Equality in faith and reward
The Quran repeats the principle of parity until it becomes a single verse that lists the qualities of faith ten times in masculine and feminine pairs together — Muslim men and Muslim women, believing men and believing women, truthful men and truthful women — and closes by saying Allah has prepared for all of them forgiveness and a great reward. Another verse joins a good life and reward between anyone who works righteousness, “male or female”, with no distinction.
مَنۡ عَمِلَ صَٰلِحٗا مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوۡ أُنثَىٰ وَهُوَ مُؤۡمِنٞ فَلَنُحۡيِيَنَّهُۥ حَيَوٰةٗ طَيِّبَةٗۖ وَلَنَجۡزِيَنَّهُمۡ أَجۡرَهُم بِأَحۡسَنِ مَا كَانُواْ يَعۡمَلُونَWhoever does righteous work, be it a man or a woman, and has faith — We shall give them a good life, and reward them for the best of what they used to do.
إِنَّ ٱلۡمُسۡلِمِينَ وَٱلۡمُسۡلِمَٰتِ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنَٰتِ وَٱلۡقَٰنِتِينَ وَٱلۡقَٰنِتَٰتِ وَٱلصَّٰدِقِينَ وَٱلصَّٰدِقَٰتِ وَٱلصَّٰبِرِينَ وَٱلصَّٰبِرَٰتِ وَٱلۡخَٰشِعِينَ وَٱلۡخَٰشِعَٰتِ وَٱلۡمُتَصَدِّقِينَ وَٱلۡمُتَصَدِّقَٰتِ وَٱلصَّٰٓئِمِينَ وَٱلصَّٰٓئِمَٰتِ وَٱلۡحَٰفِظِينَ فُرُوجَهُمۡ وَٱلۡحَٰفِظَٰتِ وَٱلذَّٰكِرِينَ ٱللَّهَ كَثِيرٗا وَٱلذَّٰكِرَٰتِ أَعَدَّ ٱللَّهُ لَهُم مَّغۡفِرَةٗ وَأَجۡرًا عَظِيمٗاMuslim men and Muslim women, believing men and believing women, devout men and devout women, truthful men and truthful women, patient men and patient women, humble men and humble women, giving men and giving women, fasting men and fasting women, chaste men and chaste women, men and women who remember Allah much — for them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward.
فَٱسۡتَجَابَ لَهُمۡ رَبُّهُمۡ أَنِّي لَآ أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَٰمِلٖ مِّنكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوۡ أُنثَىٰۖ بَعۡضُكُم مِّنۢ بَعۡضٖۖ فَٱلَّذِينَ هَاجَرُواْ وَأُخۡرِجُواْ مِن دِيَٰرِهِمۡ وَأُوذُواْ فِي سَبِيلِي وَقَٰتَلُواْ وَقُتِلُواْ لَأُكَفِّرَنَّ عَنۡهُمۡ سَيِّـَٔاتِهِمۡ وَلَأُدۡخِلَنَّهُمۡ جَنَّٰتٖ تَجۡرِي مِن تَحۡتِهَا ٱلۡأَنۡهَٰرُ ثَوَابٗا مِّنۡ عِندِ ٱللَّهِۚ وَٱللَّهُ عِندَهُۥ حُسۡنُ ٱلثَّوَابِSo their Lord answered them: I never allow the work of any worker among you, male or female, to go to waste; you are of one another. …
وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ وَٱلۡمُؤۡمِنَٰتُ بَعۡضُهُمۡ أَوۡلِيَآءُ بَعۡضٖۚ يَأۡمُرُونَ بِٱلۡمَعۡرُوفِ وَيَنۡهَوۡنَ عَنِ ٱلۡمُنكَرِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَيُؤۡتُونَ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَيُطِيعُونَ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥٓۚ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ سَيَرۡحَمُهُمُ ٱللَّهُۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٞAnd the believing men and believing women are allies of one another: they enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong, and keep up prayer and give zakah, and obey Allah and His Messenger — upon them Allah will have mercy; He is Almighty, All-Wise.
Honoured in every role of life
Islam did not tie a woman’s worth to a single role, but honoured her in every state — as a daughter, wife, mother, scholar, trader and defender — and made each of these roles carry its own reward.
As a daughter
The Quran condemned pre-Islamic society for resenting the birth of a girl, and made raising her a care that is rewarded: whoever is kind to his daughters, they become a shield for him from the Fire — her upbringing, then her marriage and her motherhood, are all mentioned in the reward.
As a wife
The wife is tranquillity, affection and mercy; she is owed the like of what she owes, in kindness — and the best of men are those most beneficial to their wives, as the Prophet ﷺ was the best of husbands to his wives.
As a mother
The mother takes two-thirds of the duty of kindness to parents, twice before the father, and she outranks even a great man when he is asked who deserves one’s best companionship — her right over her children is greater than words can repay.
As scholar and trader
Women learned in the Prophet’s ﷺ mosque and were consulted on rulings, owned property, earned and traded — Khadija bint Khuwaylid was a merchant managing her own trade, and al-Shifa bint Abdullah was the first person appointed to oversee the market.
As defender and helper
Women attended the campaigns to supply the army and treat the wounded, and defended when necessary — Umm ʿUmara Nusayba carried a shield at Uhud, and Rufayda al-Aslamiyya established the first field hospital in Islam.
The dearest bonds: wife, mother, daughter
وَمِنۡ ءَايَٰتِهِۦٓ أَنۡ خَلَقَ لَكُم مِّنۡ أَنفُسِكُمۡ أَزۡوَٰجٗا لِّتَسۡكُنُوٓاْ إِلَيۡهَا وَجَعَلَ بَيۡنَكُم مَّوَدَّةٗ وَرَحۡمَةًۚ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَأٓيَٰتٖ لِّقَوۡمٖ يَتَفَكَّرُونَAnd of His signs is that He created for you spouses from among yourselves, that you may find tranquillity in them, and He placed between you affection and mercy — in that are signs for a people who reflect.
خيرُكم خيرُكم لأهله، وأنا خيرُكم لأهلي.The best of you is the best of you to his family, and I am the best of you to my family.
أكملُ المؤمنينَ إيمانًا أحسنُهم خُلقًا، وخيارُكم خيارُكم لنسائهم.The most complete of the believers in faith are those best in character, and the best of you are the best of you to your women.
جاءَ رجلٌ إلى النبيِّ ﷺ فقال: مَن أحقُّ الناسِ بحُسنِ صحابتي؟ قال: أمُّك. قال: ثم مَن؟ قال: أمُّك. قال: ثم مَن؟ قال: أمُّك. قال: ثم مَن؟ قال: أبوك.A man came to the Prophet ﷺ and said: Who is most deserving of my good companionship? He said: Your mother. He said: Then who? He said: Your mother. He said: Then who? He said: Your mother. He said: Then who? He said: Your father.
مَنِ ابتُلِيَ من هذهِ البَناتِ بشيءٍ فأحسنَ إليهِنَّ كُنَّ له سترًا من النارِ.Whoever is tried with any of these daughters and treats them well, they will be a shield for him from the Fire.
These texts are not verbal flattery but weights of reward measured by Allah upon actions: being kind to your mother, wife and daughters is a deed rewarded as striving is rewarded — and in another narration the Prophet ﷺ likened the guardian of an orphan girl to himself in Paradise, raising two fingers together.
Established financial and civil rights
Since the Quran was revealed, the woman herself has been the owner of wealth: the dowry is paid to her alone, not to her guardian; she inherits and is inherited, owns, trades and disposes of her money without a trustee — a financial independence most nations only reached in modern times, and the Quran preceded them to it by fourteen centuries.
وَءَاتُواْ ٱلنِّسَآءَ صَدُقَٰتِهِنَّ نِحۡلَةٗۚ فَإِن طِبۡنَ لَكُمۡ عَن شَيۡءٖ مِّنۡهُ نَفۡسٗا فَكُلُوهُ هَنِيٓـٔٗا مَّرِيٓـٔٗاAnd give women their dowry as a free gift; but if they are pleased to give you any of it of their own accord, then take it wholesomely.
وَلَا تَتَمَنَّوۡاْ مَا فَضَّلَ ٱللَّهُ بِهِۦ بَعۡضَكُمۡ عَلَىٰ بَعۡضٖۚ لِّلرِّجَالِ نَصِيبٞ مِّمَّا ٱكۡتَسَبُواْۖ وَلِلنِّسَآءِ نَصِيبٞ مِّمَّا ٱكۡتَسَبۡنَۚ وَسۡـَٔلُواْ ٱللَّهَ مِن فَضۡلِهِۦٓۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ بِكُلِّ شَيۡءٍ عَلِيمٗاAnd to men a share of what they have earned, and to women a share of what they have earned; and ask Allah of His bounty — surely Allah knows everything.
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّبِيُّ إِذَا جَآءَكَ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنَٰتُ يُبَايِعۡنَكَ عَلَىٰٓ أَن لَّا يُشۡرِكۡنَ بِٱللَّهِ شَيۡـٔٗا وَلَا يَسۡرِقۡنَ وَلَا يَزۡنِينَ وَلَا يَقۡتُلۡنَ أَوۡلَٰدَهُنَّ وَلَا يَأۡتِينَ بِبُهۡتَٰنٖ يَفۡتَرِينَهُۥ بَيۡنَ أَيۡدِيهِنَّ وَأَرۡجُلِهِنَّ وَلَا يَعۡصِينَكَ فِي مَعۡرُوفٖ فَبَايِعۡهُنَّ وَٱسۡتَغۡفِرۡ لَهُنَّ ٱللَّهَۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٞ رَّحِيمٞO Prophet, when believing women come to you pledging to you that they will not associate anything with Allah, nor steal, nor commit adultery, nor kill their children, nor utter slander they fabricate between their hands and feet, nor disobey you in what is right — then accept their pledge and ask Allah to forgive them; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
The women’s pledge in Madina was the first civic document recognising a woman’s independent legal responsibility: they pledged on the very matters men pledged on, and the Prophet ﷺ took their pledge with his own hand — not that of a father or husband.
Map of this section
- Women of the Quran: Maryam, Asiya, Bilqis, Musa’s mother, Sara, Hajar, Adam’s wife and the wife of Imran — each story and where its verses are.
- Mothers of the believers and the Prophet’s ﷺ daughters: Khadija, Aisha, Umm Salama, Hafsa, Zaynab and Fatima — their roles in the mission and scholarship.
- The female Companions: Sumayya, Asma, Umm ʿUmara, al-Khansa, al-Shifa and Rufayda — martyrdom, trade, medicine, poetry and juristic rulings.
The section grows step by step with further pages: hijab and modesty, women in daʿwa and scholarship, women and trade, non-Muslims’ questions, and the most famous women in Islamic history.
Sources and method
Every verse in this section is taken verbatim from the mushaf data, not from memory; every hadith carries its number from the two authentic collections or Jamiʿ at-Tirmidhi; and every historical story is attributed to its source: Ibn Saʿd’s Ṭabaqāt, Ibn Ḥajar’s Iṣāba, al-Dhahabī’s Siyar, Ibn Hishām’s Sira. Disputed points are presented as the positions of the schools without preference, and there are no fatwas here.
This section is for learning, not a fatwa. Quran passages are quoted verbatim from the mushaf data, hadith carry their source numbers, and stories come from the standard biographical works (Ibn Saʿd’s Ṭabaqāt, Ibn Ḥajar’s Iṣāba, al-Dhahabī’s Siyar Aʿlām al-Nubalāʾ). Where scholars differ, positions are shown without preference, and nothing here is marked as reviewed; for your own situation ask a trusted scholar in your country.
Frequently asked questions
Does Islam consider a woman less than a man?
In faith, reward and religious responsibility the sexes are fully equal: An-Nahl 97 conditions only righteous work and faith, with no mention of gender, and Al-Ahzab 35 promises both men and women forgiveness and a great reward together. As for some financial rulings such as maintenance and inheritance, the texts differentiate according to the obligations placed on each party, and this is discussed with its evidence where it belongs, without partisanship.
May a woman work, trade and own property?
Yes — and this is a Prophetic-era reality, not merely a ruling: Khadija was a merchant managing her own capital and had hired the Messenger ﷺ before prophethood; women have owned, inherited and controlled their wealth since Madina; al-Shifa bint Abdullah was appointed market inspector in the Prophet’s ﷺ time, and a woman’s financial transactions require no permission from husband or guardian.
Who was the first person to accept Islam?
Khadija bint Khuwaylid, the Prophet’s ﷺ wife: when revelation first descended he rushed to her trembling, and she believed him before anyone else did — as narrated by Muslim from Aisha in the Jibreel episode at Khadija’s door. The first person killed in Islam was also a woman: Sumayya bint Khayyat, the mother of Ammar ibn Yasir.
Does the Quran treat women as possessions or as partners?
As partners and garments for one another: “They are a garment for you and you are a garment for them” (Al-Baqarah 187) — a simile of mutual covering, not ownership — and “For them is the like of what is upon them, in kindness” (Al-Baqarah 228) — a right matched by a right. The Quran itself presents women as rulers (Bilqis), exemplars (Asiya) and interlocutors whom Allah answers directly (Surah Al-Mujadila opens with a woman’s complaint).
Quran text and translations: QuranEnc. Hadith translations: HadeethEnc. Sources are shown on each item. Found a mistake? Tell us.