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Why were two female slaves made equivalent to the freeing of one male slave, and the 'Aqiqah for a girl half that for a boy? Does this constitute a preference that negates Islam's justice and honoring of women?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Submitting to the rulings of Islam is an affirmation that it is the truth. Any misconception that prioritizing the male over the female contradicts justice or Islam’s honoring of women is an error. The guardianship (qawamah) of men over women is due to Allah's preference of some over others, and because of what they spend from their wealth. This preference is a requirement of justice, intellect, and innate disposition (fitra), and it is not absolute. Rather, it is a preference for the gender and the origin of the species, and individual superiority is only for piety. Allah has made men and women equal in the essence of creation, honor, accountability, reckoning, and recompense. Men have a degree of guardianship and care over them. As for freeing slaves, aqiqah (sacrificial offering for a newborn), and diyyah (blood money), the female is half of the male because the intention is to preserve life, thus resembling diyyah.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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