Question

Assalamu alaikum,

It was reported in the Hadith of Abu Huraira that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said,

سَبْعَةٌ يُظِلُّهُمْ اللَّهُ فِي ظِلِّهِ يَوْمَ لَا ظِلَّ إِلَّا ظِلُّهُ الْإِمَامُ الْعَادِلُ وَشَابٌّ نَشَأَ بِعِبَادَةِ اللَّهِ وَرَجُلٌ قَلْبُهُ مُعَلَّقٌ فِي الْمَسَاجِدِ وَرَجُلَانِ تَحَابَّا فِي اللَّهِ اجْتَمَعَا عَلَيْهِ وَتَفَرَّقَا عَلَيْهِ وَرَجُلٌ دَعَتْهُ امْرَأَةٌ ذَاتُ مَنْصِبٍ وَجَمَالٍ فَقَالَ إِنِّي أَخَافُ اللَّهَ وَرَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ بِصَدَقَةٍ فَأَخْفَاهَا حَتَّى لَا تَعْلَمَ يَمِينُهُ مَا تُنْفِقُ شِمَالُهُ وَرَجُلٌ ذَكَرَ اللَّهَ خَالِيًا فَفَاضَتْ عَيْنَاهُ

"There are seven persons whom Allah will shade on a Day when there is no shade but His. A just ruler, a young man who grew up in the worship of Allah, a man whose heart is attached to the mosques, two men who love each other for the sake of Allah who meet and depart from each other for the sake of Allah, a man whom a beautiful woman of high status seduces but he rejects her by saying I fear Allah, a man person who spends in charity and conceals it such that his right hand does not know what his left hand has given, and a man who remembered Allah in private and he wept." (Agreed upon.)

Why wasn't the woman mentioned in this context - singling out males - i.e. males were singled out in all cases and women were not mentioned? Please provide a comprehensive understanding, may Allah reward you and grant you His victory.

Answer

Wa Alaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullah Wa Barakatuhu,

Before answering you regarding the Hadith, and why the woman was not mentioned, I would like to mention to you the following:

1. There is a style used by the Arabs, called "Taghleeb" (addressing the dominant element), i.e. that the speech's tone is masculine, and the female is included through the style of "Taghleeb", like the saying of Allah (swt): ((يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا))"O you who believe" (masculine terms used), in which female believers are also included.

As well as what was reported by Al-Bukhari, that Abu Huraira (ra) narrated that the Prophet (saw) said,

«أَيُّمَا رَجُلٍ أَعْتَقَ امْرَأً مُسْلِمًا، اسْتَنْقَذَ اللَّهُ بِكُلِّ عُضْوٍ مِنْهُ عُضْوًا مِنْهُ مِنَ النَّارِ» "When a man frees a Muslim slave, Allah will save all the parts of his body from the (Hell) Fire as he has freed the body-parts of the slave." It is also applicable to women in the "Taghleeb" style. i.e. "when a woman frees a Muslim slave..."

Also like the Hadith of An-Nisa'i regarding the Zakat of the Camel... Abu Hurairah narrated, he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saw), saying:

أَيُّمَا رَجُلٍ كَانَتْ لَهُ إِبِلٌ لَا يُعْطِي حَقَّهَا فِي نَجْدَتِهَا وَرِسْلِهَا»، قَالُوا: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، مَا نَجْدَتُهَا وَرِسْلُهَا؟ قَالَ: «فِي عُسْرِهَا وَيُسْرِهَا، فَإِنَّهَا تَأْتِي يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ كَأَغَذِّ مَا كَانَتْ وَأَسْمَنِهِ وَآشَرِهِ، يُبْطَحُ لَهَا بِقَاعٍ قَرْقَرٍ فَتَطَؤُهُ بِأَخْفَافِهَا، إِذَا جَاءَتْ أُخْرَاهَا أُعِيدَتْ عَلَيْهِ أُولَاهَا فِي يَوْمٍ كَانَ مِقْدَارُهُ خَمْسِينَ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ، حَتَّى يُقْضَى بَيْنَ النَّاسِ فَيَرَى سَبِيلَهُ...

"Any man who has camels and does not pay what is due on them in its Najdah or its Risl mean", They said: ‘O messenger of Allah, What is their Najdah and Risl?' He said: "In times of hardship or in times of ease; they will come on the Day of Resurrection as energetic, fat and lively as they ever were. He will be laid face down in a flat arena for them and they will trample him with their hooves. When the last of them has passed, the first of them will return, on a day that is as long as fifty thousand years, until judgment is passed among the people, and he realizes his end..." This hadith also applies to women in the prevailing style, if she does not pay what is due from zakat for the camels she owns.

• And as you can see, the masculine terms used also apply to feminine terms and the woman in the "Taghleeb" style, in general cases.

2. But this "Taghleeb" style does not apply if it was suspended with a Shar'i text:

So for example, Allah (swt) says: ((كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْقِتَالُ وَهُوَ كُرْهٌ لَكُم))"Fighting is enjoined on you, and it is an object of dislike to you" [TMQ 2:216], the speech here is in a masculine tone, but we do not use here the style of "Taghleeb", so we do not say that this address also includes women through the style of "Taghleeb" in the terms "Fighting has been prescribed for you", because this is suspended with other Shar'i texts making Jihad only Fardh upon men,

It was reported by Ibn Maajah from Habib bin Abi Amrah, from A'isha bint Talhah, from A'isha the mother of the believers (raa), she said: I said: "O Messenger of Allaah, do women have to engage in jihad? He said: «نَعَمْ، عَلَيْهِنَّ جِهَادٌ، لَا قِتَالَ فِيهِ: الْحَجُّ وَالْعُمْرَةُ» "Yes, Jihad in which there is no fighting: Hajj and ‘Umrah." i.e. that Jihad in its fighting sense is not Fardh upon women.
Another example, Allah (swt) says:

((يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا نُودِيَ لِلصَّلَاةِ مِنْ يَوْمِ الْجُمُعَةِ فَاسْعَوْا إِلَى ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَذَرُوا الْبَيْعَ ذَلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ))

"O you who believe! when the call is made for prayer on Friday, then hasten to the remembrance of Allah and leave off trading; that is better for you, if you know." [TMQ: 62:9]

I.e. it is prohibited for men to continue their trade at the time of Friday Adhan, and here, the "Taghleeb" style does not apply, i.e. it is not prohibited for women to continue their trade during the Adhan time, because Friday Prayer is not Fardh upon women, as proven in the Hadith of the Prophet (saw), reported by Al-Hakim in Al-Mustadrak by the two Sahih, narrated by Abu Musa, that the Prophet (saw) said:

«الْجُمُعَةُ حَقٌّ وَاجِبٌ عَلَى كُلِّ مُسْلِمٍ فِي جَمَاعَةٍ إِلَّا أَرْبَعَةٌ: عَبْدٌ مَمْلُوكٌ، أَوِ امْرَأَةٌ، أَوْ صَبِيٌّ، أَوْ مَرِيضٌ»

"Salaatul Jumaah in congregation is a duty (wajib) upon every Muslim except for four: a slave, a woman, the immature boy and the sick."

Al-Hakim said, "This hadith (narration) is Sahih (valid) according to the requirements of the two Sheikhs (Bukhari and Muslim), and Adh-Dhahabi agreed with him.

3. Accordingly, we understand the Hadith as follows:

The text of the Hadith reported by Bukhari in his Sahih, Abu Huraira narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,

سَبْعَةٌ يُظِلُّهُمُ اللَّهُ فِي ظِلِّهِ، يَوْمَ لاَ ظِلَّ إِلَّا ظِلُّهُ: الإِمَامُ العَادِلُ، وَشَابٌّ نَشَأَ فِي عِبَادَةِ رَبِّهِ، وَرَجُلٌ قَلْبُهُ مُعَلَّقٌ فِي المَسَاجِدِ، وَرَجُلاَنِ تَحَابَّا فِي اللَّهِ اجْتَمَعَا عَلَيْهِ وَتَفَرَّقَا عَلَيْهِ، وَرَجُلٌ طَلَبَتْهُ امْرَأَةٌ ذَاتُ مَنْصِبٍ وَجَمَالٍ، فَقَالَ: إِنِّي أَخَافُ اللَّهَ، وَرَجُلٌ تَصَدَّقَ، أَخْفَى حَتَّى لاَ تَعْلَمَ شِمَالُهُ مَا تُنْفِقُ يَمِينُهُ، وَرَجُلٌ ذَكَرَ اللَّهَ خَالِيًا فَفَاضَتْ عَيْنَاهُ

"There are seven persons whom Allah will shade on a Day when there is no shade but His. A just ruler, a young man who grew up in the worship of Allah, a man whose heart is attached to the Masajid, two men who love each other for the sake of Allah who meet and depart from each other for the sake of Allah, a man whom a beautiful woman of high status seduces but he rejects her by saying I fear Allah, a man person who spends in charity and conceals it such that his right hand does not know what his left hand has given, and a man who remembered Allah in private and he wept." (Agreed upon)

This Hadith is applicable to the woman through the style of Taghleeb regarding the five out of the seven categories mentioned, which have not been suspended through other Shar'i, so it applies to a young woman who grew up in the rememberance of Allah... and to two women who love each other for the sake of Allah... and a woman whom a man seduces...and a woman who spends in charity... and a woman who remembered Allah in private and she wept...

But this Taghleeb style does not apply to the Just Ruler, and a man whose heart is attached to the Masajid because they are both suspended through a Text:

As for the«الإِمَامُ العَادِلُ» "Just Ruler", the "Taghleeb" style does not work here because a woman does not take leadership, as the Messenger of Allah (saw) said in the Hadith of Bukhari, narrated by Abu Bakra, who said: When the Prophet (saw) heard the news that the people of the Persia had made the daughter of Chosroes (Kisra) their Queen (ruler), he said, «لَنْ يُفْلِحَ قَوْمٌ وَلَّوْا أَمْرَهُمُ امْرَأَةً» "Never will succeed such a nation as makes a woman their ruler." Because guardianship, i.e. leadership is not allowed for women, as for other positions than leadership like Judiciary, electing a Khaleefah, elect and be elected in Majlis al-Ummah (Ummah Council), and other such legitimate jobs that are not part of leadership, are permissible for her to carry out... this means that the word "Just Ruler" does not include her, yet some interpreters interpreted "Just Ruler" to mean a Just Shepherd, applying it to women according to the Hadith reported by Bukhari that Abdullah Ibn ‘Umar said, I heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace say:

كُلُّكُمْ رَاعٍ، وَكُلُّكُمْ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ، الإِمَامُ رَاعٍ وَمَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ، وَالرَّجُلُ رَاعٍ فِي أَهْلِهِ وَهُوَ مَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِ، وَالمَرْأَةُ رَاعِيَةٌ فِي بَيْتِ زَوْجِهَا وَمَسْئُولَةٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهَا...

"All of you are shepherds and each of you is responsible for his flock. An Imam is a shepherd and he is responsible for those in his care. A man is a shepherd in respect of his family and is responsible for those in his care. The woman is a shepherd in respect of her husband's house and is responsible for those in her care..."

But most likely that "Taghleeb" is not used here because the words "Just Ruler" is preponderant to the Ruler, hence it is non-applicable to women.

As for«وَرَجُلٌ قَلْبُهُ مُعَلَّقٌ فِي المَسَاجِدِ» "A man whose heart is attached to the Masajid", it is also suspended through the Text stating that the Prayer of a woman in her home is better than her Prayer in the Masjid, this is in accordance to the Hadith of the Prophet (saw), reported by Ahmad in his Musnad, that Abdullah Ibn Suwaid Al-Ansari, on the authority of Umm Humayd, who came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said, "O Messenger of Allah, I love to pray with you." He replied:

قَدْ عَلِمْتُ أَنَّكِ تُحِبِّينَ الصَّلَاةَ مَعِي، وَصَلَاتُكِ فِي بَيْتِكِ خَيْرٌ لَكِ مِنْ صَلَاتِكِ فِي حُجْرَتِكِ، وَصَلَاتُكِ فِي حُجْرَتِكِ خَيْرٌ مِنْ صَلَاتِكِ فِي دَارِكِ، وَصَلَاتُكِ فِي دَارِكِ خَيْرٌ لَكِ مِنْ صَلَاتِكِ فِي مَسْجِدِ قَوْمِكِ، وَصَلَاتُكِ فِي مَسْجِدِ قَوْمِكِ خَيْرٌ لَكِ مِنْ صَلَاتِكِ فِي مَسْجِدِي

"I know that you like to pray with me, But your prayer in your room is better for you than your prayer in your courtyard and your prayer in your courtyard is better for you than your praying in your house, and your prayer in your house is better for you than your prayer in the mosque of your people, and your prayer in the mosque of your people is better for you than your prayer in my mosque."

Consequently, five out of the seven categories apply to women with the "Taghleeb" style, as for the just Ruler and being attached to the Masajid, they are not applicable because they are suspended through Text and therefore the style of "Taghleeb" does not work here.

And for the full benefit, I mention to you what came in the Tafseer of Fatih Al-Bari for Ibn Hajar for the Hadith Al-Bukhari mentioned, especially the end of the interpretation of the Hadeeth, this is its text:

"...Although men are mentioned in this hadeeth, women are also included in what is described here. Although what is meant by a "just leader" is the position of imaam (Khaleefah), women may also be included in this, if they have children and treat them justly. The idea of being attached to the mosque does not apply to women, because a woman's prayer in her home is better than her prayer in the mosque. Apart from that, women have a share in all of these things..." (Ends.)

Consequently, the Hadeeth of the seven applies to women except for the just Ruler and whose heart is attached to the Masajid, they are not applicable because the "Taghleeb" style is suspended through Text.

Your Brother,
Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah

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