Women in Alevism: Their Place and Equality in the Light of the Quran

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The Place of Women in Alevi Mystical (Tasavvuf) Belief

Alevi tasavvuf (Alevi mysticism) is a faith that settles in the human heart, unites with love and constantly develops; that absorbs the new knowledge and technology of the age, protects itself from Sunni dogmas, gathers people equally to its bosom, makes no distinction of colour, language, religion, race or sex, and takes religious and intellectual teaching as its guide. In this faith the place of woman is exalted according to her station. She is mother, sister and the crown on one’s head. In the interpretation of Alevi tasavvuf, at the gate of sharia (şeriat) woman is woman, at the gate of the order (tarikat) she is mother, at the gate of gnosis (marifet) she is the world, and at the gate of truth (hakikat) she is earth and heaven. When we look at history, at the coming of the religion of Islam, within the Ehl-i Beyt and their descendants – “except for prophethood (nübüvvet) and the imamate (imamet)” – women too, within the framework of their own responsibility, had equal rights to share all problems and all joys shoulder to shoulder with men in every sphere of life.

In Alevi mystical belief, the two sacred trusts that the Prophet Muhammad left us have been believed in without the slightest alteration and without recourse to analogy (kıyas). The Alevis never accepted that the Umayyads and Abbasids imposed on the Muslims the customs and traditions of the Arab Jahiliyya period, justified by analogy with the Quran. These two sacred trusts are the Quran and his Ehl-i Beyt. In the thought of the Ehl-i Beyt, woman and man are equal. Although the message of the Quran grants equal rights to man and woman, in Sunni sharia women’s rights were continually usurped, and women were regarded as second-class and denied their rights. If the religion brought by the Prophet Muhammad was later altered according to Arab culture, the fault lies not with the religion of Islam but with the Umayyad order that altered it. If today the false Islam brought by the Umayyad order continues in Sunni sharia, the one to blame for this is the Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet). On this subject I recommend that you read Yaşar Nuri Öztürk’s books “Kuran’daki İslam” (Islam in the Quran) and “İslam nasıl yozlaştırıldı” (How Islam Was Corrupted).

Now let us first look at the Quran. Where is a distinction made between woman and man; to what degree does it not grant equality? The first verse of Sura al-Fatiha: “Elhamdü lillâhi rabbil’alemiyne”. The meaning of this verse in English: “Praise be to the Lord of all the worlds.” Look, here no distinction is made, such as “the Lord of men” or “of women”. It presents everyone, woman and man, as equal.

Sura an-Nisa, verse 124: “Whoever does good works, whether man or woman, as a believer – they are the ones who will enter paradise. They will not be wronged in the slightest.”

Sura al-Maida, verse 38: “As for the male thief and the female thief, ‘cut off their hands’ as an exemplary punishment for what they have done.” (Remove the cause that leads to theft.)

Sura an-Nur, verse 30: “O Muhammad! Tell the believing men to lower their gaze from what is forbidden to look at. Let them not expose their private parts, but guard them. That is better for their purification. God is surely aware of what they do.”

Verse 31: “O Muhammad! Tell the believing women too to lower their gaze from what is forbidden to look at. Let them guard their chastity. Let them not display their adornment, except what is apparent of itself. Let them draw their coverings over their collars.”

Sura al-Isra, verse 32: “Do not go near fornication. It is indeed shameful and an evil way.”

Sura an-Nur, verse 2: “The woman and the man guilty of fornication – give each of them a hundred lashes. Have no pity on either of them in the matter of God’s religion.”

Sura an-Nur, verse 3: “The man who has committed fornication may marry a woman who has committed fornication. They are forbidden to the other believers.”

Sura an-Nur, verse 4: “Those who accuse chaste women of fornication and cannot prove it with four witnesses – give them 80 lashes. Never accept their testimony. They are the ones who have gone astray.”

Sura an-Nisa, verse 15: “Against those of your women who commit fornication, bring four witnesses to prove it. If they testify that she has committed fornication, keep them in the houses until death takes them or God opens a way for them.” (Confine them.)

Sura an-Nisa, verse 16: “Punish the two of you who commit fornication. If they repent and amend, leave them alone.”

Sura an-Nisa, verse 34: “The reason why God has made some superior to others: because men spend their wealth on women, men are in charge of women. Good women are those who submit wholeheartedly and who guard, even in their husband’s absence, the chastity that God has commanded to be guarded. As for women whose rebelliousness (infidelity) you fear, admonish them. If that does not help, leave them alone in their beds. If they do not desist, then finally beat them. If they obey you, seek a way in their favour. Truly, God is exalted and great.”

Sura al-Baqara, verse 228: “Divorced women shall wait by themselves for three menstrual periods. If they believe in God and the Last Day, it is not lawful for them to conceal from their husbands any pregnancy there may be. If their husbands wish to reconcile in the meantime, they have more right than others to take their wives back.”

Sura al-Baqara, verse 229: “Divorce is twice. Then it is either keeping in kindness or releasing in kindness. It is not lawful for you to take back anything of what you have given to women, unless the two fear that they cannot keep God’s laws. If they fear that both cannot keep God’s laws, there is no sin on either of them if the woman gives a ransom (fidye).”

Verse 230 of Sura al-Baqara: by using this verse as the “hülle verse”, they have trampled underfoot the honour, dignity and self-respect of women. This is one of the games played in the name of religion by exploiting the Quran. Look, the statement here has nothing at all to do with making a woman undergo a hülle (an arranged intermediate marriage). After verses 228 and 229, verse 230 states exactly this: “If after that he divorces his wife, she is not lawful to him again until she has married someone else. If the second husband dies or divorces her, there is no obstacle to the former husband and wife returning to each other, if they are confident that they will keep God’s laws. These are the laws God makes clear for people who know.”

Verses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of Sura al-Mujadila: “O Muhammad! God has heard the words of the woman who disputed with you about her husband and complained to God. God indeed hears your conversation. Truly God is All-Hearing, All-Seeing. Those of you who declare their wives forbidden by likening them to their mothers should know that their wives are not their mothers. Their mothers are only those who gave birth to them. What they say is indeed an evil and baseless word. God is surely forgiving. As for those who divorce their wives by zihar (saying ‘be to me like my mother, my sister’) and then retract their words – before the man resumes contact with his wife, he must buy a slave and set him free. If he cannot do this, he must fast for two consecutive months. If he cannot do that either, he must feed sixty hungry and destitute people. This concession is because you believe in God and His Prophet. These are the limits set by God.” If you pay attention to these verses of Sura al-Mujadila, the punishment is given to the man who commits the offence.

Sura at-Tawba, verse 67: “The hypocritical men and women are all alike; they command evil and prevent good.”

Sura at-Tawba, verse 68: “God has prepared for the hypocritical men and women and for the unbelievers the fire of hell, in which they will remain forever.”

Sura at-Tawba, verse 71: “The believing men and the believing women are guardians (veli) of one another. They command what is good and forbid what is evil.”

Sura at-Tawba, verse 72: “God has promised the believing men and the believing women paradise, in which they will remain forever.”

Sura al-Ahzab, verse 35: “Truly, for Muslim men and women, believing men and women, devout men and women, truthful men and women, patient men and women, men and women devoted with all their hearts, men and women who give alms, men and women who fast, men and women who guard their chastity, and men and women who remember God much – for all of them God has prepared forgiveness and a great reward.”

Now let us come to the division of inheritance between woman and man. In the time of the Prophet Muhammad a woman could not earn an income. The man she married was responsible for providing for her. If a father had a son and a daughter, the man whom the daughter would marry was responsible for providing for the daughter. The son, in turn, was responsible for providing for the girl he would bring home, and the girl coming into the house had no possibility of bringing an income into it. But the man the daughter would marry had the strength to earn and bring an income home. So that people may live equally, the verses revealed on inheritance say the following. Sura an-Nisa, verse 176: “O Muhammad! They ask you for a legal ruling (fetva). Say: God gives you a ruling concerning heirs of the second degree. If someone dies who has no child but has a sister, half of what he leaves goes to his sister. If the sister has no child, he inherits from her completely. If two sisters are left, two thirds of what he leaves belong to them. If the heirs are siblings, men and women, the man receives twice the share of the woman. God makes this clear to you so that you do not stray from the right path.”

Sura an-Nisa, verse 32: “Do not covet that by which God has made some of you excel others. Men have a share of what they have earned, and women have a share of what they have earned.”

Sura an-Nisa, verse 33: “For everyone We have appointed heirs to what parents and relatives leave. Give their share also to those with whom you have sworn an oath. Truly God is witness over all things.”

Sura al-Baqara, verse 222: “O Muhammad! They ask you about women’s menstruation. Say: it is a hurt. Keep away from women during menstruation and do not approach them until they are clean. When they have cleansed themselves, approach them in the way God has commanded you.”

Sura al-Baqara, verse 223: “Your wives are lawful (helal) to you; come to those lawful to you as you wish. Prepare for the future and fear God. Know that you will certainly meet Him, and give this good news to the people.”

The word “field” (tarla) in the Sunni sharia interpretation of this verse is a wrong interpretation. It resembles exactly the deliberate interpretation of the “hülle verse”, made for centuries in order to trample underfoot the dignity and honour of women. In Alevi tasavvuf the interpretation of verse 223 is exactly this: “Your wives are lawful to you; come to those lawful to you as you wish.” Why would exalted God refer to woman, whom He regards as equal to man, with a degrading expression? Neither the Prophet Muhammad, nor the religion of Islam, nor God would accept this.

Although there are so many verses in the noble Quran that reveal Alevi belief, its philosophy and its inner (batıni) thought, we Alevis of today, when we say “Quran”, regard it as equivalent to the Orthodox Sunni understanding. Without taking the trouble to research the inner and mystical interpretation of the Quran, we give credence to the Orthodox Sunni interpretation and remain under the influence of certain dark forces striving to distance our faith from the Quran. Such an understanding runs counter to the science of the Quran and to Alevi mystical belief.

In researching the place of women in Alevi mystical belief, all the sources rest on the Quran. That women made up half of those in the mystical educational centres of the Darul Hikme (Houses of Wisdom) founded by the descendants of the Ehl-i Beyt in the Umayyad and Abbasid periods, and in their teaching, also has its source in the Quran. When we examine the historical development of Alevi belief, women – except for the velayet and the imamate – took on responsibility and struggled together with men in every sphere of life. This shows clearly and plainly that Alevi belief continues with the Quran.

Look: in the Quranic verses I have cited, is there a single verse that separates woman from men or regards her as property or a commodity? You cannot point to a single book of that period that defends women’s rights as much as the Quran does. So why do we try to keep away from the noble Quran? With your permission, I would like to give the answer to this myself as well: we make these mistakes because, although we do not have sufficient religious knowledge, we cannot free ourselves from the ignorance of thinking we know everything.

Because the velayet and the imamate were given to Imam Ali and to his descendants, the evlad-ı Resul (descendants of the Prophet), those descended from Imam Hüseyin are called evlad-ı Resul. Although his sister, Mother Zeynep (Zeynep Ana), was married to the son of Cafer-i Tayyar, Imam Ali’s brother, the line descending from her was not called evlad-ı Resul, and it was not given the right to the imamate. This is a known fact. Nevertheless, some of our sisters who come forward without awareness say: “I too am a dede’s daughter or a dede’s wife. If there is equality of woman and man in Alevi belief, why do I not sit on the dede’s seat (dede postu)? I want to sit there too.” It is to these sisters of ours that I am speaking!

Woman is mother, sister, the crown on one’s head, and nature. Since it is nature that produces everything, woman is the greatest producer. This producing is a kind of creation. That is why she is sacred. In Alevi belief she is not a despised commodity. In every sphere – religious, social and cultural – she has equal rights with men. But the velayet and the imamate are an office exercised in the station that represents the Prophet Muhammad, Imam Ali and Imam Hüseyin. According to our faith, this office too has been given to the evlad-ı Resul. And the line of the evlad-ı Resul has continued through the male line. Were it not so, Fatima would have sat on the pir’s seat in the Cem of the Forty (Kırklar Cemi) in place of Imam Hüseyin. Mother Zeynep, the sister of Imam Hüseyin, was a scholar. She is one of our mothers who struggled against Yazid. Consider: why could neither she nor the children descended from her sit on it?

This too is an unchanging law of nature. That is why women (bacılar) can take on a role in every service; only they cannot sit on the pir’s seat. There are many other reasons for this as well, but I see no need to explain them. I hope our sisters have understood the message given. Paradise lies beneath the feet of mothers. Where there are no mothers and sisters, we do not exist either. Our heart beats with them; they are in every breath we take. With them we live, with them we exist, with them we grow strong. May exalted God not make mothers weep, and not show them the pain of losing a child. To all mothers and sisters I offer my aşk-ı niyaz (loving greeting of reverence) and greet them all with the most sincere affection.

Woman

Kadın olmazsa Dünya’da olmaz
Kadınsız dertler derman bulamaz
Sevmenin sevilmenin kaynağı kadın
Kadınsız hiç bir yuva kurulmaz

Were there no woman, there would be no world,
without woman, sorrows find no cure;
the source of loving and being loved is woman,
without woman, no home is ever built.

Ana’dır kardeştir bacıdır kadın
Her derde her kedere ortaktır kadın
Yaratan üreten cana can veren
Sevgiyle şefkatle kucaklar kadın

Mother, sibling, sister is woman,
in every sorrow, every grief, woman has a share;
she who creates, who brings forth, who gives life to the soul,
with love and tenderness woman embraces.

Bizleri büyüten besleyen kadın
Eşiyle sırt sırta çalışan kadın
Sevgiyi saygıyı görmek yerine
Cefayı züllümü görenler kadın

She who raises and nourishes us is woman,
she who works back to back with her husband is woman;
instead of receiving love and respect,
it is women who receive suffering and injustice.

Kemter ’im kadın benden bir parça
Gelmişiz Dünyaya, ana bacıdan
Anamda kaldığım devri âlemde
Dokuz ay cefayı çekenler kadın

I am Kemter – woman is a part of me,
we came into the world from mother and sister;
in the time I spent within my mother,
it was women who bore nine months of hardship.

My Mother

Baharda açılan çiçek dalısın
Mevsimin goncası gülüsün Anam
Eyubun tenine konan arısın
Ev direği temel taşısın Anam

You are the flowering branch that blooms in spring,
you are the bud, the rose of the season, my mother;
you are the bee that settled on Job’s skin,
you are the pillar of the house, its foundation stone, my mother.

Arının yaptığı petek balısın
Canımın cananı gönül yarısın
Tanrının en kutsal bir varlığısın
Bir daha elini öpeyim Anam

You are the honeycomb the bee has made,
the beloved of my soul, the half of my heart;
you are one of God’s most sacred beings,
let me kiss your hand once more, my mother.

Beytullaha niyaz eden bacısın
Nimetler pişiren ekmek saçısın
Nail’in başına devlet tacısın
Sen mubarek Kâbe kuşusun Anam

You are the sister who bows before the House of God,
you are the griddle (saç) on which blessings are baked;
you are the crown of fortune on Nail’s head,
you are the blessed bird of the Kaaba, my mother.

Source: Seyit Derviş Tur, Erkânname – Aleviliğin İslam Yorumu ve Alevi Erkânları (The Alevi Interpretation of Islam and the Alevi Rites), expanded 3rd edition (ISBN 975-6791-52-7).

Translated from the Turkish original by Seyit Derviş Tur.