Woman in Islamic Shari‘ah
6. The Rights of Husband and Wife
~ 133 ~
the eyes of God are those who are obedient to their
husbands.
It is natural for a man who has been entrusted with
the maintenance of family life to expect obedience
from his wife. Without that, the division of labor
would be meaningless. The husband is just like the
ruler of a country who can function as such only
when the public is ready to obey him. In the face of
public disobedience, even the best of rulers will
have no control over the running of the country.
The same is also true of the internal workings of the
home. The home is the basic unit of the vaster
organization of the nation. It is only when the
smaller units are in order, that the larger unit can
function successfully. It is, therefore, absolutely
essential that the home should be marked by an
atmosphere of obedience and conformance. Of
course, the woman enjoys the right to dissent and to
give advice. But once the man has come to a
decision, it becomes incumbent upon the woman to
abide loyally by that decision.
Having more experience of the outside world, a
man is somewhat more broad-minded than a
