From a hadith recorded in Sahih Muslim and Sunan an-Nasai we learn that the best provision in this world is a pious woman.
This means that every woman is, in terms of potential, capable of being the best companion for a man. But it is for the man to convert this potential into actuality. This is just as iron ore is a gift of nature but gets transformed into steel through human effort.
The first and foremost responsibility of a man towards his wife is to respect and appreciate her true worth. He must recognize the gems that are hidden inside her. He must discover her inner beauty. Every woman has immense natural potentials, and her spouse can either help transform them into reality or let them go waste.
The process of the actualization of a wife’s potential begins when her husband regards her as a gift sent by God. If a man considers his wife as a direct gift of God, he will naturally be serious about her and will have faith that God’s choice cannot be wrong. Just as what God decides in other matters is always right, it is right here, too. When a man thinks like this, the process required for converting a woman’s potential into actuality automatically begins.
When a man considers his wife as God’s gift to him, he will consider his dealings with her as a form of worship. Paying whatever price he needs to, he will do what he can so that his wife becomes, in the true sense of the term, the world’s best provision for him.
Every man wants to have a good wife. But a good wife isn’t something that comes readymade. This is a task that the husband must do. And for this he must have true compassion, patience and tolerance.