Early life

Hashmi was born in Sargodha, Punjab, and is the daughter of Abdur Rehman Hashmi, another Muslim [3] scholar. She received her masters degree in Arabic at the Punjab University, Lahore, and was married shortly afterwards to Dr. Idrees Zubair. She received her PhD from the University of [citation needed] [4] Glasgow, Scotland. She taught at the International Islamic University Islamabad, while also conducting informal religious study circles for women in Islamabad. She resigned from her post at the university to pursue her mission of establishing a center of Islamic learning, particularly catering to women. Al-Huda International is a chain of centers that cater towards the promotion of Qur'anic knowledge for the common women. "Al-Huda" means "The Guidance", which is [citation needed] one of the epithets of the Qur'an. It refers to what all Muslims believe is the ultimate guidance [citation needed] provided by God to mankind to lead a righteous life. [edit]Al

Huda International

Hashmi established the first center of her institution "Al-Huda International" in a building in downtown Islamabad. Since then, Al-Huda centers have been established in Pakistan, USA and Canada to impart the teachings of the Qur'an and Sunnah. Besides regular courses, the centers conduct special workshops [citation needed] which are open to the general public. Many women manage the different centers all over the world. Women scholars at her institution also conduct lectures and workshops in English, however the [citation needed] primary medium remains Urdu. Hashmi herself lectures in some of these sessions, particularly during the month of Ramadan. Many of her lectures are recorded and disseminated throughout Pakistan, the Middle East, as well as [citation needed] the US and UK. [edit]Views Hashmi considers taqlid in regards to Islamic jurisprudence to be permitted for those, who have no other choice, but discourages the blind taqlid that shuns the verses of the Qur'an, the sunnah of the prophet, [5] the sayings of the companions and the taqlid that prevents people from searching for evidence. During a sermon when asked by a woman, what a wife should do if her husband was unwilling to help her destitute parents, Hashmi promptly quoted An-Nisa, 34 (Chapter Al Nisa, verse 34) of the Quran, arguing that the wife should comply with her husband's wishes, "no matter what, as he was her divinely appointed [1] imam." Hashmi has preached that Muslim women should let their husbands marry a second time so other sisters can also benefit. This saves men from having a non-marital relationship, which is forbidden according to [1] the Quran. According to Hashmi, women can touch and recite the Quran during their menstrual periods, wearing gloves(either when learning Quran from a teacher or teaching Quran to others), traditionally considered [6][7] prohibited. Hashmi encourages her followers, mostly well-to-do Pakistani women, to interpret the Qur'an for themselves, but her critics argue that "Hashmi's talks center around personal and family development, [8] rather than community service," instead of using their knowledge to improve their social conditions.