The Upbringing of Children

Children are without doubt an amazing blessing of Allah Ta'ala. With their arrival while still being unable to speak, they give their parents a very powerful message: that the roles of these two individuals have now forever changed. From being a carefree youthful couple they have now transformed into a caring set of parents, whom the child will soon lovingly refer to as mum and dad. But as every parent knows, with children also comes an enormous responsibility that had never before been experienced. The parents both collectively and as individuals are now responsible for a life other than their own. O you who believe Save yourselves and your families from a fire whose fuel is men and stones. at Tahrim 66:6 The above injunction of the Qur'an gives magnitude to the responsibility that accompanies parenthood. This has been further explained by the Prophet of Allah Ta'ala: Everyone of you is a shepherd (over your families), and every one of you will be questioned about his flock. al-Bukhari and Muslim It is clear that if anything has a divine injunction, it is no small matter. We should understand from this that if we are negligent of this duty of upbringing children then both we and our offspring, and in turn, their offspring will suffer in both this world and the Hereafter. If on the other hand we are vigilant and attentive to the responsibilities involved, we, our children and in turn their children will benefit. This benefit will be in this world, in the form of mutual love, affection and caring and also in the Hereafter through attaining the eternal pleasure of Allah Ta'ala. This booklet touches upon various issues revolving around bringing up children. Through this we hope that our children will become a means of directly benefitting their parents in both the worlds and also benefit Muslims in general. It is hoped that it will be an eyeopener for parents and allow them a more complete and deeper understanding of Islam, and what Islam says regarding children.