Interpretation of 4:34
The majority of anti-women reasoning centers on the Quranic verse 4:34: “Men are the [qawwmuna] of women, because Allah has [faddala] over the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient [qanitatun], and guard in (the husband's) absence what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whose part ye fear [nushoozahunna], admonish them (first), refuse to share their beds, (And last) [driboohunna]; but if they return to obedience, seek not against them Means (of annoyance): For Allah is Most High, great (above you all).”[i]
The word ‘qawwamun’ is often translated as ‘manager’. As Amina Wadud, Azizah al-Hibri, and Riffat Hassan argue, linguistically ‘qawwamun’ means ‘breadwinners’ or ‘those who provide a means of support or livelihood.’[ii] Thus ‘qawwam’ cannot be understood as to imply men’s superiority or even being managers for women, as widely interpreted by conservative exegetes. As to gender relations, the Quran has clearly appointed women and men each other’s ‘awliya’, or mutual protectors, which it could not do if men were in fact more superior to women and become their ‘managers’. The Divine sources mention ‘care’ and ‘responsibility’ within the family, but not superiority (9:71). Responsibility is not, and cannot be interpreted as superiority. The material responsibility of men mentioned in the Quran, that they are invested with the responsibility of spending for women’s support, has corresponding advantages.
Quoting Hibri, Barlas[iii] argues that men as a class are not ‘qawwamun’ over women as a class. If a woman becomes economically sufficient, say by inheritance or by earning wealth, and contributes to the household expenditure, the male ‘superiority’ would be to that extend reduced, since as a human he has no superiority over his wife. ‘Qawwamun’ over women is a matter where God gave some of the men more than some on the women, and in what the men spend of their money. By this rule Hibri[iv] concludes that “no one has the right to counsel a self-supporting woman.” In this context, Fazlur Rahman (1911-1988) also argues that a wife’s economic self-sufficiency and contribution to the household, reduces the husband’s superiority, “since as a human, he has no superiority over his wife”.[v]
Generally, Muslim scholars consider ‘faddala’, used in the verse 4:34, an unconditional preference of males over females and do not restrict ‘qiwwamah’ to the family relationship but apply it to society as large. Further the word ‘qanitat’ in 4:34 is most often referred to as obedience to husband. This view opposes any possibility of female leadership as it claims the Quran prefers men as leaders both within the family and with the society. On the other hand, Sayyid Qutb, a great exegete, restricts the applicability of the verse to the family. Wadud[vi] and Siddique[vii] points out that the Quran uses the word ‘qanitat’ in other context to refer to human behaviour towards God; we cannot, therefore, assume that it refers to the wife’s conduct alone.. The Quran classifies Mary as “one of the qanitin” (66:12) using the masculine plural form of the word that indicates one devout to God. ‘Qunut’ appears on many other occasions in Quran, where it is used exclusively in the sense of submissive obedience to God.[viii]
The marriage relationship should be based on mutual consultation, respect, and that obedience is only to God, and obedience even to the Prophet was only in righteousness (maruuf).
The root word “daraba” which has been generally translated as ‘beating”, is one of commonest root-words in the Arabic language with a large number of possible meanings. That the vast majority of translators- that happen to be men- have chosen to translate this as ‘beating’ clearly indicates a bias in favour of male controlled, male oriented society. “Daraba” does not necessarily indicate force or violence. The term can be used when someone leaves or ‘strikes out’ on a journey.[ix] In the light of the Quranic world-view that endorses equality, justice, harmony and compassion, the meaning ‘to strike’ cannot possibly fulfill the objective of protecting the institution of marriage and securing the physical and emotional integrity of women. In marriage there should be harmony (4:128), love, and mercy (30:21), and husbands and wives should protect each other (2:187). The word ‘beat’ as it is used in this context is mistranslation of the Arabic word “daraba” which in the Quran alone is used in six different ways, Arabic being a much more faceted language that English, other verses in which this word is used are many.[x] Further, the nature of the Arabic language must also be taken into account: each word in Arabic is designated as masculine or feminine and it does not follow that use of a male or a female noun necessarily restricts the application to the mention of gender.[xi]
In the light of these evidences, the translation of the verse 4:34 may be read as: “Men are the protectors and maintainers [qawwmuna] of women, because Allah has given the one more (strength) [faddala] than the other, and because they support them from their means. Therefore the righteous women are devoutly obedient [qanitatun], (to God), and guard what Allah would have them guard. As to those women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill-conduct [nushoozahunna], admonish them (first), (Next), refuse to share their beds, (And last) separate from them [driboohunna]; but if they return to obedience, seek not against them Means (of annoyance): For Allah is Most High, great (above you all).
[i] See for an exegetically interesting discussion of Quran 4:34; Khaled M Abou El Fadll, The Search for Beauty in Islam, University Press of
[ii] Asma Barlas, Beliving Women in Islam: Unreading Patriarchal Interpretations of the Quran,
[iii] Asma Barlas, Ibid, p.187
[iv] Asma Barlas, Ibid, p.187
[v] Asma Barlas, Ibid, p.187
[vi] Amina Wadud, Quran and Women: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Women’s Perspective.
[vii] Asma Barlas, Op.cit, p.187
[viii] Quran 2:116, 3:17, 30:26, 33:31, 33:35, 39:9
[ix] Amina Wadud, OP cit, p.15
[x] Quran 47:27, 18:11, 43:5, 14:24, 2:273. Instead of singling out a particular verse to interpret the Scripture, the message has to be taken in the light of the whole Quranic text (3:7, 2;85, 13:6, 3;72, 3;119). In the Quran, depending on the context, one can ascribe different meaning to the word ‘darba’: to travel to get out: 3:156, 4:101; to set up: 43:58, 57:13; to give (examples): 14:24-45, 16:75-76; to cover: 24:31; to explain 13:17
[xi] Amina Wadud, OP cit, p.6-7
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