Article 114: The woman has been given the same rights as man, and whatever was oblied upon man is also obliged upon the woman, except that which was specified for her or him by the Shari’ah evidences. Accordingly, she has the right to partake in trade, agriculture and industry, and to undertake contracts and transactions, to possess all forms of property, to invest her wealth whether personally or through proxy, and to personally carry out all worldly affairs.
The evidence for this article is that when the Legislator (swt) addressed the worshippers, He (swt) addressed them in their characteristic as human beings, with no concern as to whether the one addressed was male or female. Allah (swt) said “Say, [O Muhammad],
((يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ إِلَيْكُمْ جَمِيعًا)) [الأعراف 158]، ((يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمْ)) [الحج 1]، ((يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ)) [الأنفال 24]، ((كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ)) [البقرة 183]، ((فَمَنْ شَهِدَ مِنْكُمُ الشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ)) [البقرة 185]، ((وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ)) [البقرة 43]، ((خُذْ مِنْ أَمْوَ ٰلِهِمْ)) [التوبة 103]، ((إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ)) [التوبة 60]، ((وَالَّذِينَ يَكْنِزُونَ الذَّهَبَ وَالْفِضَّة)) [التوبة 34]، ((وَأَحَلَّ اللَّهُ الْبَيْعَ وَحَرَّمَ الرِّبَا))
"O mankind, indeed I am the Messenger of Allah to you all.” (TMQ 7:158), “O mankind, fear your Lord.” (TMQ 4:1), “O you who have believed, respond to Allah and to the.” (TMQ 8:24), “O you who believe! fasting is prescribed for you.” (TMQ 2:183), “So whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it.” (TMQ 2:185), “And establish prayer.” (TMQ 2:43), “Take, [O, Muhammad], from their wealth.” (TMQ 9:103), “Zakah expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy.” (TMQ 9:60), “And those who hoard gold and silver.” (TMQ 9:33), “Allah has permitted trade and has forbidden interest(usury).” (TMQ 2: 275), amongst many other similar texts. In all of these the Legislator (swt) addresses humankind with a general address irrespective of whether the one addressed was male or female. And the generality of the address of the Legislator (swt) remains upon its generality. Accordingly, the Shari’ah came for humankind and not for men in their characteristic of being male, or for women in their characteristic of being female, rather for mankind from the angle of being human. Therefore, whatever the Shari’ah commanded came for humankind, and whatever it includes in terms of rights and obligations are for and upon humankind. This is the evidence for the part of the article which mentions that the woman has the same rights and obligations as the man, because the Shari’ah came for humankind, and both male and female are human, and it did not come specifically for woman or man, and so the two of them are equal in respect to the address of the Legislator (swt) regarding the Shari’ah rules for humankind.
This generality in the address of the Legislator (swt) remains upon its generality in everything, and remains upon its generality in every rule as long as the Shari’ah did not relate it through a Shari’ahtext as a rule specific for women or men, in which case that rule alone that the text addressed would be specific to women or men. The Shari’ah remains upon its generality addressing humankind irrespective of gender,
((يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ إِلَيْكُمْ جَمِيعًا))
“Say, [O Muhammad], "O mankind, indeed I am the Messenger of Allah to you all.”(TMQ 7:158), and all of the remaining rules remain upon their generality for humankind irrespective of gender
((يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آَمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ)) [الأنفال 24]، ((أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ)) [آل عمران 132]، ((فَمَنْ شَهِدَ مِنْكُمُ الشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ)) [البقرة 185]، ((وَأَشْهِدُوا ذَوَيْ عَدْلٍ مِنْكُمْ))
“O you who have believed, respond to Allah and to the Messenger.” (TMQ 8:24), “And obey Allah and the Messenger.” (TMQ 3:132), “Whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it.” (TMQ 2:185), “. And bring to witness two just men from among you.” (TMQ 65:2)and whatever else came regarding the rules. All of these remain upon their generality which addressed humankind without regard as to whether they were male or female.
Therefore, in origin the Legislator (swt) made the Shari’ah for humankind, not for men or women specifically, but rather for both of them as human beings. Then, the Legislator (swt) laid down some rules specific for women and some specific for men, however this specificity is restricted to those rules alone and does not go beyond them or the texts which came to explain them. Neither of them is charged with a rule specifically unless there is a clear text related which specifies it to one of the two genders. So the specification of women or men with certain rules is an exception to the generality, and so the Shari’ah remains upon its generality as do all of its rules, and any exception is limited to what the text mentions and does not go any further. For example, there are specific rules for women such as leaving prayer, and eating in Ramadan during the menstrual cycle, and such as making the witness statement of a single woman sufficient in those cases which only they would be privy to such as virginity without requiring the normal condition regarding witnesses, as this is specific to women and there are texts regarding it, but it does not apply to anything else at all; rather she remains addressed by the address of the Legislator (swt) in the same manner as man is, since the address is for humankind and not for a specific gender. Also, for example, there are rules which are specific to men such as ruling or authority, and so it is not valid for anyone other than a man to undertake it. This is specific to men, and has had a text narrated regarding it, and so it is specific to men alone. However this specification is related to ruling alone and not the judiciary or managing the departments of the state because the text came regarding ruling, or those who govern, and nothing else. And it is resricted to what came in the text alone, and will not be specified at all by anything which is not related by text; rather the man remains addressed by the address of the Legislator (swt) in the same manner as the woman since the address is for humankind and not for a specific gender.
Based upon this, there is nothing in Islam called women’s rights or men’s rights, or women’s obligations and men’s obligations. Rather, the rights and obligations in Islam are for humankind in their characteristic as human beings, without any attention as to whether they are male or female; rather irrespective of their gender. Accordingly, all the laws of the Shari’ah are for humankind while some are exceptions - so sometimes the woman is addressed in her characteristic as a female by specific text and at other times the man is addressed in his characteristic as a male by specific text.
Due to the generality of the Shari’ah and its rules, the woman can work in trade, agriculture, and industry in the same way as the man, since the address of the Legislator (swt) came for humankind.
She can undertake all the verbal actions of contracts and transactions, since the address of the Legislator (swt) came for humankind.
She can own any type of property and invest her wealth whether personally or otherwise, since the address of the Legislator (swt) came for humankind.
She can teach and carry out Jihad since the address of the Legislator (swt) came for humankind.
She can partake in politics, join political parties and account the ruler, since the address of the Legislator (swt) came for humankind.
She can directly engage in all the affairs of public life, in exactly the same manner as the man, in everything due to the citizen and whatever is required to make a living, since the address of the Legislator (swt) came for humankind.