Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 282

282. O you who believe! When you contract a debt for a fixed term, write it down. [401] And let a scribe write it down between you in justice. And the scribe should not refuse to write as Allah has taught him, so let him write. And let the debtor dictate, and let him fear Allah, his Lord, and not diminish anything from it. But if the debtor is of limited understanding, or weak, or unable to dictate himself, then let his guardian dictate in justice. And bring two witnesses from among your men. [404] But if there are not two men, then a man and two women from those whom you accept as witnesses, so that if one of the women errs, the other can remind her. [405] And let not the witnesses refuse when they are called upon. [406] And do not be weary to write it, whether it is small or large, with its term. [407] That is more just in the sight of Allah, and stronger as evidence, and more likely to prevent doubt between you—except when it is an immediate transaction which you conduct among yourselves, then there is no blame upon you if you do not write it. And take witnesses whenever you make a commercial contract. [408] And let neither scribe nor witness be harmed. [409] If you do so, indeed, it is grave disobedience in you. And fear Allah, for Allah teaches you, and Allah is Knowing of all things.

[401]
Writing Down Contracts is Recommended, Not Obligatory:

This is the longest verse of the Quran, in which instructions are being given to record transactions related to loans in writing. For example, sale deeds of properties, written contracts of Bai' Salam, or written records of such commercial transactions in which the full amount or a part of it is still payable. So that if any dispute arises later, this writing can serve as evidence. And this command is recommended, not obligatory. Thus, if there is such mutual trust between the parties that there is no possibility of dispute, or if it is merely a matter of loan and such a formal document would harm the trust of any party, then for the sake of memory, if one party writes it down for themselves, this may also suffice.

[402] Nowadays, we have certified experts for such writings, who are called deed writers. Deed writers write such contracts on official papers according to almost the same principles, and since this has become a permanent art and profession, the question of their refusal does not arise, except if there is some legal flaw in the matter.

[403]
Protection of the Rights of the Ignorant and Inexperienced:

That is, the dictation of the contract should be done by the debtor, because the burden of payment is upon him. However, if he does not fully understand how to dictate, then his guardian (caretaker) can dictate on his behalf as his representative. This guardian can be a relative or a non-relative, who is sensible and well-wishing for the debtor, or in the well-known sense, an attorney can also dictate as a guardian.

[404]
The Standard of Testimony:

After writing, there should be the testimony of two such Muslim men on this document who are considered trustworthy in society. And if the matter is between dhimmis, then the witnesses can also be dhimmis. And if at the time of writing, two trustworthy Muslim witnesses are not available, then one man and two women can also be witnesses. And if even one man is not available, then four women cannot be witnesses. And this standard of testimony is only for financial matters. For example, for zina and qadhf, the testimony of four men is necessary. For theft and for marriage and divorce, the testimony of two men will be required. For bankruptcy, the testimony of three men of that tribe, for sighting the crescent only one Muslim, and for proof of suckling, only one relevant woman (wet nurse) is sufficient as a witness.

[405] From this, firstly, it is known that the testimony of two women has been considered equal to one man, and according to hadith, this is due to the deficiency of intellect in women. Secondly, oral testimony will be needed when a dispute arises in such details of the matter which could not be included in the writing and the matter goes to court. Otherwise, the writing is done so that no dispute arises later, and the testimonies are already recorded on this writing. Since the people of the West have raised the slogan of equality of men and women, and the democratic system has decided to grant women equal rights to men in every matter, since then, this phrase of this verse has also become the target of interpretation and ridicule, even by Muslims themselves. It is said that by equating the testimony of two women to one man, Islam has violated the rights of women. In Pakistan, the Westernized, civilized women of APWA have acted with great insolence, and those women have taken out processions and written banners against it, saying that if a woman's right is half that of a man, then the duties should also be half—women should have two and a half prayers, fifteen fasts, and half a Hajj, etc. Whereas this class, let alone two and a half prayers, is not even willing to offer one prayer. They themselves are already averse to Islam; through such propaganda, firstly, they want to intimidate the government so that it does not make any law that violates women's rights. Secondly, they want to alienate other simple Muslim women from Islam.

Women's Testimony and Equality of Men and Women:

Whereas here, there is no discussion of rights and duties at all. The verse says that if one woman forgets, the other woman may remind her. In this, neither any right of the woman is violated nor is she insulted. The matter is only of forgetfulness, and that too in those details which could not be included in the writing. Now, the question arises here: if a woman can forget, can a man not forget? The answer is absolutely clear: Islamic law is made according to general circumstances, and its Lawgiver is Allah Himself, Who is fully aware of the weaknesses and strengths of His creation. There are times for a woman during menstruation, postpartum bleeding, pregnancy, and childbirth when her mental balance cannot remain stable. And both ancient and modern physicians confirm and endorse such a state of a woman. The objection of these Westernized women is just like someone saying that a man, due to his physical structure and strength, is stronger than a woman, so the responsibilities of pregnancy and childbirth should have been placed on men, not on women, who are already weaker than men. And the second aspect of this issue is that, by her very nature, a woman has been exempted from such judicial proceedings. Now, it is the temperament of Islam itself that it does not like to drag a woman out of her home, whereas the present Western civilization and the system of democracy are the exact opposite of this principle of Islam. The testimony of a woman is accepted only when no other witness is available, and if another witness is available, Islam does not burden the woman with the trouble of testimony at all.

The Varying Value of Women's Testimony in Different Situations:

Due to this very forgetfulness of women, her testimony is not acceptable in criminal cases, because in such cases the nature of the matter is serious. In financial matters, a woman's testimony is accepted, but two women are considered equal to one man. And in family cases, since both spouses are involved and it is their personal matter, where the possibility of forgetfulness is very low, in such cases the testimony of both husband and wife will be of equal value. And in those matters which particularly concern women, the testimony of a woman is not only equal to that of a man but is considered more reliable. For example, if a wet nurse gives testimony regarding suckling, she will be considered more reliable than others, whether those others are women or men. From these clarifications, it is evident that in this verse, neither is the woman insulted nor is any of her rights violated. Rather, whatever law the Provider of the worlds has given, He has given it due to some special wisdom and His perfect wisdom. And any Muslim who mocks or ridicules any verse of Allah should fear for his faith. And such people have no need to remain attached to Islam. In their hearts, they have already become rebels against Allah. And these are the people who are causing more harm to Islam than the disbelievers.

[406] That is, when a dispute arises and the matter goes to court, and they are called to give oral testimony, they should not refuse. Because this comes under the concealment of testimony, which is a major sin.

[407] In this sentence, a natural weakness of man has been made clear, which is that no matter how trustworthy the parties are, and even if there is no expectation of dispute between them, and even if the matter is very minor, still, due to forgetfulness and error, a dispute or mistrust can arise between the parties. Therefore, even if there is no formal document, the parties, or at least one of them, should definitely write it down as a reminder.

[408] This command is only in the case when there is some important transaction, and even after the transaction, there is a possibility of dispute.

[409]
Forms of Hardship on Witnesses:

There can be several forms of this. For example, one is that no one should be forced to become a scribe or a witness. Secondly, if the testimony of the scribe or witness goes against any party, they should not be harmed, as often happens in cases nowadays, and the opposing party starts threatening and harming the witnesses or the deed writer so much that they consider it safer not to testify, or are forced to give false testimony. And the third form of causing harm to them is that they are called to court, but are not even given travel and food expenses.