The suffering of women in the time of Moses, peace be upon him | Episode (14) | The suffering of women working outside the home

0:00 The story of woman's struggle in the time of Moses, peace be upon him.

0:06 The struggle of women working outside the home.

0:14 When Moses witnessed the scene of the two young women holding back from watering their flock alongside the people,

0:22 he approached them, asking and inquiring in astonishment at their behavior.

0:27 He said, "What is the matter with you two?"

0:30 Ibn Jarir al-Tabari (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

0:33 "Moses said to the two women:

0:35 'What is your situation and affair that you hold your flock back from the people?

0:40 Why do you not water them along with the people's livestock?'"

0:44 And al-Tahir ibn 'Ashur (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

0:47 "When Moses saw the two women keeping their livestock from drinking,

0:52 he asked them, 'What is the matter with you two?'

0:55 This was an inquiry about their story and situation,

0:58 since water was present,

1:00 yet no one had stepped forward to water their sheep."

1:04 And the grand answer came,

1:07 which contains a lesson and a moral for every young woman today who wishes to work outside the home.

1:13 They said, "We cannot water our flock until the shepherds drive back their sheep,

1:17 and our father is an elderly man."

1:20 Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

1:23 "Meaning: We cannot water our flock until these shepherds finish."

1:28 And al-Alusi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

1:31 "It is as if they were saying:

1:33 'We are two weak, modest women;

1:37 we cannot compete or crowd with men,

1:41 and we have no man to undertake this for us.

1:44 Our father is an advanced old man

1:47 whom old age has weakened,

1:49 so we have no choice but to delay watering until the people fulfill their need for water.'"

1:56 Thus, she explained the reason for staying away from the watering hole,

2:00 which was her reluctance to crowd and mix with men.

2:05 Then she followed that by clarifying the excuse that brought them out to work outside the home,

2:11 saying, "And our father is an elderly man."

2:16 Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

2:18 "Meaning: This is the situation compelling us to do what you see."

2:23 And al-Tahir ibn 'Ashur (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

2:26 "Their statement, 'And our father is an elderly man,'

2:30 was an apology for their presence to water the flock among men,

2:34 due to their inability to find a man to draw water for them;

2:38 because their only man was their father,

2:42 and he was an elderly man

2:44 who could not come to the water due to his weakness in crowding."

2:48 And al-Sha'rawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

2:51 "Thus, we have three rulings within this story:

2:55 “And when he came unto the water of Midian he found there a whole tribe of men, watering. And he found apart from them two women keeping back (their flocks). He said: What aileth you? The two said: We cannot give (our flocks) to drink till the shepherds return from the water; and our father is a very old man.” (28:23)

2:58 It yielded a ruling;

3:00 'and our father is an elderly man'

3:03 yielded a ruling;

3:05 'so he watered their flock for them'

3:07 yielded a third ruling.

3:09 These three rulings

3:12 organize the issue of women's work for the Muslim society,

3:16 and what is required of us whenever a woman is forced to work.

3:20 From the first ruling,

3:22 we learn that watering livestock is men's work.

3:26 From the second ruling,

3:28 we learn that a woman does not go out to work except out of necessity,

3:33 and she does not perform men's tasks

3:35 unless a man is unable to perform this task:

3:39 'and our father is an elderly man.'

3:42 As for the third ruling,

3:44 it teaches Muslim—or even human—society

3:48 that if one sees a woman who has gone out to work,

3:51 it must be because she has no man to undertake this task for her,

3:55 so one ought to assist her and facilitate her task.

4:00 I recall that when I traveled to Saudi Arabia

4:04 in the year 1370 AH (1950 CE),

4:07 I rode with a colleague in his car,

4:10 and on the way, I saw him get out of his car

4:14 and go to one of the houses.

4:16 In front of it was a wooden table

4:19 covered with a piece of cloth;

4:22 he took it and placed it in the car,

4:25 and then we drove on.

4:27 I asked him about what he was doing,

4:29 and he said:

4:30 'It is among our customs that if you see such a table at the door of a house,

4:35 it means that the master of the house is absent,

4:39 and the housewife has prepared the dough

4:43 and needs someone to bake it.

4:45 So whenever one of us passes by, he takes it, bakes it,

4:49 and then returns the table to its place.'"

4:52 And in His saying (Exalted is He),

4:55 “And when he came unto the water of Midian he found there a whole tribe of men, watering. And he found apart from them two women keeping back (their flocks). He said: What aileth you? The two said: We cannot give (our flocks) to drink till the shepherds return from the water; and our father is a very old man.” (28:23)

4:58 there is an indication that if a woman is forced to go out to work,

5:03 and this genuine necessity arises,

5:06 she must keep her work strictly proportional to that necessity.

5:09 Thus, she should not mix with men,

5:12 and she must isolate herself from crowding and rubbing shoulders with them.

5:16 The fact that necessity drove the woman out to perform men's work does not mean

5:21 that she has become like them,

5:24 such that she permits herself to mix with them.

5:27 Indeed, the struggle that women faced in Madyan

5:32 when going out to work outside the home

5:35 is embodied in two matters:

5:38 First,

5:39 the struggle of mixing with men.

5:42 Second,

5:43 the struggle of the nature of the work she went out to perform.

5:47 As for the first struggle,

5:49 which is mixing with men,

5:52 textual proofs from the Qur'an and Sunnah have indicated

5:55 the prohibition of women mixing with men in workplaces.

5:59 Among these proofs

6:01 is the story of these two daughters:

6:03 despite their need to water their flock,

6:06 they did not approach the men,

6:10 but rather withdrew clearly,

6:12 to the extent that it caught the attention of Allah's Prophet, Moses (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

6:18 Another proof is His statement (Exalted is He):

6:21 "And settle quietly in your homes."

6:23 “And stay in your houses. Bedizen not yourselves with the bedizenment of the Time of Ignorance. Be regular in prayer, and pay the poor-due, and obey Allah and His messenger. Allah's wish is but to remove uncleanness far from you, O Folk of the Household, and cleanse you with a thorough cleansing.” (33:33)

6:27 Thus, Allah (Glorified be He) commanded remaining in homes

6:30 because of the protection it offers a woman

6:33 and its keeping her away from the avenues of corruption,

6:36 and because a woman who does not remain in her home

6:40 is exposed to mixing with men

6:42 due to her frequent going out.

6:45 Thus, Allah chose for her to stay in her home

6:48 so that her contact with men would be minimized.

6:51 Therefore, He followed the command to remain in homes

6:54 with the prohibition against ostentatious display,

6:56 because frequently leaving the house

6:59 leads a woman into ostentatious display.

7:02 Another proof is His statement (Exalted is He):

7:04 "O Prophet,

7:09 tell your wives and your daughters

7:12 and the women of the believers

7:15 to draw their outer garments closely over themselves."

7:21 “O Prophet! Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks close round them (when they go abroad). That will be better, so that they may be recognised and not annoyed. Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.” (33:59)

7:26 "So that they will not be abused.

7:29 And Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Most Merciful."

7:33 Thus, Allah (Mighty and Majestic is He) commanded the believing women

7:36 to draw their outer garments over themselves

7:39 whenever they intend to go out.

7:41 The purpose of that is obvious:

7:43 to veil them from men.

7:46 If they are to be veiled

7:48 from the eyes of men through clothing,

7:50 how could it be permissible for them to mix with men

7:53 in public societal activities

7:55 that are rarely free from exposing themselves,

7:58 men looking at women,

8:01 and falling into temptation through them?

8:04 Another proof is His statement (Glorified be He):

8:08 “Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and be modest. That is purer for them. Lo! Allah is aware of what they do.” (24:30)

8:12 "and guard their private parts.

8:15 That is purer for them."

8:18 “Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and be modest. That is purer for them. Lo! Allah is aware of what they do.” (24:30)

8:24 "And tell the believing women to lower

8:28 their gaze

8:30 and guard their private parts

8:33 and not display their adornment."

8:36 “And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and be modest, and to display of their adornment only that which is apparent, and to draw their veils over their bosoms, and not to reveal their adornment save to their own husbands or fathers or husbands' fathers, or their sons or their husbands' sons, or their brothers or their brothers' sons or sisters' sons, or their women, or their slaves, or male attendants who lack vigour, or children who know naught of women's nakedness. And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornment. And turn unto Allah together, O believers, in order that ye may succeed.” (24:31)

8:39 Thus, Allah commanded the believing women

8:41 with what He commanded the believing men:

8:43 lowering the gaze and guarding the private parts.

8:45 He began with the command to lower the gaze

8:48 because it is the means leading

8:50 to guarding the private parts.

8:52 Whoever lowers his gaze

8:54 is more capable of guarding his private parts,

8:56 while whoever gives free rein to his gaze

8:58 exposes himself to falling into immorality.

9:01 No sane person doubts that mixed environments

9:05 are places where one is rarely safe

9:07 from looking at the opposite sex,

9:09 and they are the primary arenas

9:11 in which the immorality of adultery occurs.

9:14 Thus, this verse indicates, by its implicit implication,

9:17 the prohibition of free mixing.

9:20 Another proof is His statement (Exalted is He):

9:22 "And when you ask them for something..."

9:25 “O Ye who believe! Enter not the dwellings of the Prophet for a meal without waiting for the proper time, unless permission be granted you. But if ye are invited, enter, and, when your meal is ended, then disperse. Linger not for conversation. Lo! that would cause annoyance to the Prophet, and he would be shy of (asking) you (to go); but Allah is not shy of the truth. And when ye ask of them (the wives of the Prophet) anything, ask it of them from behind a curtain. That is purer for your hearts and for their hearts. And it is not for you to cause annoyance to the messenger of Allah, nor that ye should ever marry his wives after him. Lo! that in Allah's sight would be an enormity.” (33:53)

9:29 “O Ye who believe! Enter not the dwellings of the Prophet for a meal without waiting for the proper time, unless permission be granted you. But if ye are invited, enter, and, when your meal is ended, then disperse. Linger not for conversation. Lo! that would cause annoyance to the Prophet, and he would be shy of (asking) you (to go); but Allah is not shy of the truth. And when ye ask of them (the wives of the Prophet) anything, ask it of them from behind a curtain. That is purer for your hearts and for their hearts. And it is not for you to cause annoyance to the messenger of Allah, nor that ye should ever marry his wives after him. Lo! that in Allah's sight would be an enormity.” (33:53)

9:33 Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said:

9:36 "Meaning: This which I have commanded you

9:38 and legislated for you regarding the hijab

9:40 is purer and finer."

9:43 It is understood from this

9:45 that free mixing is not purer for the hearts of men and women;

9:49 rather, it is more corrupting for all their hearts.

9:52 Thus, mixed work

9:55 involves great hardship for a woman from several angles,

9:59 including:

10:01 hardship in lowering her gaze,

10:04 hardship in regulating her emotions,

10:07 hardship in maintaining the purity of her heart,

10:11 hardship in avoiding corrupting a man's heart,

10:15 hardship in adhering to the Islamic dress code that pleases her Lord,

10:21 and hardship in regulating her speech and tone of voice.

10:25 Has the woman working in men's spheres been able

10:29 to overcome these hardships?

10:33 We will continue in the next gathering, if Allah wills.

10:36 And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

10:40 The story of woman's struggle in the time of Moses, peace be upon him.

The suffering of women in the time of Moses, peace be upon him | Episode (14) | The suffering of women working outside the home

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