Role of Women in Islamic Scholarship
Preface
, United Kingdom
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all worlds. We praise Him, seek His help and forgiveness, believe in Him, and rely on Him. Peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets, his family, companions, and all those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment.
A profound and unbiased study of the intellectual history of Islamic civilization reveals with utmost clarity that the role of women in the intellectual, spiritual, and scholarly formation of the Muslim Ummah has never been marginal, temporary, or incidental. Rather, they have been a vital, effective, and enduring element of this grand civilizational process. The Holy Qur’an addresses both men and women equally in matters of knowledge, understanding of religion, piety, moral responsibility, and religious consciousness. During the Prophetic era, this Qur’anic principle manifested practically as women not only actively participated in acquiring religious knowledge but also made significant and commendable contributions in the fields of Hadith narration, jurisprudence, issuing legal opinions, teaching, ijtihad, community training, and scholarly discussions.
However, as the process of documenting Islamic history became confined to formal, class-based, and institutional frameworks, the scholarly contributions of women gradually receded into the background. Particularly in disciplines like jurisprudence and legal opinions, which in later periods were predominantly viewed as male domains, the genuine participation of women was either underrepresented or presented as partial, exceptional, and ineffective. Yet, historical sources, biographical dictionaries, classes, jurisprudential traditions, and scholarly credentials provide clear evidence that women’s participation in Islamic scholarly tradition was not only present but in some periods, they were regarded as authorities and references in issuing legal opinions, teaching, deriving rulings, and scholarly guidance.
Therefore, it is rightly commendable that my close friend, long-time companion, distinguished researcher, and writer, Dr. Muhammad Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi, has made a serious, beneficial, and research-oriented effort to revive this forgotten scholarly tradition through his work “Tazkirah al-Faqihat.” In my view, this book is not merely a collection of biographical accounts but an important endeavor in the scholarly rediscovery and civilizational revival of a neglected aspect of Islamic jurisprudential history. Its significance is further enhanced by the fact that in the Urdu language, comprehensive, coherent, research-based, and documented work on this subject is exceedingly rare.
Dr. Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi is counted among the eminent scholars of the subcontinent who have played a quiet yet highly effective role in the fields of contemporary Islamic thought, jurisprudence and legal opinions, da’wah, social reform, and scholarly awakening. He is not merely a prolific author but a representative of a living intellectual and reformative tradition. His scholarly persona combines Nadwi’s intellectual taste, da’wah consciousness, reformative thought, research seriousness, and intellectual moderation so seamlessly that his writings not only serve as a repository of information but also expand the intellectual horizons of the reader. His numerous books on Islamic sciences, intellectual debates, women’s issues, biography, social reform, and da’wah topics are published and regarded with trust, benefit, and esteem in serious scholarly circles. His writings prominently exhibit scholarly integrity, balance, moderation, purposefulness, and da’wah insight, qualities that are rare in the present era.
To understand his personality and intellectual disposition, it is also necessary to mention the righteous and religious family whose reformative tradition played a fundamental role in shaping his intellectual and moral identity. His late father was among those sincere reformers who, in an environment where customs, innovations, and non-Islamic social attitudes were deeply entrenched, quietly yet effectively strove to awaken true religious consciousness and propagate Islamic beliefs. His life was not limited to individual piety or personal worship but was characterized by da’wah, social reform, and the service of Islamic symbols. This is why, in the last days of his life, he made the construction of a mosque his investment for the Hereafter. Indeed, families founded on sincerity, da’wah, service to humanity, and reform of the Ummah give rise to such blessed traditions of knowledge and action that influence generation after generation. Dr. Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi’s scholarly, da’wah, and reformative personality seems to be a natural extension of this righteous environment.
In the subcontinent, the Jamaat-e-Islami has played a historical role in fostering religious consciousness among the modern educated class, combating intellectual and ideological deviations, and presenting Islam as a living civilizational, intellectual, and moral force. The influence of this reformative and da’wah environment is also prominently felt in the intellectual formation of Dr. Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi. The purposefulness, scholarly seriousness, moderation, humility, and religious consciousness found within him are not merely the products of educational institutions but the fruits of a living reformative tradition. The scholarly atmosphere of Nadwatul Ulama instilled in him a taste for knowledge, research insight, and a deep attachment to Arabic and Islamic sciences, while his association with the da’wah and reformative movement gave his knowledge purpose, direction, and practical significance. This is why his writings not only contain scholarly information but also reflect the pain of the intellectual, moral, and civilizational issues of the Ummah.
I have personally had a special scholarly affinity with this subject. My work “Al-Wafa bi Asma al-Nisa” was primarily an effort to compile the scholarly contributions of those Muslim women who played a prominent role in the preservation, dissemination, and teaching of Hadith and Prophetic sciences. During this work, it repeatedly became evident that the scope of women’s contributions in the Islamic scholarly tradition was not limited to Hadith narration alone but was also significant, effective, and comprehensive in jurisprudence, issuing legal opinions, principles of jurisprudence, teaching, derivation, and scholarly discussions. Therefore, I consider “Tazkirah al-Faqihat” an important extension and completion of this scholarly series. The diligence, pursuit, historical consciousness, scholarly integrity, and research thoroughness with which Dr. Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi has compiled this subject are rightly commendable.
A notable feature of this book is that the author has not confined himself to well-known and prevalent personalities but has also endeavored to bring to light women from various centuries, regions, scholarly centers, and jurisprudential schools whose mention is rarely found in general scholarly discussions. This strongly underscores the fact that women’s jurisprudential contributions were not an exceptional or accidental phenomenon but a natural and indispensable part of the scholarly structure and jurisprudential tradition of Islamic civilization.
This book is also immensely important in another respect, as it brings balance to our contemporary scholarly and intellectual debates. In the present era, there are two extremes regarding women’s religious education and jurisprudential participation: one side attempts to prove the Islamic tradition as limited, stagnant, and inactive concerning women’s scholarly roles, while the other side, under the influence of modern intellectual pressures, presents a reinterpretation of Islamic history devoid of historical balance. The book at hand presents a balanced and credible narrative based on pure scholarly, historical, and documentary foundations, distinct from both extremes. It provides strong evidence that women’s scholarly roles in the Islamic tradition were neither merely symbolic nor temporary but were an effective and active part of the scholarly continuity and jurisprudential tradition.
While reading the book, one intensely feels that the Muslim Ummah has forgotten a significant portion of its scholarly memory. Until Islamic scholarly history is studied with all its classes, scholarly centers, and influential elements, a complete and balanced picture cannot emerge. Ignoring women’s scholarly contributions is tantamount to reading the intellectual history of Islamic civilization incompletely and inadequately. Dr. Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi’s work is a serious, scholarly, and commendable effort to rectify this incompleteness.
I am confident that “Tazkirah al-Faqihat” will not only prove beneficial for scholars, university students, and madrasa students but will also provide a strong foundation for future research. Particularly for the new generation of Muslim female students, this book will serve as living proof that the Islamic scholarly tradition has always offered them breadth, possibilities, role models, and historical precedents. If, as a result of this book, a new atmosphere of serious scholarly training, specialization, and research enthusiasm among women in jurisprudence and Islamic sciences emerges, it will undoubtedly be a great scholarly ongoing charity for its author.
I extend heartfelt congratulations to my dear friend Dr. Muhammad Razi-ul-Islam Nadwi for this invaluable scholarly service and pray that Allah Almighty grants this work acceptance, makes it beneficial for the Ummah, and bestows further expansion, blessings, acceptance, and impact on the author’s scholarly, intellectual, and da’wah services.
And my success is only by Allah; upon Him, I rely, and to Him, I turn.
Muhammad Akram Nadwi,
17th Dhu al-Qi’dah 1447 AH
