HVK Archives: Is it profane to pray?
Is it profane to pray? - The Indian Express
P. Venugopal
()
7 May 1997
Title : Is it profane to pray?
Author : P. Venugopal
Publication : The Indian Express
Date : May 7, 1997
Winds of reform are sweeping the Muslim women of Kerala, hitherto confined to the
cocoons of rigid Islamic laws and practices.
When the Imam of the famed Palayam Juma Masjid in Thiruvananthapuram, PKK Ahmed
Kutty Moulavi, took the historic decision to allow women to pray in his mosque, it
infuriated the conservative sections, but the Muslim women of the State by and
large took it as a call to break away from the shackles of orthodox beliefs and
assert their rights under Islam.
The Palayam Imam's decision set off a chain reaction among the conservatives and
reformists in the Muslim community, which accounts for nearly 24 per cent of the
State's population.
To counter the Palayam Imam's move, some moulvis issued fatwas against the entry
of Muslim women into the Palayam Juma Masjid. The activists of Sunni Yuvajana
Sangham demonstrated outside the mosque where the women were praying.
Perhaps the most vocal criticism of the Imam's decision came from Kanthapuram A.P.
Abubacker Musaliar, General Secretary of the All India Jamiyyathul Ulama, who
declared that women attending mosques for mass prayers, participating in public
activities and sharing public venues with men are against the dictates of
Shariat.
But the orthodox sections obviously overlooked the groundswell of support evoked
by the Imam's decision. The response of the Muslim women in the State was
spontaneous and overwhelming.
Organisations of Muslim women in the State such as the women's wing of
Jama'at-e-Islami Hind and Girls' Islamic Organisation literally took to the
streets to denounce the stance of the orthodox leadership.
The massive participation of Muslim women of different ages and social strata in
the district conventions organised by the Jama'at-e-Islamic in Thiruvananthapuram,
Kochi and Kozhikode recently, to press women's right to pray in mosques, made the
orthodox sections sit up and take notice. Those meetings heard fiery speeches by
leaders of Muslim women's organisations against their religions leadership which
"refuses to change with the times and denies women freedom of worship granted by
the Prophet".
Muslim women of Kerala, silently suffering subjugation in their community for
decades, have never before come out so openly against their religious leadership.
Like their counterparts in many other parts of India, Muslim women here too are
prohibited from praying in mosques, except in the few managed by organisations
such as the Jama'at-e-Islami in northern Kerala. In some places, Muslim women are
not even allowed to enter graveyards.
The Palayam Imam's decision has sparked off a meaningful debate among Muslim
Intellectuals , scholars and religious leaders across the country about the
propriety of throwing open the portals of mosques to women.
"The Quran and the Hadiths (holy texts of Islamic religion) do not prohibit women
from praying in mosques. Nor is there any saying of the Prophet proscribing it.
On the contrary, many Quranic verses bear testimony to the fact that women used to
freely pray in mosques during the holy Prophet's time. Even today, women are
allowed to pray in the holiest of holy mosques m Mecca and Medina five times on
all days. Even in many Arabian and Gulf countries, women enjoy this freedom of
worship. So the bar on women in mosques in Kerala is unIslamic and
unjustifiable," says Fathima Moosa, Kerala State President of the
Jama'at-e-Islami.
"The entry of women into mosques is now being opposed by the same forces that once
denied Muslim women the opportunity to read and write. A section of the
conservative Muslim leadership seems to have a vested interest in keeping Muslim
women educationally and socially backward," says E.S. Aisha Koottilangadi,
President of the Muslim-dominated Malappuram district unit of the
Jama'at-e-Islami.
"Islamic laws have always been interpreted by men in a way that secured their
interests. If the male chauvinists have no objection to Muslim women going to
markets and movie theatres, why should they object to their entry into mosques?",
asks P. Mariyumma, State President of Girls Islamic Organisation.
Echoing similar sentiments, I. Hammad, General Secretary of the All India Muslim
Education Society, says: "Women the world over enter mosques and pray. This is a
running practice in Mecca and Medina. Women get a feeling of collective belonging
when they pray in a group. Why should they be deprived of it?".
Two other Muslim intellectuals in Kerala - Justice PK Shamsuddeen, former Judge of
Kerala High Court, and Prof KM. Bahauddeen, former Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the
Aligarh Muslim University - also defend the right of Muslim women to worship in
mosques.
But the conservative sections have refused to relent. A. Pookunju, President of
Kerala Muslim Jamaat, strongly resents the current move to allow Muslim women to
pray in mosques and warns that it could lead to many problems which may mar the
sanctity of places of worship.
Kanthapuram Abubacker Musaliar was more outspoken: "Some people are
misinterpreting the dictates of the Quran and Hadiths to suit their profane needs.
The Quran has stated specifically that women should be allowed to leave their
homes only when it is extremely unavoidable such as during medical emergencies.
You would not keep gold in the open like iron. Women need to he protected like
gold."
Joining issue with Kanthapuram, Rehanam, an Islamic scholar, says: "Kanthapuram
has the reputation of shooting from the hip on issues concerning women's rights
under Islam.
His statement underscores the entrenched male chauvinism and outrageous unIslamic
intolerance towards Muslim women who have equal responsibilities as men towards
the Muslim community in particular and other communities in general according to
Quranic injunctions.
"The Quran and traditions mandate that Muslim boys and girls be compulsorily
educated to be able to become equal partners in life. Kanthapuram tends to quote
some inauthenticated traditions to support his views that men should have
domination over women who have therefore to swallow all the dictates falsely
foisted on them in the name of Islam."
The orthodox leadership fears that the demand by Muslim women for permission to
pray in mosques will mark the beginning of a campaign against many other Shariat
dictates that weigh against women, such as polygamy, divorce and purdah.
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