Perhaps no other issue has influenced people’s imagination more so than the status of women in Islam. In the middle ages, when Europeans were engaged in warfare with Muslims in Palestine, the focus was on painting a picture of Muslims as minions of the devil.

But with the powerful Ottoman empire holding sway over much of southeastern Europe from the fifteenth century until 1918, many Westerners began changing their views and instead focused on the exotic excesses of Ottoman court life.

Europeans began to view the typical Muslim family as a licentious man lording over a harem of beautiful, nubile women.

Many French, Italian, and British painters created fanciful images that fueled this notion and gave rise to the myth of the harem. The word harem itself does not mean in any way a pleasure room full of compliant women.

It literally means forbidden space and is the term Muslims used for that area of the house where male visitors were not allowed to go. In the same way that it is considered bad etiquette to walk into the bedroom of another person’s house while you are a guest for dinner, Islam also has an etiquette regarding private areas of the home.

The harem of any house was the area where women could be assured of privacy, where they could lay aside their head scarves and relax without feeling the pressure of men around.

The bawdy mythology, unfortunately, comes from the un-Islamic practices of some Muslim rulers who would collect women as concubines and cordon off whole areas of their palaces as pleasure gardens.

These are what the Europeans and now the so-called corporate class without knowledge of Islam have taken as representative of the normal state of Muslim women.  Islam does not foster or condone this type of situation, and except for a few high-profile cases, this practice has been virtually unknown in the Muslim world.

How are Muslim women viewed today? Surprisingly, the myth of the harem is no longer in vogue among corporate Muslims. Instead, it has been replaced by an equally damaging myth, that of the Muslim woman as a victim of fanatic religious zealots. This stereotype has taken off in recent years due to three main factors; the issue of arranged marriage; the belief most people hold about Muslim women, purdah etc and Cultural oddities in some Muslim lands.

So, the way to help Muslim women in both the Eastern and the Western worlds, is to apply the principles of Islam in any given society.

2013 Hajj ends:  ‘Hajj with bad behaviour’

The poor behavior of some Nigerian pilgrims was reported to Facing the Kaaba both in Makkah and Madinah as some of the pilgrims return from the holy land.  According to a pilgrim, many used their precious time shopping while some male and female pilgrims were seen engaging in close conversation.  Many according to him, disregarded the rules and engaged in one form of prohibition or the other.

“It was quite embarrassing especially when you noticed  these people speak your language. While some were seen  holding hands and engaing in intimate discussion at odd hours, some will wait behind at their camps with the alibi that they are ill but without seeing the doctors.” “Some also disregard warning and advice, by treating some of the rites with levity; some will not join the team but prefered to stay at home; while some are busy shopping and lacing making gold-teeth. They dont have regard for warnings and advice by leaders,” he stated.

All the same, Hajj Mabroor!

Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal declares 2013 Hajj huge success

The once-in-a-lifetime journey of faith, endurance and determination for over 2 million Muslims from nearly 200 countries came to a successful end last week with  Prince Khaled Al-Faisal describing the event as a huge and overewhelming success.

Prince Faisal who is the governor of Makkah said every body worked as a team to ensure the success of the event.

“All government institutions, security forces, volunteers, pilgrim establishments and men on the ground worked as one team to ensure the success of this year’s Haj,” he said.

“You can call this a turning point,” he said, and praised Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah, Crown Prince Salman and Interior Minister Prince Mohammed bin Naif.

“All the rituals were carried out in a calm atmosphere and free of any political demonstrations, proving that Islam is a religion of peace, civilization and progress,” he said.

Many Nigerian pilgrims have returned to the country while a few others are still being expected.