Abstract
As her husband makes the call for the predawn prayer in the adjoining room, Jamillah rises from bed and readies herself for a ritual that is written into the rules of the Islamic way to begin each day. A tall, slender woman whose high cheekbones and complexion rival many an Ebony magazine covergirl, Jamillah has come to especially enjoy this part of the day, this aspect of her marriage. She and her second husband, Naim, both in their fifties and parents of adult children, decided to follow salat with meditation and Qur’anic reading as a way to draw closer to Allah and to each other.1 When Jamillah met Naim, a year before their nikah, she was impressed by his work among new, younger Muslims. Like her, Naim was a teacher of Islamic practices and beliefs, and Jamillah looked forward to the intimate time they would share as husband and wife, together focused on the Qur’an, their guidebook for living. Once married, and as their familiarity with each other grew, Jamillah felt more comfortable expanding their predawn ritual to include conversations about their marriage. To her, such an environment, already filled with prayer, meditation, and recitation, is as healthy a place as any to relieve anxiety and reclaim internal peace. On this morning in particular, Jamillah is after answers, or better yet, a confirmation. And, if a showdown is the only means to her goal, she is fine with that, too.
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Majeed, D. (2016). Polygyny and the Performance of Gendered Power among African American Muslims. In: Ennaji, M. (eds) New Horizons of Muslim Diaspora in North America and Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137554963_16
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137554963_16
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