In Islam, there is ultimate equality of spirituality, nobility, humanity and earning Allah's reward. There is a potential to enter Paradise whether you are a woman or a man. The criteria is Iman and taqwa, not gender.
And their Lord responded to them, "Never will I allow to be lost the work of [any] worker among you, whether male or female; you are of one another. So those who emigrated or were evicted from their homes or were harmed in My cause or fought or were killed - I will surely remove from them their misdeeds, and I will surely admit them to gardens beneath which rivers flow as reward from Allah, and Allah has with Him the best reward." (Quran, AleImran 3:195)
Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life, and We will surely give them their reward [in the Hereafter] according to the best of what they used to do. (Quran, Naml 16:97)
Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and believing women, the obedient men and obedient women, the truthful men and truthful women, the patient men and patient women, the humble men and humble women, the charitable men and charitable women, the fasting men and fasting women, the men who guard their private parts and the women who do so, and the men who remember Allah often and the women who do so - for them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward. (Quran, Al Ahzab 33:35)
Man and woman are complimentary to each other. There is no competition between man and woman. They are on the same team and have a different role to play. Allah has given men and women tasks that are better suited for their own background and understanding. If you do it properly, you will get rewarded.
And do not wish for that by which Allah has made some of you exceed others. For men is a share of what they have earned, and for women is a share of what they have earned. And ask Allah of his bounty. Indeed Allah is ever, of all things, Knowing. (Quran, An-Nisa 4:32)
Gender roles, generally speaking, have not been made obligatory. There is default but the Shari’ah made them adaptable. In a family, if members negotiate their roles, and as long as the obligatory is done and no haram is fallen into, that is permissible for them. Most of what comes under gender roles are negotiable. Also they can change from time to place. We learned from the Seerah that the women of Madinah were more assertive and the women of Makkah did not do that. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam didn’t take sides here. Culturally, there can be a leeway. And much of what might be permissible is not obligatory. So, learn the Shari’ah and differentiate culture from actual fiqh and allow leeway where possible.
We have to be very careful about entering into competition between the genders. When you are going to destroy gender and gender roles, the reality is that it will destroy the bedrock of the society. As Muslims, we have to embody the Prophetic ideals of what it means to be a man and what it means to be a woman. There are fads in our society that are challenging this. If we don’t conform to the Shari’ah of Allah, who else is going to do this. This is our responsibility, as believers of the Quran and Sunnah, to embody the values of men and women. Stick with the fitrah that Allah created us upon. Be a man or be a woman however Allah created you, and life will be easier and more blessed in this world and the akhirah.
May Allah bless us through the Quran, and make us of those who understand the verses. Aameen.
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