All the individual and social obligations legislated in Islam are shared between men and women, except for obligations for which there is certain evidence designating them to one gender; as Allah Almighty has outlined four obligations for the human being in His book and said: ﴿بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ ۝ وَالْعَصْرِ ۝ إِنَّ الْإِنْسَانَ لَفِي خُسْرٍ ۝ إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا بِالصَّبْرِ﴾[1]; “In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. By the time. Indeed, the human being is in loss; except for those who believed, did righteous deeds, exhorted one another to (believe in) the truth, and exhorted one another to (observe) patience.” It is clear that “the human being” includes men and women, and therefore, the four obligations mentioned in the Book of Allah Almighty, which are believing, doing righteous deeds, exhorting one another to believe in the truth, and exhorting one another to observe patience, are directed to all of them. Based on this, all men and women must, firstly, believe in the truth, meaning to know and accept it in their hearts, secondly, act upon it, meaning to implement and perform it practically in their lives, thirdly, exhort others to believe in it, meaning to invite others to know and accept it in their hearts, and, fourthly, exhort others to be patient with it, meaning to invite others to implement and perform it practically in their lives, despite all its hardships and risks. In this way, believing in the truth and acting upon it are individual obligations, and exhorting others to do these two are social obligations for men and women; if they fulfill them, they will be saved from “loss,” and if they fail to fulfill them, they will remain in “loss,” and there is no difference between men and women in this regard.

Preparing the ground for the advent of the Mahdi is also defined within this framework; because this work, in the manner explained by Allamah Mansoor in the book Return to Islam, is one of the greatest examples of the truth. Therefore, accepting it theoretically, acting upon it practically, and inviting others toward it are obligatory for all Muslims and lead to their salvation from loss, whether they are male or female.

Yes, if exhorting men has evil consequences for a woman, she can suffice with exhorting women. Similarly, if exhorting women has evil consequences for a man, he can suffice with exhorting men; provided that in Sharia, the evil consequences of refraining from exhorting them are not greater than the evil consequences of exhorting them. Similarly, emigrating toward Mansoor, even for the purpose of moving toward the Mahdi, is not obligatory for women; because it causes hardship for most of them, and Allah Almighty has said: ﴿مَا جَعَلَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ مِنْ حَرَجٍ﴾[2]; “And He has laid upon you no hardship in religion,” unless a woman can do so due to accompanying her father, her husband, her brother, or her son, like the female companions in Mecca who emigrated to Abyssinia and Medina with their fathers, husbands, brothers, and sons. Likewise, women are not obligated to engage in armed fight for the cause of the Mahdi; because it is beyond the capability of most of them, and Allah Almighty has said: ﴿لَا تُكَلَّفُ نَفْسٌ إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا﴾[3]; “No one is burdened beyond his capability,” unless some of them volunteer to serve behind the front lines, such as providing food for fighters or nursing the wounded.

As a result, it is obligatory for all Muslims to support the Mahdi by doing any legitimate work they are capable of; because the criterion for obligation in that is “legitimacy” and “capability,” and there is no difference between men and women in this regard.