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Children are one
of the joys of life that we ask
Allah to grant us:
·
Wealth and sons are allurements of the life of this world-
(Al-Kahf 18:46)
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And
those who pray, "Our Lord! Grant unto us wives and offspring who
will be the comfort of our eyes, and give us (the grace) to lead the
righteous." (Al-Furqan 25:74)
Children are the delight of our
hearts in their childhood, our companions and comfort in our old age, and
the only source of du`aa' in
our graves; all in all, they are the means by which we earn the fruits of
this life and the reward of the hereafter. The adult of today was the
child of yesterday, and the child of today is the adult of tomorrow.
Islam is the most just way of life, in which the rights of
each soul are granted.
Children, according to Islam, are
entitled to various rights.
·
Choosing a
righteous wife to be a righteous mother.
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The first and foremost of these rights is the
right to be properly brought up, raised and educated.
·
Upon their birth,
children have all of their rights automatically in effect: feeding, Clothing,
health care.
·
It is Sunnah
(recommended) to do tahneek for the child when he is
born:
·
It is Sunnah to
shave the child’s head on the seventh day and to give the weight of the
hair
in
silver in charity.
·
It is mustahabb for
the father to do the ‘aqeeqah. -“Every child is in pledge for his
‘aqeeqah.” Two sheep should be sacrificed for a boy and one for a
girl.
·
Circumcision
·
Parents must take care of teaching their
children the duties of Islam and other virtues
that
are recommended in sharee’ah, and worldly matters that they need in order
to live a decent life in this world and give their children training
in good manners and characteristics:
·
Another of the
greatest rights is to give the child a good upbringing and take good care
of him or her – especially in the case of girls. The Messenger of
Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) encouraged this
righteous deed.
·
Another important
right is treating children fairly.
- Saheeh hadeeth (authentic narration):
“Fear Allaah and treat your children fairly.” (Narrated by al-Bukhaari,
2447; Muslim, 1623).
·
Also, the Prophet advised us to give each child a name with
a good meaning.
such as ‘Abd-Allaah or ‘Abd al-Rahmaan
·
The Qur'an also states that children have the right to
inherit from the day of their birth.
·
Parents are recommended to provide adequately for children
in inheritance.
·
Children have the right to be fed, clothed, and protected
until they reach adulthood.
·
Children must have the respect, to enjoy love and affection
from their parents.
·
Children have the
right to be treated equally, vis-a-vis their siblings in terms of
financial gifts.
Traditions/Sunnah regarding
Chidren’s Rights
Muslims who fear Allah in
their heart and are keen to earn His satisfaction should treat their
children equally, not favoring one over the
others, in spending, treatment, and giving gifts to them.
A tradition reports:
·
It is narrated by Abu Bakr, RAA, who said that Allah's Apostle,
PBUH, was approached by one of his companions, al-N'uman bin Basheer, who
said: "O Prophet of Allah! I have granted a servant to one of my
children (asking him to testify to that gift)." But Allah's PBUH
asked him: "Did you
grant the same to each and every child of yours?" When Allah's Apostle, PBUH was
informed negatively about that, he said: "Fear Allah, the
Almighty, and be fair and just to all your children. Seek the testimony
of another person, other than me. I will not testify to an act of
injustice." This
Hadith is reported by both Bukhari and Muslim. Thus, Allah's Apostle,
PBUH called such an act of preference of one child over the others an act
of "injustice." Injustice is prohibited and forbidden in Islam
·
Prophet Muhammad was reported as saying: "Be fair and
just in terms of the gifts you offer your children. If I was to give
preference to any (gender over the other) I would have preferred females
over males (in terms of giving gifts)." Imam Baihaqi
·
Children have the right to education. A saying
attributed to Muhammad relates:"A father gives his child nothing
better than a good education. - "Hadith collected by Tirmidhi and Al-Bayhaqi.
·
He is not one of us who does not have mercy for children and
respect for our seniors. (At-Tirmidhi)
·
It is reported that Al-Aqra' ibn Habis saw Allah's Messenger
kissing his grandchild and said to the Prophet, "I have ten
children, but I have never kissed any one of them." The Prophet
said, "He who does not show mercy (towards his children), no mercy
would be shown to him" (Al-Bukhari).
·
Also, a Bedouin man asked the Prophet, "Do you kiss
your sons?" The Prophet replied, "Yes." The Bedouin said,
"We do not." The Prophet said to him, "What can I do for
you if Allah has removed mercy from your heart?" (Al-Bukhari).
·
Prophet Muhammad said, "The best penny a man spends is
that on his children, on his camel for the sake of Allah, and on his
friends for the sake of Allah."
·
Even in cases of divorce, fathers are asked to be fully
responsible for their children regarding food, clothing, schooling, and
health expenses according to the father's standard of life.
·
[Let the man of means spend according to his means: and the men
whose resources are restricted, let him spend according to what Allah has
given him. Allah puts no burden on any person beyond what He has given
him. After a difficulty, Allah will soon grant relief.} (At-Talaq
65:7)
·
Umar in a Sunni tradition summed up some of the
rights of children in the following anecdote:
One day a man came to Umar ibn al-Khattab to complain of a
disobedient son. So Umar had brought the boy to him and he blamed him for
his disobedience. Then the boy addressed Umar by saying "O Commander
of the faithful: Are there no rights for a boy against his father?” Umar
said "Yes". Then the boy said "What are these rights O
Commander of the Faithful?" Umar said, "To choose a good mother
for him, to select a good name to him and to teach him the Quran"
Then the boy said: "O Commander of the faithful; my father has not
accomplished any of these rights. As for my mother, she was a black slave
for a Magian; As for my name, he has named me Jual (beetle); and he has
not taught me even one letter from the Quran". Then Umar turned
round to the man and said "You came to me complaining disobedience
on the part of your son, whereas you have not given him his rights. So
you have made mistakes against him before he has made mistakes against
you".
Conclusion:
Children are a trust given
to the parents. Parents have responsibilities towards their children, and
they stand accountable for these responsibilities. Children are a blessing from Allah and to thank Allah for such a
blessing, parents should fulfill the duties Allah prescribed on them
towards their children. If parents fulfill this responsibility,
they will be free of the consequences on the Day of Judgment. The children
will become better citizens and a pleasure to the eyes of their parents,
first in this world and lastly in Jannat.
Foot Notes:
·
Islam and Children by Wikipedia
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Rights
of Children and Parents in Islam by
Hoda Yasser.
·
The
Rights of Children in Islam BY Sheikh-Al-Uthaymeen
·
Child
Rights in Islam by S.M.Manazid
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