Description

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This book looks at the connection between the Islamic purity system (taharah), Islamic rituals, and women in Muslim societies. The goal of this thesis is a critical analysis of the taharah system concerning female bodies and as applied in the performance of Islamic rituals. I argue that the rules and "rulings" for ritual purity in Islam reflect attitudes held by some Muslim male exegetes and scholars. Furthermore, I hypothesize that the taharah system corresponds to the Fall from Eden, and rules concerning women reflect belief attitudes which have influenced the perception of the female body and then been imposed upon Islamic rituals.