Women Rights: No Space For Women In A Religious World. Decades ago, the general opinion of the masses was that, the more the world moves forward, religion or the belief in a magical, powerful; being living somewhere in the sky will decrease to the point of non-existence. Everyone thought that with advancement in science and technology, “God” will cease to matter anymore. But human society is anything but predictable. Philosophers, sociologists and scientists can make a thousand prophecies on what turns humanity will take, but when the time comes the fickle human nature will do something completely opposite of all expectations.
In the same way, proving everyone wrong, when humanity is at the era of finding water on Moon, colonizing Mars and getting pictures of the black hole, and achieving many more scientific feats that we once thought impossible, our faith in an invincible sky being gets stronger and dangerously blind. The importance of religion has increased such that it is at the center of world politics.
Laws and ties are made with each other on the basis of religion. For example, a secular Turkey becomes best friends with an Islamic Pakistan, while it slowly discards its secularism and dreams of restoring the Caliphate. In the same way, a secular India, which has been politically always been a supporter of Palestine, shows its solidarity to Israel, which coincides with its frightening rise in Islamophobia and an oppressive Hindu state.
Rise in religion in politics is a danger to minorities all around. Whether for the Muslims in China and India, Christians in Turkey or Hindus in Gulf countries and Pakistan. But more than that, the predominance of religion is a terrible fate for women, regardless of their religion.
And the reason for this is that the four pillars of any religion sit on the base of oppression of women. Because when religion in itself is a result of patriarchy and power, how can you expect women to have rights in a religious world.
But dare you to say this thing in front of a believer of any faith, they would defend how their religion, which is the absolute and universal truth, is the divine law that gives rights to women, even more than men. And ironically, they are also the ones to send rape threats and assassinate characters of the mother or sister of the daring to criticize their God, who is the only truth, worthy of worshiping and source of all knowledge.
In the modern world with religious fanaticism at a rise, how can women demand and fight for equal rights, when no Godly laws don’t even allow women to speak or raise her head? Also, the structure of all the religious law books has been made keeping in mind the end result of women suffering.
Religion & women rights
To give proof to this statement, in Christianity’s Bible, Timothy 2:13-15 it is written that, “Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak… And if they will learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home.” And it should be also noted that thousands of women were burned at the stake with accusations of witchcraft by the people of this religion. Their crime was that they were intelligent, beautiful and wanted to live life their way, and not dictated by a book.
In Hinduism, as written in Chapter 9, verse 3 of Manusmriti (The Law of Manu), a woman is “protected by her father in childhood, her husband protects her in youth, and her sons protect her in old age; a woman is never fit for independence.” And if her husband dies, then her life is useless as well. It is without any purpose, and that is why she shall burn with the husband, which is far better than being a helpless widow.
And in Islam, if you are not covering yourself, from head to toe, including even your fingernails, then you are enticing a man towards sinful thoughts. As dictated in the verse al-Ahzaab 33:59, “O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (veils) all over their bodies (i.e., screen themselves completely except the eyes or one eye to see the way). That will be better, that they should be known (as free respectable women) so as not to be molested. And Allah is Ever Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful”. Hence, it is not the fault of the men for having such thoughts but it is yours, because apparently men can lose control even at the sight of nails, forehead or feet.
And in Confucianism, which is a religion or culture followed in many South-east Asia countries such as Vietnam, South Korea and China, a woman who cannot give birth to a child, that is a “barren” woman isn’t a woman at all and can be divorced by her husband. Therefore, your existence and the proof of your womanhood solely depends upon your ability to be a good breeding machine for society.
While in Buddhism’s tale of Sudinna it is said that, “It is better for you to have put your manhood in the mouth of a venomous snake or a pit of burning charcoal than a woman.” Because, according to this religion which is often mistakenly thought of as a liberal faith, a woman is an object of corruption that entices the monk away from Nirvana (liberation). And that is why it is the Bodhini’s duty to shave her head, give up her beauty in order to not attract the sages and achieve spirituality herself.
These were just some of the examples, there are entire paragraphs in all the religious books of the world where the woman is reduced to nothing but a maid in the kitchen, a slave in bed and an incubator for giving birth again and again. Which brings us to the fact that, God, all of them, say that women are blessed with a womb so that they could give birth to many children, because more the number of children, more people to follow the God that may or may not be man-made.
When a state goes from secular to religious it is always that the women’s rights are challenged. This year alone, so many events transpired that made us question the stance of the world in women rights. Some of them were, the right wing of the U.S.A, that believes in the biblical theory of life at conception, banning abortions, taking away women’s right to their own bodies. In a radicalized India we see, Muslim women not having the right to cover themselves up, while in a radicalized Iran and Afghanistan we see woman not having the right to not cover themselves up.
Looking further into these matters, one observes that religious intolerance is intricately woven with oppression of women. Hence, when a country makes religion its weapon, it hurts all those that it deems inferior, which are minorities and women. And if you intersect both the groups, you come up with the community of women that belong to the minority. And there is nothing more terrible than this existence, because not only a minority woman is oppressed by her own religion but at the same time she is also discriminated against by the majoritarian religion.
And examples of this too, we see in modern day countries. When extremism increases it is women of other communities that are first harmed. And there are myriad reasons for this. Because both the oppressor and oppressed community sees woman as a possession, something to be protected, stolen, and claimed. All the honour of the community is placed upon the shoulders of the woman even when she didn’t ask for it. Hence, hurting the woman of one community means that one has also hurt the honour and in turn the male ego of the community.
Then all the wars and riots are fought over this, blood is spilled and children are killed. Because of men with fragile egos worshiping Gods with equally fragile egos.
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