that a man gets better in faith without loving women better."(23)
It is useful here to refer to that the building which woman practices in society is sometimes a direct act and is sometimes through her psychological and moral relationship with her husband and her children. The wife should secure the atmosphere of rest and good association for her husband. She should also secure for him love, affection, and psychological tranqullity. For such psychological atmosphere has great effects on the character of husband and his relations with others and his ability to produce and give. That is because the psychological conditions of man affect all his activities and his relations with others. When family life is full of problems, worries, and tension, it affects the husband's character, work, production, and relations with others. Psychological atmospheres in the family not only affect the husband but also the children. It is difficult for the child who grows up in the atmosphere of hatred and tension and problems and bad treatment to be a righteous character in his behavior and his relation with others and in directing his physical and mental abilities. Sometimes, because of the conditions of bad education, the child becomes an irregularly aggressive human being or he becomes lazy and non-productive or becomes a loiterer and is ready to create problems and commit crimes. However, sound education forms a sound character. So, such education affects the economical, social, and scientific future of the child. Thus the role of woman is very effective in building society through educating and preparing good members for society, and through securing a sound atmosphere for her husband.
In the foregoing texts, the Holy Qur'an and the purified Prophetic traditions have limits for family administrative, organizational, educational, psychological, and lawful rules and foundations. Through these woman takes part in building society.
Accordingly, building the family stands on
1. Love, affection, mercy, and respect between husband and wife.
2. Woman has rights and duties.
3. Man is the leader and supervisor and manager of his house.
4. Man and woman cooperate with each other to run the affairs of life.
5. Man and woman should be moderate in spending, and that they should maintain the economy of their family.
6. They should feel responsibility, namely the husband should feel his responsibility towards his wife and the members of his family. Meanwhile, the wife should feel her responsibility towards her husband, her children, and her family. For she is responsible for looking after her house and her children. Moreover, she is responsible for bringing up her children in a good manner and treating them with love and kindness.
Woman and Family Economy
Among the basic problems of human society are: the problem of money, individual and collective income, and the balance between income and spending. This includes the economy of family and its financial balance between expenses and consumption. So, wasting food, drink, ornament, clothes, house, luxuries, and services are among the most dangerous problems that face man. Extravagance destroys the economy of family, nation, and state. Most times this extravagance does not match the income of family. To organize the economic balance of society, Islam summons people to be moderate in spending. It forbids extravagance and miserliness.
She takes great responsibility in organizing family spending and identifying its nature.
Islamic Law has legislated general rules for organizing spending. It has also limited the basic system for family spending and balance. We will mention some verses from the Qur'an that decribes the servants of the Most Merciful (Allah) and regards them as ideal examples to others in spending. In this connection, Allah, the Most High, says: "And those who when they spend, are neither extravagant nor niggardly but are stationed between the two (extremes)." Holy Qur'an (Furqan 25:67)
"and eat and drink you and commit you not excesses." Holy Qur'an (A'raf 7:31)
"And give to the near of kin his due and to the needy and the wayfarer, and squander not (your earnings) wastefully. Verily the squanderers are brethren of the satan; and Satan to his Lord is ever an ingrate."
Holy Qur'an (Isra' 17: 26-27)
"And cause you not to shackle your hand unto your neck, nor stretch it forth to the maximum (limits of) stretching forth, lest you should (therefore) sit down blamed, destitute." Holy Qur'an (Isra' 17:29)
"Lodge them, wherever you lodge according to your means, and you harm them not to straiten (life for) them, and if they be pregnant, spend you on them until they lay down their burden; and if they suckle (to your issues) for you, you give them their recompense; and deal you unto one another in fairness; and if you find between you difficulties, then shall suckle some other woman for him. Let him with abundance spend of his abundance and he on whom is straitened his subsistence, let him spend of what Allah has given him; (for) Allah lays not on any soul a burden save to the extent to which He has given it; Allah will soon bring about ease after difficulty." Holy Qur'an (Talaq 65:6-7)
In this manner the general bases of family budget spending and expenses are limited within the frames of moral moderation, education, and guidance- they are the social and the family frame.
The role of woman is prominent in managing the affairs of the house and family economy. That is when she is careful with the budget of her family and moderate in spending on luxuries.
The wife is able to save part of the income of the family and to free her husband from debts. That is when she is moderate in spending on herself and her family.
Extravagance does not only affect the family but also affects the general economic situation of society and state. For the ability to buy in the market becomes high because of high spending and consumption. So, the value of money becomes low and the prices of commodities and services increase. Accordingly, the deprivation of the poor (of buying) increases, the family faces debts and social problems, currency faces inflation. As a result of the disorderly economic situation of society , moral, security, and political problems come into existence.
To educate woman to be moderate in spending special lectures on family economy in schools take part in building economic awareness and save it especially from the problem of over expending and the deprivation of poor classes.
With this woman participates in building society through directing and organizing family economy, and through being moderate in spending according to the method of the Qur'an and its wise summons. Therefore, woman should carry out her responsibility towards her husband and her house according to the previous Prophetic tradition.
Work and Islamic Law
Islamic law summons people to work. It urges them to work using many practical attitudes, concepts, and texts. Among them are the following words of Allah, the Exalted:
"He it is Who made for you the earth subservient, traverse you then its board sides, and eat you of His provision; and unto Him (alone) is the return."
Holy Qur'an (Mulk 67:15)
"And when the prayer is ended then disperse you in the earth and seek you of the grace of Allah."
Holy Qur'an (Jumu'a 62:10)
"And seek, by means of what Allah has given you, the abode in the hereafter, and forget not your share in this world." Holy Qur'an (Qasas 28:77)
Islamic Law not only summons people to work and production but also it denotes that they are different in abilities and merits. It also denotes that people should be perfect through exchanging interests with each other. In this respect Allah, the Most High, said: "...and We did raise some of them above the others in rank, so that some of them may take the others in subjection."
Holy Qur'an (Zukhruf 43:32)
The Qur'an urges people to work, production, and exchanging interests. The Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.) regdarded work and production as jihad and worship. In this connection he (s.a.w.) said: "He who works for his own family is like the mujahid in the way of Allah."24
"Worship is seven parts; the best of them is seeking the lawful."25
Jurists devoted great efforts to their studies and analyses of work and production. They concluded that precepts of Islamic law and its attitude towards service and productive work is valid. They divided work legally into five parts. They are as follows:
1. Obligatory work: Islamic law has regarded as obligatory the work aiming at meeting need, satisfying the soul, and maintaining the family. Moreover, it has made it obligatory on the debtor to work to pay his debt.
2. Islamic law has regarded the work aiming at generously spending one's family as most desirable.
3. Islamic law has regarded as unlawful the work in forbidden things, such as making wine, narcotics, prostitution, and dancing etc... It has also forbidden work that leads to unlawful deeds, even if it is lawful in itself.
4. Islamic law has regarded some work as abominable for itself or for other than it.
5. Excluding the above-mentioned points, Islamic law has confirmed that work is lawful. With this work, collecting money and increasing wealth is lawful as long as it follows the precepts of Islamic law.
To study and analyze the concepts of the verses and the traditions, we will not find in them anything what prevents woman from working. Rather, they permit woman to work as they permit man, though some texts address and urge man to work.
The Work of a Wife
Islamic law has limited precepts concerning the work of a wife as follows:
1. The wife has the right to stipulate in her marriage contract that her husband should not prevent her from