UAE Fatwa Q&As: How to raise one’s children

This week's Fatwa Q&As focus on how to raise one's children to observe Islam and choosing a travel companion during the Haj pilgrimage.

Can you advise us, as parents, on our duties towards our children? How do we instil in them a love for Islam and adherence to its five pillars?

Parents need to raise their children in a way that ensures they are both physically and mentally fit and able to observe their religion. This should allow them to grow up into morally upright and capable individuals who are able to serve both their community and nation.

Ways to do this include acting as role models in honouring Islam, overseeing one’s children’s educational development with an emphasis on the memorisation of the Quran and learning of the Prophet’s example and raising children to respect the prophets and other righteous people.

You should also be patient and lenient towards your children. The Prophet Mohammed used to favour leniency in all matters and is reported to have said: “Allah is kind and loves kindness in every matter.”

There is no doubt that children are a trust from Allah and with this comes the importance of bringing them up well. Indeed pious children are a source of pride to parents and the community, benefiting all around them.

It is said that one should choose a travel companion before choosing to travel. As I want to go on Haj this year, so what are the attributes of an appropriate travel companion?

Haj is a spiritual journey that requires one to take all possible precautions that lead to the best possible outcome. One of the factors that enable this is righteous company — being in the company of anyone whose state reminds you of Allah, whose sayings guide you to Allah and who supports you in the utilisation and investment of your time in goodness.

The Islamic scholar Imam Nawawi, in his commentary on the Hadith, said that one should be in the “company of the righteous, the people of goodness and uprightness and the people of noble character, piety, knowledge and proper manners”.

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