Islam and Wife Beatings?

Quote from jebara:

Hey before you go getting your information on Islam, stay away from worldnetdaily.com they are a very conservative site that is anti-muslim and anti arab. Just view there past articles and you will see them all to be negative and bordering on being absurd.

I agree that worldnetdaily would be biased towards Islam but the great majority of what Reardan wrote is just solid research that has nothing to do with "wnd" (as it affectionatly calls itself)...
 
after reading this... I'm definitely going to become a Muslim. "Allah" knows where it's at ... ;) Does Allah say anything about doing it from behind? :confused:

to

Quote from Rearden Metal:

THE QURAN AND ISLAMIC WIFE BEATING



I present 6 English versions of the Quran from chapter 4, called Nisa (Women), verse 34. I provided all these not to be redundant but to show how similar the versions are. These translations are all from recognized scholars. I have corrected some archaic spelling. My comments are in [ ] type brackets.





TEXT FROM THE QURAN, 4:34





RODWELL [1]: "Men are superior to women on account of the qualities with which God has gifted the one above the other, and on account of the outlay they make from their substance for them. Virtuous women are obedient, careful, during the husband's absence, because God has of them been careful. But chide those for whose refractoriness you have cause to fear; remove them into beds apart, and scourge them: but if they are obedient to you, then seek not occasion against them: verily, God is High, Great!"



['Refractoriness' means hard or impossible to manage, stubbornly disobedient'].





DAWOOD [2]: "Men have authority over women because God has made the one superior to the other, and because they spend their wealth to maintain them. Good women are obedient. They guard their unseen parts because God has guarded them. As for those from whom you fear disobedience, admonish them and send them to beds apart and beat them. Then if they obey you, take no further action against them. Surely God is high, supreme."





PICKTHALL [3]: "Men are in charge of women, because Allah has made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret that which Allah has guarded. As for those from whom you fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High Exalted, Great."



ARBERRY [4]: "Men are the managers of the affairs of women for that God has preferred in bounty one of them over another, and for that they have expended of their property. Righteous women are therefore obedient, guarding the secret for God's guarding. And those you fear may be rebellious admonish; banish them to their couches, and beat them. If they then obey you, look not for any way against them; God is All high, All great."





SHAKIR [5]: Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them to excel others and because they spend out of their property; the good women are therefore obedient, guarding the unseen as Allah has guarded; and (as to) those on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them, and leave them alone in their sleeping places and beat them; then if they obey you, do not seek a way against them; surely Allah is High, Great.





ALI [6]: "Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient, and guard in (the husband's) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whom part you fear disloyalty and ill conduct, admonish them (first), (next), refuse to share their beds, (and last) beat them (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them means (of annoyance) for Allah is Most High, Great (above you all).







I placed Ali's version last because I have an important comment to make on his translation. Ali knew he was writing for a Western audience and that wife beating is viewed as brutal in the West. Consequently, Ali inserted many of his own words into the Quran’s text in order to make it less harsh. This was deceptive on Ali's part. Ali inserted his comments at 9 different places in the 4:34 text. I've done a quick review through Ali's Quran, and have not found any other verse with that many insertions. Clearly something was troubling him to cause him to add so much. Notice not one other translation has anything remotely near "lightly" when talking about the physical beating a man is supposed to give his wife. Ali was in part a Muslim apologist and his work here was meant to hide and soften the Quran’s real meaning.



I note that Muslim apologists like Ali frequently say that the beating should be 'light'. But in the context of the Quran it has to be severe enough to bring her into obedience. And it must produce a stronger psychological effect that verbal chastisement and sexual desertion produce. In other words - it's got to hurt. But the husband is not to whip her like a slave or severely injure the wife.


ANALYSIS

The Quran lists a progression of steps to be used in dealing with a rebellious wife:


1) The husband is to verbally admonish her
2) If that fails the husband is to sexually desert his wife
3) If both measures above fail the husband is exhorted to physically beat his wife.


[NOTE: It must be noted that obedience to her husband is not required if he orders her to do something sinful, causes her physical pain, or something she is incapable of doing].

This passage in the Quran lays the foundation for wife beating. Without it, the case for beating the wife would be somewhat weaker. Wife beating is amply testified in the Hadith, but having a corroborating verse in the Quran places the permissible action of wife beating on a solid foundation.

As I pointed out in the introduction, do not focus only on the command to beat the disobedient wife, also examine the superior position the man has over the woman. Review the beginning of the verse --- men are “superior”, men have “authority”, men are “in charge”, men are “the managers”, men are “the maintainers”. Clearly, Muhammad put the man over the wife, he is her custodian, he responsibly maintains her, she obeys him. That is a foundational premise in an Islamic marriage.



"A women complained to Muhammad that her husband slapped her on the face, (which was still marked by the slap). At first the prophet said to her: "Get even with him", but then added: "Wait until I think about it". Later on, Allah supposedly revealed 4:34 to Muhammad, after which the prophet said: "We wanted one thing but Allah wanted another, and what Allah wanted is best". [To beat your wife is best.]



http://www.answering-islam.org/Silas/wife-beating.htm
 
Quote from spect8or:

Well, most modern accounts of WW2 tend to be very 'biased' against Germany. No idea why.


Rearden, I know man, more than a few skeletons in Islam's closet. Thing is, as much as we might wish it to, that religion isn't just gonna disappear into thin air. Only hope is to reform it. I mean, Jews had their reform movement, which I think was a good thing. Islam desperately needs its own. One thing which kinda makes it tough, as I've said before, is that the Koran is supposed to the verbatim transcript of God talking. So it's a lot harder to 're-interpret' than, for example, the bible (which was written by "fallible men"). Still, there are signs of it happening, which is encouraging. What would really accelerate the process is if arabs got their economies motoring along. There's a lot less time to spend hating and being a religious bigot when there's money to be made. (I don't think Saudi Arabia really counts here, 'cos they basically fell ass backward into that pot of black gold.)

There's a lot of major assumptions in what you say here. I know from previous posts that you enjoy assuming that all religions and religious writings to be primitive and man-contrived at their core. These are assumptions that are unprovable by you and could easily be false.

History has taken many fascinating turns in the last few centuries that leave standard, liberal "white bread" materialism seriously wanting in explanations imo...
 
Quote from ShoeshineBoy:

There's a lot of major assumptions in what you say here. I know from previous posts that you enjoy assuming that all religions and religious writings to be primitive and man-contrived at their core. These are assumptions that are unprovable by you and could easily be false.

History has taken many fascinating turns in the last few centuries that leave standard, liberal "white bread" materialism seriously wanting in explanations imo...


Major assumptions? Like what?

** "Rearden, I know man, more than a few skeletons in Islam's closet. "

Is that a major assumption? Um, no.

** "Thing is, as much as we might wish it to, that religion isn't just gonna disappear into thin air."

"We" as in Rearden and I; a major assumption? Um, no.

** "Only hope is to reform it."

Major "assumption"? Um, no. (It's an opinion.)

** " I mean, Jews had their reform movement, which I think was a good thing."

Fact and opinion. No "major assumption".

** "Islam desperately needs its own. "

Opinion.

"One thing which kinda makes it tough, as I've said before, is that the Koran is supposed to the verbatim transcript of God talking. "

Fact.

"So it's a lot harder to 're-interpret' than, for example, the bible (which was written by "fallible men")."

A rather obvious conclusion to reach, wouldn't you say? (Or do you actually believe the Koran is a verbatim account of Allah's word?)

**"Still, there are signs of it happening, which is encouraging." "
**"What would really accelerate the process is if arabs got their economies motoring along."
**" There's a lot less time to spend hating and being a religious bigot when there's money to be made. "

Opinion, opinion, opinion. What "major assumptions" did I make?

If it makes you feel better Shoeshine (and I hope it does), I do take back much of what I said in those religion threads. Propagating my general views on religion isn't part of my agenda in recent threads I've taken part in.
 
Quote from TradeOff:

Beatings with a rod... clitoral amputation... one thing the article doesn't mention... the women actually enjoy it.

//shrug//

to

No human organism, of any faith and especially children, reacts with pleasure to this. To suggest otherwise is despicable.

You are on my Ignore List.
 
Quote from spect8or:

Major assumptions? Like what?

** "Rearden, I know man, more than a few skeletons in Islam's closet. "

Is that a major assumption? Um, no.

....................

Opinion, opinion, opinion. What "major assumptions" did I make?

If it makes you feel better Shoeshine (and I hope it does), I do take back much of what I said in those religion threads. Propagating my general views on religion isn't part of my agenda in recent threads I've taken part in.

Gotcha. I misinterpreted what you were saying. I thought you were "propagating" as you put it...Nevermind...
 
I lived in Cairo for two years as a teenager. My mother had an Egyptian woman friend, a Muslim.

One day I hear this frantic pounding on our door, and when I open it here's this woman with blood streaming down her face. Her husband had beaten her with one of her shoes until the heel broke off on her scalp.

We found out that he beat her regularly and brutally. He was in the military or a policeman, I forget which. She lived in a constant state of fear. My father went down to the police station and talked to the commandant, who had little empathy for a westerner lecturing him about women's rights.

Shortly after that incident, my mother lost all contact with her friend. To my mother's grief, we never found out what happened to her.

Now, I don't know if this particular case was a Muslim thing or an Egyptian thing or even an Arab thing. I do know that we heard of many incidents of Egyptian women being beaten and treated as no better than livestock.

Women are definitely abused in our country and other non-Muslim countries, but, generally speaking, it appears that women in the West have a much better time of it than their Arab counterparts, and from what I understand, Indian as well.
 
Quote from hapaboy:

I lived in Cairo for two years as a teenager. My mother had an Egyptian woman friend, a Muslim.

One day I hear this frantic pounding on our door, and when I open it here's this woman with blood streaming down her face. Her husband had beaten her with one of her shoes until the heel broke off on her scalp.

We found out that he beat her regularly and brutally. He was in the military or a policeman, I forget which. She lived in a constant state of fear. My father went down to the police station and talked to the commandant, who had little empathy for a westerner lecturing him about women's rights.

Shortly after that incident, my mother lost all contact with her friend. To my mother's grief, we never found out what happened to her.

Now, I don't know if this was a Muslim thing or an Egyptian thing or even an Arab thing. I do know that we heard of many incidents of Egyptian women being beaten and treated as no better than livestock.

Women are definitely abused in our country and other non-Muslim countries, but, generally speaking, it appears that women in the West have a much better time of it than their Arab counterparts, and from what I understand, Indian as well.

Sick! I'd like to put a few of these guys in a ring with Mike Tyson or toss then into the middle of Ryker's buck naked...
 
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