7 ridiculous things clerics said are 'haram' for women

Islam is a religion that led the world with women's rights ... but a few of its modern scholars seem to be going against this legacy. 

Proof of this lies in their misconstrued interpretations of specific Quranic verses and their passing of misogynous religious edicts. 

Here are a few of these orders, which practically aimed to ban women from:

Before Saudi Arabia officially implemented its ban lift on women driving, several of the kingdom's clerics had said it's "haram" (unacceptable in Islam) for women to drive.

These include Saudi cleric Saleh Al Fawzan who explained to one of his followers that it's "risky and unacceptable" for a woman to drive because "if she owns a car her male guardian won't be able to have control over her."

"She can go out whenever she wants if she has keys to her car. When a woman drives a car, it can lead to her committing sins," he added.

Muslim scholar Sheikh Mohamad Al Arefe once said it's "haram" for women to wear perfume in public. 

"It's unacceptable for a woman to wear perfume and then go out in front of men or go out to a mall or work at a mixed-gender office space. Men around her would smell her perfume every time she passes by and this is why it's prohibited by Sharia," he explained. 

In August, a video of Kuwaiti cleric Dr. Othman Al Khamees saying it's unacceptable for a Muslim woman to travel alone sparked controversy on Twitter. 

The statement came in response to a question the cleric was asked by one of his followers and featured pretty bizarre reasons why females shouldn't travel alone.

"You say you'll pick her up, what if something comes up and you don't end up doing that? What if you get into an accident, God forbids, and you're sent to a hospital where she can't find you? What if one of your phone connections suddenly fails," he said. 

 "What if she had to make an emergency landing in Holland or Germany, what if her flight gets diverted? It's not right, it's just not acceptable to have her travel alone," he added.

In an edict that left people divided, Kuwaiti cleric Dr. Othman Al Khamees said it's "haram" for women to wear pants. 

The statement came in reply to a question the cleric was asked about whether it's permissible for women to wear pants above their heels. In his reply to the inquiry, Al Khamees said: 

"Pants are 'haram' altogether and they're asking about ones that go above the heels! It's impermissible for Muslim women to wear pants except if they put on a 'thawb' [floor-length garment] over them. It isn't acceptable in Islam for a woman to expose her legs and thighs, and pants define these body parts. Ones that go above the heels also reveal a part of the body that shouldn't be out."

Last year, Umm Jamaal ud-Din, a Muslim convert teacher, released a two-hour long YouTube video in which she spoke about the concept of tawheed (oneness of Allah in Islam) and the flawed execution by many Muslims today. 

In her lecture, she tackled various topics including why it's "haram" for women to pluck their eyebrows. 

"You can say as many things that Allah makes haram, like plucking the eyebrows," she says, explaining that whether girls call it "cleaning or plucking," it's still considered a sinful act. 

"What do the girls say? 'I'm just cleaning, I'm not plucking ... I'm cleaning.' That sounds great, doesn't it? Clean shaven. Sounds great ... but it's haram," she says.

Earlier this year, Saudi cleric Saad Al Khathlan issued a controversial edict stating it's "haram" for women to call polygamist husbands "cheaters."

His statement on the matter came in response to a question he was asked during a live television appearance on Al Risala TV channel's program "They ask for your edicts."

"God permitted men to take more than one wife. Therefore, describing polygamy as a form of betrayal means a person is objecting to God's sharia. Cheating can be used to describe illicit relationships and adultery, things that God prohibited," he said. 

In October of this year, Saudi cleric Abdullah al-Mutlaq sparked controversy after a statement in which he encouraged men to take second wives went viral on Twitter. 

The Islamic scholar, who is an advisor to the kingdom's royal court, made the statement on state television program "Fatawi" (Religious Edicts) during a segment in which he was asked about solutions to spinsterhood. 

"Some women don't help men in treating their multiple wives fairly and equally. The moment she learns her husband is about to take a second wife or already did, she goes crazy," he said.

The cleric went on to say that a woman's shock or anger in reaction to her husband taking a second wife is considered "haram."