WOMEN IN ISLAM

POLYGAMY AND ISLAM no one expressed even surprise or dismay, the reason being that in Islam, a woman is entirely free to make her own decisions. This is a right that no one can take away from her—not even the ruler of the day. These incidents show that the Islamic commandments permitting one to marry up to four women does not mean having the right to seize four women and shut them up inside one’s home. Marriage is a matter of mutual consent. Only that woman can be made a second or a third wife willing to be so. And when this matter rests wholly on the woman’s willingness, there is no cause for objection. The present age gives great importance to freedom of choice. This value is fully supported by Islamic law. On the other hand, the upholders of ‘feminism’ want to turn freedom of choice into restriction of choice. SOLUTION TO A PROBLEM RATHER THAN A GENERAL COMMANDMENT The above discussion makes it clear that the difference in the number of men and women is a permanent problem in war and peace. Now, the question arises as to how to solve this problem. What should those women do to satisfy their natural urges when they have failed to find a husband in a monogamous society? How do they secure an honourable life in that society? One way—hallowed in Indian tradition—is for widows to burn themselves to death so that neither they nor their