The true Beauty of a Woman

In the name of Allah, the entirely merciful, the especially merciful…

D o you think true beauty comes from the appearance? If you have no personality but beautiful appearance, it does not mean you are the most beautiful women in the world. We are brought up in a world where everybody would “Follow their hearts,” that means follow their own desires and lusts. Don’t you see the end of those who lived a life of depression just to look beautiful, they would puke out and not eat, thinking that this would bring them success in beauty. The media has brainwashed our minds since youth. We watch Cinderella sneaking out to her beloved, sleeping beauty is lazy, and snow white lives with seven men. Nearly all fairy tale stories relate to beautiful women going according to their lusts and following their hearts, and this is what the media taught us. Even the toys that some of us used to play were perfect looking barbies with dresses and short skirts. So, how do you expect children to be as they grow up?

When media also taught us how to wear our cloths and how thin we must be to be acceptable to society, the women are actually oppressed from their own psychological mentality due to what media has provided us. And you see media saying that the veiled women are oppressed. How ironic? Read or watch those stories of the anorexic, their end was a sad ending, and it’s hard for them to get back to their original form. Of course a person who has no knowledge about reality and no faith will fall easily to these traps. Nearly all the products and adverts have naked women on it. The men see this as pleasing for their eyes, and do you really think that this makes men respect us as women? Actually, they treated us like products for their own businesses, so how we women accept such things? Is it part of the new world order? Western role models are beautiful actresses, people cheering for them, not noticing where they fall into…but aren’t our role models supposed to be the righteous ones?

Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) gave us this incredibly true beautiful religion of truth, which raises the women higher in status than what we are seen in our life nowadays. There is no other religion or form of society which taught us better than the treating of women in Islam. Allah has given us lots of examples of such pious women, so that we can implement them in our lives and live as humans rather than adornments for the men.

A most beautiful example of a women is Maryam (may Allah be pleased with her). She was born in a time where women were treated as if they were nothing. In all ages of time, when paganism occurred, the women were always treated as adornment for men. And only until Allah has revealed his revelation, Allah has freed the women from such slavery to men. Praise be to Allah, Maryam was a blessed woman, and she was known for her purity and chastity. She used to veil herself because of her inner purity. She was chosen from all women in her time to carry glad tidings of a prophet, Issa (Jesus, alayhim wa salam). Allah says in the Quran:

“And Mary the daughter of Heli, who guarded her chastity, so we breathed into her through Our Spirit (Gabriel).” (Quran 66:12)

In the Quran, no other women was given more attention that Maryam (may Allah be pleased with her). Of the Quran 114 chapters, she was one of the eight people who have a chapter named after them, the nineteenth chapter “Maryam.” Maryam is the only woman who is specifically named in the Quran.

The Prophet Muhammad said:

“The best women of the world are four: Mary the daughter of Heli, Aasiyah the wife of Pharaoh, Khadeejah bint Khuwaylid (The wife of the Prophet Muhammad), and Fatimah, the daughter of the Muhammad, the Messenger of God.” (Al-Tirmidhi)

Asiyah the wife of the Pharaoh is also one of the pious women, she had to stand the evil Pharoah, she embraced Islam, and as she did that, evil Pharoah killed her in a terrible way, and she died as a martyr…

Take a look at Khadejah’s loyalty to her husband at the time when prophet Muhammad (salalahu alayhim wa salam) first received revelation, he (salalahu alayhim wa salam) told her to cover him due to such revelation he had seen, she stood by him and said her famous words:

, "Allâh will never disgrace you. You unite uterine relations; you bear the burden of the weak; you help the poor and the needy, you entertain the guests and endure hardships in the path of truthfulness."

And she was the first one to accept Islam then.

Fatimah, the daughter of prophet Muhammad, was another example of the pious women. The wives of the prophet, Aishah (may Allah be pleased with her) and the rest. They are all examples for us to take.

The messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said:

“The world is but a (quick passing) enjoyment; and the best enjoyment of the world is a pious and virtuous woman.” (Reported by Muslim)

A woman is like a pearl, she is so beautiful that she needs to be veiled and protected. Allah has created Eve from a rib bone. Imagine how soft she is, and she is able to carry a burden of a child. Allah has made such importance to the mother.

The woman is special if she can only realize to respect herself and not use herself for just an adornment.

The true beauty of a woman is her piety, and her devotion to her lord. If she is pious, she is able to withhold all the trials that come in her way. She only looks up to Allah (subhana wa ta’ala) for help. And guards her chastity. Glory be to Allah who gave us such examples of pious women, they are our role models, not the actresses that you see on television… Wouldn’t you like to be amongst those pious women in Paradise?

“Strive to achieve piety, do not be deceived by the world, your beauty is piety”