Introduction

The Abrahamic religions — Judaism, Christianity, and Islam — have been propagating a toxic idea for ages: that woman is the root cause of all human suffering, sin, and degeneration. This idea is not any divine truth, but a well-planned propaganda of patriarchal society, used to control, oppress, and dehumanize women. History shows that before oppressing any people, they are depicted as the source of the problem. The Abrahamic scriptures too, through the story of Adam and Eve, have established woman as the eternal criminal — which is not any proven historical event, but a myth that legitimizes male dominance. In this article, we will criticize this myth, analyzing with Islamic documents and evidence — on the basis of reason and proof. Unless these ideas are challenged, the oppression of women will continue in modern society as well.

The Narration of the Hadith and Modern Propaganda

The religion of Islam, like many other religions, considers woman the root of all problems, and does this work in a very planned manner with the very purpose of suppressing women. This idea is not any spiritual truth, but a mechanism of social control, propagated through hadiths. Let us read the relevant hadith,

Sahih al-Bukhari (Tawheed)
Chapter: 60/ The Noble Prophets (peace be upon them)
Section: 60/1k. The saying of Allah the Exalted.
3330. It is narrated similarly on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (RA) from the Prophet (peace be upon him). That is, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: had the Children of Israel not existed, meat would not have become putrid. And had Hawwa (peace be upon her) not existed, no woman would have betrayed her husband.
* (5184, 5186) (Muslim 17/19 Hadith: 1470, Ahmad 8038) (Adhunik Prakashani: 3084, Islamic Foundation: 3092)
* The Children of Israel were given the meat of the bird called Salwa from Allah the Exalted without restriction. Even so, because they stored it, the meat began to putrefy. And Mother Hawwa influenced Adam (peace be upon him) to eat the forbidden fruit.
Hadith grade: Sahih (Authentic)

This hadith clearly depicts woman as the genetic source of treachery, without any scientific or logical evidence. Islamic apologists explain it by saying that it is metaphorical or allegorical, but in reality it is a way of escaping men's responsibility by making woman the criminal. Such narrations still exert a major influence on misogynistic culture in countries like Bangladesh. Overall, the effect of these hadiths is used precisely to suppress women. Let us listen to the statement of Bangladesh's famous Mufti Ibrahim, where, in his interpretation of the hadith, he compares woman to rotting meat and propagates the mythological theory of woman being the criminal:

Let us listen to one more sermon,

Criminalizing Woman: Dehumanization

In the history of the world, before extreme persecution or deprivation of the rights of every oppressed people, the first thing the ruler or the powerful party does is to identify that group publicly as criminals or as the root cause of all problems. This is the most effective and time-honored strategy for preparing the way for oppression. Digging into history, one finds that during the Second World War, the Nazi forces spread propaganda holding the Jews responsible for all the suffering and misery of German society. In the United States, Donald Trump blamed immigrants, especially Muslims and Mexicans, for all of America's problems. This strategy, therefore, is not merely a matter of the past; it continues even today — a strategy of making the oppressed the criminal and legitimizing violence against them.

The same strategy is noticeable in religious narrations. Especially the Abrahamic religions — Judaism, Christianity, and Islam — have used this same weapon of smear-building against women. In their scriptures, woman herself is depicted as the main culprit of all human suffering and degeneration. The story of Adam and Eve is its greatest proof. There, Hawwa is blamed for Adam eating the forbidden fruit — she who, falling under Satan's instigation, had instigated Adam. Yet even though both man and woman are equally present in the story's narrative structure, the burden of the crime is specifically placed on the woman. This story is narrated in Genesis chapter 3 of the Bible, where Eve (Hawwa), tempted by the words of the serpent (Satan), eats the fruit and gives it to Adam. There is a similar narration in the Quran in Surah al-A'raf 7:19-23; although the Quran holds both equally responsible, in the interpretation of this verse the famous Companion Ibn Abbas said that Hawwa is responsible for this deed (( Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Volume 4, Islamic Foundation, Page 156, 157 )). In later hadiths too, woman is especially criminalized. These myths are not any proven event, but a reflection of the patriarchal mentality of ancient societies, which justifies men's control by making woman the guilty one.

The Adam-Eve Tale: The Foundation of Patriarchal Propaganda

This tale has been very cunningly inserted into the depths of the moral framework of the Abrahamic religions. And that is why woman becomes the 'cause of the first sin,' the 'first criminal.' As a result, woman's body, her desires, her freedom — everything is built up as questionable and as symbols of crime. Through this, a far-reaching process of dehumanization begins, on the basis of which keeping woman subordinate to man, controlling her, and inflicting physical, mental, and sexual violence upon her are given religious legitimacy. This process is no accident; it is deliberate, uniting society against woman.

This is not an isolated propaganda. It is planned and systematic. In a patriarchal religious system, when woman can be established as the 'root cause of problems,' the resistance strength of public opinion against the oppression of women weakens. Because then ordinary people begin to believe: 'all our problems are because of women', 'woman is the instrument of Satan'. Exactly as was propagated against the Jews in Nazi Germany: 'our problems are happening because of them.' This idea is alive even today — for example, in Islamic society woman is depicted as the 'supreme fitnah' (temptation), which comes again and again in the interpretations of the Quran or hadith, propagated as the words of the Prophet, in reality for the purpose of expanding men's dominance even further.

The Prophet Muhammad very well used and assimilated these age-old patriarchal tactics in his religion. Analyzing the Islamic hadiths and historical accounts, it is seen that he repeatedly presented woman as the root of the world's suffering and misery. In various hadiths, woman is called a 'disobedient creature,' 'the majority of the inhabitants of Hell,' and an 'object to be kept under men's control.' This idea of convicting present-day women by citing Hawwa's crime is a foundation of the greatest injustice against women. In essence, even if one accepts this mythological story of the Abrahamic religions for the sake of argument, imposing the guilt of the supposed crime of one woman of the past on the neck of the entire present female race in order to normalize and legitimize the oppression of women is certainly unjust. From these hadiths it is understood — as narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari — that these are not any divine words, but tools of social control of medieval society and a reflection of the culture and thought of that time.

The most terrifying thing is that, because of the compulsion to believe ancient religious stories unquestioningly, society has not been able to free itself from the influence of this propaganda even in today's modern age. The struggle to establish women's freedom and rights is repeatedly attempted to be suppressed with religious interpretations, and behind it hides that primitive story — 'because Hawwa was a woman, our misery began.' Therefore, behind the beginning and continuity of the oppression of women in the history of mankind lies a well-planned story of blame — which is not just a story, but a strategy of granting legitimacy. This is the world's longest-lasting and most brutal propaganda, which has destroyed the lives of millions of women.

Conclusion

The Abrahamic myth that woman is the cause of all suffering is an ancient propaganda that cannot stand on the basis of reason, science, or evidence. It is a tool of patriarchal society that dehumanizes woman and legitimizes oppression. Fact-checking shows that these stories are nothing but myths — there is no historical evidence that Hawwa or Eve existed; rather, these originated from ancient folklore. In modern society, these ideas must be challenged, with reason-based thinking — without respecting any religious blind faith. Only then will the achievement of equality between women and men be possible, and these toxic myths can be thrown into the garbage of history. If no evidence is found for a claim, then it must be clearly denied, not blindly believed.