So often we get caught up in society and its expectations of us. There are so many things that are not considered cool to talk about in public or cool to do, like for example praying in public. Society has many rules, many of which make sense and many of which don’t.
We get so caught up in looking good and doing the ‘right’ thing that we fail to question whose idea of ‘good’ we’re actually appealing to. We try to conform to society’s expectations of us because we are afraid of looking different, especially since it marks us out as even more diverse.
Society has told me that women must work in order to be functioning members of the society. Islam tells me I don’t have to if I don’t want to. But instead of listening to what my faith told me about this issue, I choose to fall into society’s beliefs. I became torn up about my decision and never told people that I didn’t want to work after I was done school; I wanted to pursue my own passions. But because this view is considered passive and also happens to fall into the ‘anti-feminist’ camp, I choose to conform to society’s expectations.
We all need to stop trying to please people and instead aim to please Allah. He is the one who created society and His rules are the ones that will determine our fate.
We are only on this earth for a limited amount of time. And all of it is being accounted for and written down. So if we spend all of it aiming to please people, rather than pleasing Allah then we are wasting our time.
Society’s rules will continue to change and fluctuate; the thing that wasn’t allowed in the past is allowed now and vice versa. But Allah’s rules are timeless and meant for everyone.
A reminder for myself before anyone else.
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Dont fall for that crap honey. the only reason islam tells women not to work is so that we remain under the control of men. If women worked, then they’d learn about what goes on in the real world and islamic guys are threatened by that. We might just try to stand up for our rights and allah forbid that should happen. Working outside the home and interacting with society is good for all of us, esp women.
I never suggested that women can’t work in Islam or that it’s prohibited. I was instead commenting on the fact that in Islam women don’t have to work if they don’t want to, and my own understanding of that fact as it’s reflected in my life.
Great reminder! we should keep our priorities in mind!!
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Indeed! 🙂