Girls’ Education

It is my view that the secular education imparted to girls should be minimal [to the degree of necessity only]. Yes, Deeni Education should be ample. Secular education has a bad effect on their character.

Insofar as reading newspapers and novels is concerned, this is a fatal poison for women. It is utterly detrimental to them. Sometimes a woman loses her honour because of it.

Similarly, ladies should be protected from women who prowl the streets [that is women who frequently emerge from their homes]. In particular, the trend in cities where English women come to homes and teach girls, should be vigorously stopped.

In Kanpur, I would hear that, today so-and-so woman went away from her home; yesterday so-and-so person’s daughter ran away. This was the consequence of bringing English women to teach the ladies at home.

Similarly, honourable people have never taken a liking for sending their daughters to girls’ madrasahs. In the towns, the girls are generally educated and literate. But all are taught in their homes. None of them are taught in madrasahs. By teaching girls in their homes no harm befalls them because the teacher is pious and observant of pardah, and the girls remain in pardah and receive their education.

Experience shows that school education is extremely harmful for females. It makes them liberal, shameless and detesting of pardah.

In short, females should be imparted Islamic Education. This much is necessary. More than that is detrimental to them.

The condition has deteriorated so badly that women’s poems are published in newspapers, and at the end, their names or daughter of so-and-so or wife of so-and-so are printed. I have even seen a person reading a newspaper in front of me and a woman’s whole address was written in it: So-and-so’s daughter, the city she resides in and the neighbourhood. The person reading the newspaper commented: “Publishing women’s names in the newspapers in this manner is like seating them in the centre of the town bazaar.”

Indeed, this is true! It is like expressing, “Whoever wishes to meet us, let him come to this address.” Even if this is not their intention, it will make it easy for people with evil designs to find them.

(Huqooqul Bait)