Sunday, March 23, 2008

Interpreting the law of equity part 2

I wanted to focus on the final section of the last blog, because I think it gives an insight into the author's method, and foreshadows the coming debates on women and Islam (or homosexuality and Islam, or slavery and Islam - not scheduled, but extensively covered in the comments).

We're talking about inheritance rights for women, and in particular about 4:11-12.

4:11 Allah (thus) directs you as regards your Children's (Inheritance): to the male, a portion equal to that of two females: if only daughters, two or more, their share is two-thirds of the inheritance; if only one, her share is a half. For parents, a sixth share of the inheritance to each, if the deceased left children; if no children, and the parents are the (only) heirs, the mother has a third; if the deceased Left brothers (or sisters) the mother has a sixth. (The distribution in all cases ('s) after the payment of legacies and debts. Ye know not whether your parents or your children are nearest to you in benefit. These are settled portions ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-knowing, All-wise.
4:12 In what your wives leave, your share is a half, if they leave no child; but if they leave a child, ye get a fourth; after payment of legacies and debts. In what ye leave, their share is a fourth, if ye leave no child; but if ye leave a child, they get an eighth; after payment of legacies and debts. If the man or woman whose inheritance is in question, has left neither ascendants nor descendants, but has left a brother or a sister, each one of the two gets a sixth; but if more than two, they share in a third; after payment of legacies and debts; so that no loss is caused (to any one). Thus is it ordained by Allah; and Allah is All-knowing, Most Forbearing.

As any one can surely see, it's a sexist statement of inheritance rights. And yet Sardar says this.

Paradoxically, in terms of inherited wealth, the system worked in favour of women for a simple reason. When a man married, he took financial responsibility for the whole family as patriarchy and honour demanded - and his inheritance would be spent on all the family, wife and children. But when a woman married, her inherited wealth remained solely her own property; and her husband, or indeed her children, had no rights over it.

But this is precisely the issue at stake. Gender relationships in the Qur'an go something like this. Men run the economy, and women are dependent on them. Because of this, women are subservient to men, but in return for the obedience of women men are 0bliged to protect them, and treat them with respect.

By the standards of the time, this was a comparatively reasonable arrangement. The problem comes where Sardar takes his next step.

It is not only the case that in our time, gender roles are understood in different ways. The very nature of work as paid employment is vastly different, as are the needs of providing a sustainable way of life: therefore the law of equality has to be interpreted in a different way. If both men and women work, and carry equal financial burdens, the law demands that a daughter and a son get equal shares. Failure to admit such change would miss the implication of the idea of balance. A balance is something that shifts to ensure we remain within the boundaries of the law of equity.

So what's the problem? The problem is that nowhere in the Qur'an does it actually say anything like that. It certainly gives no indication of it in sura 4. The next two verses say this.

4:13 Those are limits set by Allah: those who obey Allah and His Messenger will be admitted to Gardens with rivers flowing beneath, to abide therein (for ever) and that will be the supreme achievement.
4:14 But those who disobey Allah and His Messenger and transgress His limits will be admitted to a Fire, to abide therein: And they shall have a humiliating punishment.

If you wanted rules to be regarded as temporary, able to be changed when society changes, would you add a suffix saying that disobeying them was punishable by fire?

And if you were some kind of seventh century proto-feminist, would you immediately follow up with this?

4:15 If any of your women are guilty of lewdness, Take the evidence of four (Reliable) witnesses from amongst you against them; and if they testify, confine them to houses until death do claim them, or Allah ordain for them some (other) way.
4:16 If two men among you are guilty of lewdness, punish them both. If they repent and amend, Leave them alone; for Allah is Oft-returning, Most Merciful.


What a clear statement of inequality. Unignorable, one would have thought. There's interpreting a text, and then there's rewriting it in your head to make something you can live with.

As always, Sardar's preferred reading is the one we'd prefer in the book. It just isn't the one that's there. And to avoid doing violence to women, gay people, slaves, polytheists or unbelievers, he is obliged to do violence to the text.

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