In his book, Dr. Al-Hashimi offers a list of practical advices to Muslimahs, substantiated throughout the book with examples from the Qur’an and Sunnah. He eloquently covers all aspects of the life of a Muslim woman, from her worship, to her body, marital life, raising children, relationships… etc. I’ve always found that buying presents for women was extremely easy, and now I have another suggestion to add to the list of recommended gifts the ‘The Ideal Muslimah’ book. Written by Dr. Muhammad Ali Al-Hashimi and translated into English by Nasiruddin Al-Khattab, The Ideal Muslimah presents the true Islamic personality of the Muslim woman as defined in the Qur’an and Sunnah. I discovered the book lying on my shelf some months after my wedding and I must say that this is probably the best wedding present I’ve ever received. In his book, Dr. Al-Hashimi offers a list of practical advices to Muslimahs, substantiated throughout the book with examples from the Qur’an and Sunnah. He eloquently covers all aspects of the life of a Muslim woman, from her worship, to her body, marital life, raising children, relationship with her parents, relatives and neighbors, her manners and her relationship with the larger society in general… etc. Reading the book, I realized that I do have a bit of knowledge about Islam, but there are so many things which I don’t know, or these things have not yet struck me as being important. The book brought quite a few such things to my notice which I would never have realized! For instance:
  • How we should not hesitate while giving gifts to neighbors, or scorn the gifts given to us, like we do sometimes: “O’Muslim women, do not think that any gift is too insignificant to give to a neighbor, even if it is only a sheep’s foot.”– [Bukhari & Muslim]
  • How a Muslim is encouraged to be proud, independent and patient: “Whoever refrains from asking from people, Allah will help him. Whoever tries to be independent, Allah will enrich him. Whoever tries to be patient, Allah will give him patience, and no-one is given a better or vaster gift than patience.”– [Bukhari & Muslim].
  • How a Muslimah should take care of her body i.e. by moderation in food and drink, exercising, taking care of her body and clothes, taking care of her appearance especially at home in front of her husband. How good is a Muslim woman who makes ‘herself look beautiful at women’s gatherings but neglect[s] her appearance in front of her husband’?
  • How important kindness is: “O’ ‘Aa’ishah, be kind, for if Allah wills some good to a household, He guides them to kindness.”[Ahmad] SubhanAllah. Isn’t this a superb way to bring good or ‘khair’ to both our lives on earth and in Jannah inshaAllah?
Mostly directed towards women, the book also has a male counterpart titled The Ideal Muslim which although I haven’t read, I would assume will make an equally beneficial read and an equally valuable gift! The Ideal Muslimah, which simply covers all aspects of our lives, acts as an excellent reminder. No wonder it now resides by my bedside, one of the very few books that I intend to read over and over again. By: Haya Amiri Posted on: June 20, 2011