Women’s Socio-Political Participation In The Public Sphere: A Reinterpretation of the Hadith on Women’s Fitnah through Hasan Hanafi’s Hermeneutics

Abstrak

Abstract: Women’s participation in public spaces, particularly in social and political life, is often constrained by interpretations of religious texts that portray women as sources of temptation (fitnah). This study aims to reinterpret the hadith in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī no. 5096 concerning the temptation of women through Hasan Hanafi’s hermeneutical framework and examine its implications for women’s social and political participation. Employing a qualitative library research method, this study combines hadith criticism with Hasan Hanafi’s historical, eidetic, and practical approaches. The study finds that the hadith is ṣaḥīḥ, as its narrators are trustworthy (thiqah) and its chain of transmission is continuous (muttasil). However, its authenticity does not necessitate a gender-biased interpretation. Historically, the hadith emerged within a patriarchal socio-cultural context in which women were closely associated with family honor and social morality. Eidetic analysis indicates that fitnah encompasses trials, temptations, and distractions from moral responsibility, rather than referring exclusively to women. Through Hasan Hanafi’s practical hermeneutics, the hadith is understood as a universal ethical warning emphasizing self-control and moral responsibility. Consequently, it should not legitimize women’s exclusion from public spaces but support their participation in education, social organizations, professions, religion, and politics within an equal, safe, and dignified public sphere.