّابِرَاتِ وَالْخَاشِعِينَ وَالْخَاشِعَاتِ وَالْمُتَصَدِّقِينَ وَالْمُتَصَدِّقَاتِ وَالصَّائِمِينَ وَالصَّائِمَاتِ وَالْحَافِظِينَ فُرُوجَهُمْ وَالْحَافِظَاتِ وَالذَّاكِرِينَ اللَّهَ كَثِيراً وَالذَّاكِرَاتِ أَعَدَّ اللَّهُ لَهُم مَّغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا

 

“Verily, Muslim men and Muslim women, believing men and believing women, devout men and devout women, truthful men and truthful women, patient men and patient women, humble men and humble women, and the men who give sadaqah (charity) and the women who give sadaqah, and the men who fast and the women who fast, and the men who guard their private parts and the women who guard (theirs), and the men who remember Allah much and the women who remember (Him) – for them, Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward.” (33:35)

وَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِنَ الصَّالِحَاتَ مِن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَأُوْلَـئِكَ يَدْخُلُونَ الْجَنَّةَ وَلاَ يُظْلَمُونَ نَقِيرًا

 

“Whoever, male or female, does good deeds and is a believer, then such people shall enter Jannah, and they shall not be wronged in the least.” (4:124)

مَنْ عَمِلَ صَالِحًا مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَلَنُحْيِيَنَّهُ حَيَاةً طَيِّبَةً وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْرَهُم بِأَحْسَنِ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ

“Whoever, male or female, has acted righteously, while being a believer, We shall certainly make him live a good life, and shall give such people their reward for the best of what they used to do.” (16:97)

وَمَنْ عَمِلَ صَالِحًا مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَأُوْلَئِكَ يَدْخُلُونَ الْجَنَّةَ يُرْزَقُونَ فِيهَا بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ

“The one who does a righteous deed, be he male or female, while he is a believer, then, such people will enter the Jannah (Paradise) where they will be provided with bounties beyond reckoning.” (40:40)

Thus, it is clear women have not been created for the purpose of pleasing their husbands. The primary purpose of their creation is, like men, to worship and please Allah Ta‘ālā.

Marriage is also an act of worship that, if done with the right intention, will bring the pleasure of Allah Ta‘ālā. In Islam, marriage has many objectives, including the following:

  1. To maintain one’s chastity. Rasūlullāh (sallAllāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) said:

يا معشر الشباب من استطاع منكم الباءة فليتزوج فإنه أغض للبصر أحفظ للفرج

“O assembly of youth! Whoever of you is able to marry, let him marry, for verily it is most effective in averting the gaze [from lustful glances] and most effective in preserving the chastity.” (Sahīh al-Bukhārī and Sahīh Muslim; Mishkāt al-Masābīh, 3080)

  1. To create love and harmony. Allah Ta‘ālā says:

وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ أَنْ خَلَقَ لَكُم مِّنْ أَنفُسِكُمْ أَزْوَاجًا لِّتَسْكُنُوا إِلَيْهَا وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَكُم مَّوَدَّةً وَرَحْمَةً إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ

“And it is among His signs that He has created for you spouses from among yourselves, so that you may find tranquility in them, and He has created love and kindness between you. Surely in this there are signs for a people who reflect.” (30:21)

  1. To produce children. Rasūlullāh (sallAllāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) said:

تزوجوا الودود الولود فإني مكاثر بكم الأمم

“Marry the loving, fertile woman. For verily I will boast of your large number before the nations.” (Sunan Abī Dāwūd; Mishkāt al-Masābīh, 3091)

Hence, marriage is primarily a means of tranquillity for us in this world. It is a sign from Allah Ta‘ālā, and not just a physical or emotional necessity. However, marriage also provides both the man and woman a means to satisfy their carnal needs in a halal way. Rasūlullāh (sallAllāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) tells us in a hadith that the act of physical intimacy between husband and wife is an act of charity:

في بضع أحدكم صدقة

“There is charity in the sexual intimacy of one of you.”

The Sahābah asked: “O Messenger of Allah! Is it that one of us satisfies his carnal desires, yet he has reward in it?!” He replied: “Consider that had he satisfied it unlawfully he will be sinful. Likewise, if he satisfies it lawfully, he is rewarded.” (Sahīh Muslim, 1006)

Hence, fulfilling the needs of the husband is indeed a great act of reward. However, that is not the sole purpose of being a wife or a woman. Islam has given the woman tremendous value as a daughter, wife and mother, as attested to in numerous hadiths. First and foremost, however, women are honoured as human beings. Allah Ta‘ālā says:

وَلَقَدْ كَرَّمْنَا بَنِي آدَمَ وَحَمَلْنَاهُمْ فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ وَرَزَقْنَاهُم مِّنَ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَفَضَّلْنَاهُمْ عَلَى كَثِيرٍ مِّمَّنْ خَلَقْنَا تَفْضِيلاً

“And We bestowed dignity on the children of Adam and provided them with rides on the land and in the sea, and provided them with a variety of good things and made them much superior to many of those whom We have created.” (17:70)

Ultimately, every man and woman will be judged according to their piety, and what constitutes piety for both genders has been clearly defined. Allah Ta‘ālā says:

يا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ وَأُنثَى وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ

“O mankind, We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into races and tribes, so that you may identify one another. Surely the noblest of you, in Allah’s sight, is the one who is most pious of you. Surely Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.” (49:13)

And Allah Ta‘ālā Knows Best

Zameelur Rahman

Student Darul Iftaa
UK

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.

www.daruliftaa.net

This answer was collected from Askimam.org, which is operated under the supervision of Mufti Ebrahim Desai from South Africa.

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