In the sight of Allah, the only factor that puts a person (man or woman) above another, is their piety. All religious obligations (such as praying, fasting, paying alms taxes and performing pilgrimage) are compulsory upon both men and women and there is no difference in them. Therefore, men and women are treated as equals in the sight of Allah, except where equality would lead to injustice, such as expecting a woman to work to support her family when she already has the responsibility of looking after and bearing children.

There are always questions asked about Muslim women in so far as their dress, their status in society, etc. The first and foremost thing for non-Muslims to understand is that Muslims believe that Allah created the whole universe and everything in it. A being so powerful, mighty and just has also created the complex human being, and has set down laws and guidelines for humans to follow. As such, He has laid down guidelines for men and guidelines for women. Muslims believe first and foremost that following these guidelines will result in a far better world for all people and prevents corruption in society in general. At the individual level, especially in the long run, following the laws laid down by Allah results in a more secure, safe, content and satisfied human being. And of course, the greatest benefit is success in the Hereafter.

Women's Responsibilities

Allah has appointed both men and women certain responsibilities. In the case of a woman, she is responsible for her children, protecting her husband's property when he is absent and providing love and companionship. Amongst the man's responsibilities are that he must protect the women, namely his wife, mother, sisters, daughters and so on. Men have been appointed the guardians for women and they must provide for their needs and safety. As such, a husband is responsible for paying for all of his wife and children's needs. This is not the responsibility of the woman.

Women's Privileges

The Muslim woman has been granted a number of privileges by Allah, as He has granted men. Some of these are outlined below. A woman has the privilege to:

Own property and retain this upon marriage - she also does not change her surname to her husband's

Be paid a dowry (gift) to her liking upon marriage by her husband (neither her nor her family pay anything to the husband)

Have her food, clothing, accommodation and other expenses paid for her

Be treated with respect and spoken to kindly

Not work if she does not want to, and if she chooses to she may, providing her husband agrees and that the work situation is Islamically desirable, for example it doesn't deal with alcohol, involve her having to uncover herself, or freely intermingling with men she is not related to, and so on.

Keep any money she earns for herself and spend it as she desires

Divorce, if her above rights are not being met, or in other situations, such as if her husband physically or emotionally abuses her, or is impotent/infertile, for example.

Women's Dress

Modesty is enjoined upon both men and women as a means of protecting society from corruption, such as fornication, adultery, pornography and so on. It helps men and women keep their gaze down and to not provoke in them the desire to commit illegal sexual intercourse. Women are instructed to only display their beauty to their husbands and those men to whom marriage is permanently forbidden (sons, father, uncles, brothers, grandfather, father-in-law, step-father). Women must therefore cover their bodies with non-transparent, lose-fitting clothing, and at the minimum, only show their face and hands once they reach the age of puberty. In this way the women are protected from being molested and treated as sex objects. The woman is thus respected, maintains her dignity and valued for her intellect and character, rather than just her body.

A Woman's Inheritance

In recognition of the fact the male members of the family must provide for all their female relatives, whilst the female members are not responsible for providing for anyone (not even themselves), men receive twice the inheritance of women to cover the extra financial burden they must carry.

Women as Witnesses

Two female witnesses are required in the place of one male witness. This is in no way a reflection of the esteem in which a woman is held, but on the contrary is a way of protecting her and the accused, since there is much at stake if a person is to confuse what they witnessed. Women are also more emotional than men in general and this may affect their factual account of an incident, thus the other woman may correct her if she makes a mistake. Allah says in the Qur'an:

''...And get two witnesses out of your own men. And if there are not two men (available), then a man and two women,

such as you agree for witnesses, so that if one of them (two women) errs, the other can remind her...'' (Qur'an 2:282)

Menstruating Women

Women do not perform their regular five daily prayers (although they are still permitted to make supplications) or fast whilst they are menstruating. Whilst the missed days of fasting during Ramadhan must be made up before the next Ramadhan, the missed prayers do not have to be made up at all, possibly because this would be too much burden on the woman.

A menstruating woman is also not permitted to engage in intercourse with her husband nor perform religious tasks for which a person (man or woman) must be ritually clean for, such as reciting or touching the Holy Qur'an or going to the mosque. Aside from this, the menstruating woman engages in other parts of her life as per normal. She is not considered 'dirty' and may still prepare food, touch and be intimate with her husband and use the same eating utensils as others and so on. She is in no way 'quarantined' during this time or treated any differently. 

Source: Islamiclife