WOMEN IN ISLAM

and would, thus, ensure a happy family life. However, in reality, this is just a supposition. If we look closely, we can find that marriages among equals suffer as much. Equality, therefore, does not assure success in nuptial relations. A successful marriage depends more on learning the art of management. It is also commonly held that marriages do not work for couples who come from different educational backgrounds and where there are regional differences, disparity in economic status, etc. This is also a wrong assumption. A home is similar to a full-fledged institution. Like other institutions, a home also has many departments. The easiest way to run this institution is to have a division of labour between men and women. Men and women should take up different departments in accordance with their different capabilities and run the department independently, without interfering with one another. Thus, in this division of labour, the problem of inequality will be solved. DOWER (MAHR) After marriage (nikah), the first obligation upon a man with regard to his wife is to give her a fixed amount at the time of marriage. The Quran states: “And give the women (on marriage) their dowers willingly.” (4:4) At the time of marriage, the groom gives the bride a sum