FROM THE EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

Women were not kept away from these activities. Starting with the Prophet’s own household, Muslim families provided equal opportunities to the female members to learn to grow and play a constructive role in the progress and development of society. A large number of learned women have found mention in history as authorities on various Islamic sciences such as Hadith, Islamic jurisprudence, biography of the Prophet, commentary on the Quran, etc. The Prophet’s own wife, Aisha, imparted the knowledge and wisdom she received from the first educator—Prophet Muhammad—for almost half a century. She has narrated more than two thousand sayings of the Prophet, and according to Muslim jurists, these sayings are the source of two thirds of Islamic laws relating to social, political and cultural issues. Biographers such as Ibn Khallikan (author of Waqeya-tul-Ayan), Ibn Sa’d (author of Tabaqat), Khatib Bhaghdadi (author of Taarikh Baghdad) and Al-Miqrizi (author of al-Khutal-wal-Athar) have mentioned the names of thousands of women and their outstanding contribution in the field of education and development in the Muslim world. Noteworthy among them, for instance, are the two sisters of AlFahri of Morocco, Fatimah and Maryam, the daughters of Muhammad ibn Abdullah, who founded the Qayrawan University and the Andalus University in the historical city of Fas in 859 CE. The Development of Natural Sciences The emphasis of Islam on learning and teaching was not confined to the Quran or the teachings of the Prophet. The Quran, in fact, has given a new outlook, a new perspective or paradigm as coined by Thomas Kuhn (The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 1955). According to this Quranic paradigm, man’s most important activity being intellectual contemplation or reflection, he was not supposed to blindly follow any idea or notion just because it was attributed to his ancestors or some other authority. He had to ponder on it critically and realistically. That is why we find that the Quran is replete with hundreds of inspirational and motivational verses that invite man to reflect on the wonderful creation of God. For example: Starting with the Prophet’s own household, Muslim families provided equal opportunities to the female members to learn to grow and play a constructive role in the progress and development of society.