By: Zahoor Ahmad Lone
Parents are a precious gift of Almighty Allah. Parents play an important role in the life of their children. Every parent wishes for a bright future for their children. They bear all the odds in shaping the future of their children. It is the duty of parents to provide for the material and spiritual welfare of their children. Parents are responsible for providing necessary food, clothing, shelter ,medical care and sound education. They are also responsible for the moral training of their children. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) has said “The best thing a father can provide to his child is good manners and ethical training. In this materialistic world every parents feels that their only responsibility is to provide best
education to their children. For providing the best education to their children, parents admit their children in reputed schools ,colleges and universities. Parents think that by providing the best education to their children their future will be safe. They thought that they would get respect and earn wealth.
No doubt to provide the best education to children is a must but the responsibility of parents is beyond this. Parents have to prepare their children for this world and hereafter also. They have to make them good citizens. They have to give them moral education so that they can become good humans. Children are innocent and can be moulded in the shape the parents wish. So both father and mother have to play an important role in bringing up their children. A mother plays an important role in keeping vigil on the activities of her children. The habits inculcated in children stays in them even when she/he grows old. Muslim parents must ensure that along with worldly education , Islamic education is is must for their children. To impart Islamic education to their children, parents have to play a paramount role. Nowadays every parent is ready to give their children the best materialistic education but no parent except few is ready to give their children good Islamic education which is indeed very necessary nowadays. In our society such an environment does not prevail where children can be given the best Islamic education. As parents we are spending a lot in shaping the worldly future of our children but think very less about the Islamic education of our children.
The non seriousness towards Islamic education has resulted in a number of bad consequences. From the very beginning of childhood the parents give their children that they have to become IAS Officer ,JKAS Officer , Doctor, Engineer, Professor, Pilot ,IPS Officer etc but don’t tell them they have to become good human beings ,real followers of Islam. No doubt we need Muslim doctors, engineers, Muslim IAS officers but first they must be such human beings as desired by Almighty Allah . The lack of Islamic education in children results in disobedience of children towards their parents especially in old age. We blame children for this fault but actually the fault lies with parents who have not given them Islamic education. If parents have given their children Islamic education along with materialistic education, the children would have been obedient to their parents .Due to lack of Islamic education , young children indulge in number of unislamic activities like drinking wine, gambling ,thefts and the most common is drug abuse.
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In order to provide Islamic education to children, parents, society and Ulemas have to play a paramount role .Parents’ role is to provide good Islamic education to their children along with worldly education. Society’s role is to establish such centers where Islamic education can be imparted to children. For establishing such centers Mohalla Committees/Auqaf Committees can play a pivotal role. Even today in a number of areas such centers are functioning by the name of Darasgah where a Molvi sahab imparts Islamic education to children. But I have observed that these Darasgahs get closed after some time due to non seriousness of parents. In many areas free Islamic education is being provided to children in these centers but still parents don’t send their children to such centers. Parents give preference to worldly education over Islamic education. For worldly education we as parents pay thousands of Rupees per month but for running a Darasgah we are not ready to pay Rs 50/= per month.
All the stakeholders parents ,society and Ulemas must work collectively for the smooth functioning of Darasgahs which are the only viable option left for imparting Islamic education to our kids .The parents who do not pay attention towards the Islamic education and moral training of their children are answerable to society too. Today’s children will be the citizens of tomorrow. Whatever habits will be inculcated in them today will put them in practice tomorrow. If their upbringing today is perfect, the society of tomorrow will be flawless .Therefore those who are parents have great responsibility on their shoulders. As parents we must try our best to bring up our children in such a way that they will become good citizens free from all evils . Children too have duties and responsibilities towards their parents. They must love their parents. They should treat their parents with goodness and kindness. They must not treat their parents unkindly. The children must be obedient to their parents always except when their order is in violation of Allah’s command. Children must take utmost care of their parents especially in old age when they need support of their children most .It is the duty of children to take all possible arrangements for the food, shelter, clothing and medicine of their old age parents. But unfortunately there have been a number of examples where old aged parents are left alone by their children. They feel insecure despite having a number of sons. In many cases old aged parents are seen as a burden and no son is ready to take care of them. Like western countries in Kashmir also the need for old age homes is being felt.
Shrugging off the responsibility of caring for parents is a sin and results in nothing but an end in hell. We as Muslims have faith that if we will be obedient to our parents and take care of them, especially in old age will take us to Janah. In the Quran Allah says “ To be merciful towards your parents. ‘Therefore respecting parents ,showing them kindness and being obedient to them is obligatory for all children.
Author is a teacher from Bandipora and can be mailed at zahoorlone1979@gmail.com
