Polygamy is endorsed
in Islam, but not polyandry and many question this logic of allowing Muslim men
take up to four wives but deny the right to have multiple husbands for Muslim
women.
Dr Zakir Naik stated that the foundation
of an Islamic society is justice and equity. Allah has created men and women as
equal, but with different capabilities and different responsibilities.
Men and women are
different, physiologically and psychologically. Their roles and
responsibilities are different. Men and women are equal in Islam, but not
identical.
Surah Nisa’ Chapter 4
verses 22 to 24 gives the list of women with who you can not marry and it is
further mentions in Surah Nisa’ Chapter 4 verse 24 "Also (prohibited are)
women already married"
LOGIC SPEAK:
Man and women are
equal in Islam. Well how come Muslim men in some Islamic countries deny women
education, disallow women from becoming leaders and the head of the country,
prohibit women from driving and voting and even venturing out of the confines
of a house and whack the daylights out of their wife or wives or even kill them? So
much for equality.
The only difference in
physiology, psychology , capabilities, responsibilities and non identical trait
between men and women is giving birth and for the psychological part, motherly, tender nuance.
What Zakir said is a sugarcoated version of women subjugation. An euphemism.
The following points
enumerate the reasons why polyandry is prohibited in Islam:
1. If a man has more than one wife, the parents of the children born of such
marriages can easily be identified. The father as well as the mother can easily
be identified. In case of a woman marrying more than one husband, only the
mother of the children born of such marriages will be identified and not the
father. Islam gives tremendous importance to the identification of both
parents, mother and father. Psychologists tell us that children who do not know
their parents, especially their father undergo severe mental trauma and
disturbances. Often they have an unhappy childhood. It is for this reason that
the children of prostitutes do not have a healthy childhood. If a child born of
such wedlock is admitted in school, and when the mother is asked the name of
the father, she would have to give two or more names! I am aware that recent
advances in science have made it possible for both the mother and father to be
identified with the help of genetic testing. Thus this point which was
applicable for the past may not be applicable for the present.
LOGIC SPEAK:
Psychologists
tell that children who do not know their
parents especially their father undergo severe mental trauma and disturbances
and they often have an unhappy childhood? In that case, all orphans and those
who were brought up by a single parent, especially a single mother are all
traumatized and had a dreadful childhood devoid of dreams and aspirations.
Interestingly,
prostitution is allowed in Islam but not polyandry. And, the children of prostitutes don’t have
healthy childhoods. So I suppose marrying an 8 year old girl off to a 50 year
old man would guarantee the child a happy childhood. She ended up dying on her
wedding night. Her innocence and childhood was stolen from her. She knew both
her mother and father and they sold her as a child bride and she died at the
hands of her husband. Tell me again if
she would have a happy childhood if she is alive today.
As for the genetic
testing, thank science, not Allah.
2. Man is more polygamous by nature as compared to a woman.
LOGIC SPEAK:
Being polygamous is not set in gender. It is set in the psychology of an
individual regardless of the individual being male or female. Again, rubbish.
3. Biologically, it is easier for a man to perform his duties as a husband
despite having several wives. A woman, in a similar position, having several
husbands, will not find it possible to perform her duties as a wife. A woman
undergoes several psychological and behavioral changes due to different phases
of the menstrual cycle.
LOGIC SPEAK:
Biologically as in
sex? If the above is true, prostitution will run out of business. What? Only
women undergo several psychological and behavioral changes and it is only caused by
menstruation? Aah, I see that men don’t
have hormones.
4. A woman who has more than one husband will have several sexual partners at
the same time and has a high chance of acquiring venereal or sexually
transmitted diseases which can also be transmitted back to her husband even if
all of them have no extra-marital sex. This is not the case in a man having
more than one wife, and none of them having extra-marital sex.
LOGIC SPEAK:
How can a woman have a higher risk of contracting STDs by having sex with
multiple sexual partners as in husbands if they abstain from extra marital sex?
To add the icing to the cake, it seems that the woman might transmit STD back to
her husband. But, in a polygamous
relationship, the women somehow become immune from venereal diseases and all is
safe for the husband. This logic is as good as an oxymoron.
And, wow, if this is
really the word from Allah to Muhammad, supposedly STDs were rampant in that
era where pre-marital sex is an abomination.
AIDS was not detected
in human beings until 1985 and the disease originated from Africa.
Syphilis and
gonorrhea were only discovered in the 19th century by modern medicine.
The above reasons are those that one can easily identify. There are probably
many more reasons why Allah, in His Infinite Wisdom, has prohibited polyandry.
LOGIC SPEAK:
Yeah, whatever that floats your boat.
Don't forget to share with your friends and colleagues
You can leave your comments below, in the Comment Section. We like to have a healthy debate here. Please avoid profanity, personal attacks and rouse racial and religious sensitivity. The views of the commentators are not shared by Both Coin. The bottomline is, comment sensibly with relevance to the article.