Masjids and Spaces;Women Need None?
"But whoso does good works, whether male or female, and is a believer, such shall enter Heaven and shall not be wronged even as much as the little hollow in the back of a date-stone (Al Quran 4:125)"
Time and again, we claim in words how the mighty religion shows no bias against the genders and all are equal in the eyes of God and yet time and again we prove to act otherwise. I saw such a hypocritical imbibed social negligence today that made my blood boil over. Running around the Markaz Complex in Calicut looking for sponsors for a social event, I found that one of the highlighted Masjids of Calicut town, didn't have a single room for women to enter. Looking around for a place to pray, I found one, a tiny little room hidden away in the darkest corner where no one can see and anyone who does see mistakes it for a toilet! Such is the importance given to women who believe in God and likes to keep their prayers intact.
The circled door is the "room" for women to pray |
"I am a man..God listens to me more " attitude |
Ya I know there is going to be a lot of explanations on how women do not have to go to Mosques, how for men it is compulsory and blah blah blah. I am not going into the details of the great long debate on women's entry into Mosques. But I would like to point out the need to have an equal or at least a pleasant praying "spots" for women. This is an example of how people ,both male and female think it is not so important for a women to be spiritual yet she must in all ways be the "good" girl.
OK. Accepted. For sake of argument I agree men need more space because they are always out and it is compulsory for them to go the Masjids according to Islamic beliefs. But does that mean we women should not get a proper decent place to pray? Hey you men are going to the Mosques out of compulsion but we by choice. And if our choice is not accepted by you, you can't do anything either because this is between our God and us and no one can question our needs to pray. That feeling of being neglected when you have to walk past a big grand clean Masjid and walk into a small dingy room is something you can't understand and what I can't understand is why no one speaks out against this atrocity.The women here accepts this as though they don't have the right to pray in a clean spiritual atmosphere but in a dingy smelly room.NO, don't ask me to pray only at home because we all know how that would make you a *** and YES I know there are great Mosques in our town who keeps it real according to the Quran but you and I both know that can be counted by the fingers of only one hand.
With pointing out the examples of the two Greatest Mosques in the world, in Makkah and Madinah, let us think of eradicating such a sorry state of events from our land. Let us build places of worship without showing an apparent gender discrimination that trust me Islam has never stated. Period
super!! sounds lyk a hardcore feminist... !! nice concept but fo bringing dis to practical is really dificult!!
ReplyDeleteWhat my heart wanted to say, you conveyed it here. This is one of the main problems that I have noticed and experienced after moving back to Kerala. I have been to Markaz Complex and it actually feels weird to go in there. People stare at you like aliens.
ReplyDeleteI wish people would understand the need for such spaces, In sha Allah!
Well written.