Islam and children

Muhammad established laws and examples (sunnah) in respect of which is obligatory for the Muslim community to follow.

Muhammad had seven children, three boys and four girls. All of his sons, including Ibrahim ibn Muhammad, died in infancy. Because of this, his experience as a father is sometimes described as "sorrowful".[1] Muhammad also had an adopted son, Zayd, who is said to be the object of Muhammad's parental affection.[2] He also had two grandsons, Hassan and Hussein, and three granddaughters, Umm Kulthum, Zaynab, and Umamah.[1] In one Islamic tradition, Muhammad ran after Hussein in a game until he caught him.[3] Muhammad used to let Umamah sit on his shoulders while he was praying. When someone expressed astonishment at the Prophet when the Prophet kissed his grandchild, he responded, "what can I do if God has deprived your heart of all human feeling?"[4]

Muhammad has been described as being very fond of children in general. Watt attributes this to Muhammad's yearning for children, as most of his own children died before him.[2] He comforted a child whose pet nightingale had died.[4] Muhammad played many games with children, joked with them and befriended them.[2] Muhammad also showed love to children of other religions. Once he visited his Jewish neighbor's son when the child was sick.[3]

Once, Muhammad was sitting with a child in his lap, and the child urinated over Muhammad. Embarrassed, the father scolded the child. Muhammad restrained the father, and advised him: "This is not a big issue. My clothes can be washed. But be careful with how you treat the child. What can restore his self-esteem after you have dealt with him in public like this?"[5]

A Muslim couple and their toddler at Masjid al-Haram, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

• Children have the right to be fed, clothed, and protected until they reach adulthood.[6]
• Children must have the respect, to enjoy love and affection from their parents.[6]
• Children have the right to be treated equally, vis-a-vis their siblings in terms of financial gifts.[7][8]

Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal said that preferential treatment of a child is permitted if he or she is handicapped while others are not. (In Al-Mughni, vol. 5, p. 605, it is stated that special treatment of a child is permissible due to a need, a handicap, blindness, his or her being from a large family, being engaged in studies, or something of the sort, as it is also permitted to withhold from a child who would spend what he is given on sinful or wicked things.)

• The child has the right to be not forced by its step parents or its birth parents.

• Children have the right to education.[6][9][10]
• Parents are recommended to provide adequately for children in inheritance.[11]

A Hadith says, “It is better for parents to leave their children well provided (financially) than to leave them in poverty”.

Parents demonstrating an unearned preference for one child over the other is considered an act of injustice, as it could lead to an atmosphere of hatred, anger and dismay amongst the children in a household. But if a parent granted one of his children financial help to fulfill a necessity, such as a medical treatment coverage, then such a grant would not be categorized an act of injustice and unfairness. Such a gift will fall under the right to spend in the essential needs of the children, which is a requirement that a parent must fulfill.

• A father is responsible for teaching his children according to Islam as follows:

1. Basic information about belief and worship
2. Basic information about high moral qualities
3. Information on what to be careful about in relations with other people
4. Vocational education

Muhammad said: "Every one of you is a protector and guardian and responsible for your wards and things under your care and a man is a guardian of his family members, and is accountable for those placed under his charge." (Bukhari and Muslim)

• Marrying children when they are old enough to get married

One of the rights that children have over their parents is to be provided with marriage when they are old enough, without delaying it. Both the Quran and Muhammed orders that young people and orphans be married when they are old enough.

• The first and foremost right of the parents is to be obeyed and respected by their children. A hadith records that Muhammad defined "the greatest of great sins" as polytheism and refusing to obey one's parents.[12]

• The mother has the right to receive the best treatment than accorded to any other person, in addition the mother has the right of custody of the child in general circumstances, at least until she remarries.[13][14]

Narrated Abu Huraira: A man came to Allah's Apostle and said, "O Allah's Apostle! Who is more entitled to be treated with the best companionship by me?" The Prophet said, "Your mother." The man said. "Who is next?" The Prophet said, "Your mother." The man further said, "Who is next?" The Prophet said, "Your mother." The man asked for the fourth time, "Who is next?" The Prophet said, "Your father. "

— Muhammad al-Bukhari, Sahih al-Bukhari[13][15]

• Parents have the right to be looked after by their children, and to receive physical or financial help as necessary, especially in their old age but also parents must not force its children/child as it is sharia.

Islam highly recommends the "fostering" of children, defined as "assuming partial or complete responsibility of a child in lieu of the biological parents". However, Islam forbids naming the child as one's own, or creating any "fictive relationships". Islamic adoption is sometimes called "fostering" or "partial adoption" and is similar to "open adoption".[27] Traditionally Islam has viewed legal adoption as a source of potential problems, such as accidentally marrying one's sibling or when distributing inheritance.[28]

If a child is adopted he or she does not become a son or daughter, but rather a ward of the adopting caretaker(s). The child's family name is not changed to that of the adopting parent(s) and his or her guardians are publicly known as such. Legally, this is close to other nations' systems for foster care. Other common rules governing adoption in Islamic culture address inheritance, marriage regulations, and the fact that adoptive parents are considered trustees of another individual's child rather than the child's new parents.[29] Usually an adopted child inherits from his or her biological parents, not automatically from the adoptive parents. If the child is below the age of consent at the time of inheritance (from the biological family), his or her adoptive parents serve as trustees over the child's wealth, but may not intermingle with it.

Adoption was a common practice in pre-Islamic Arabia. According to this custom, the adopted son would take the name of his adoptive parent, and would be assimilated into the family in a "legal sense". Islam viewed this practice as "erasure of natal identity". This practice was sometimes done for emotional reasons, such as pity, but adoption was also a means through which slaves were stripped of their identities and given the name of their slavemaster.[27] The Quran replaced the pre-Islamic custom of adoption by the recommendation that "believers treat children of unknown origin as their brothers in the faith".[28][30]

From verses 4 and 5 in sura 33 (Al-Ahzab) in the Quran, Allah instructed adoptive parents to refer to their adoptive children by the names of their biological parents, if known:

...nor has He made your adopted sons your sons. Such is (only) your (manner of) speech by your mouths. But Allah tells (you) the Truth, and He shows the (right) Way. Call them by (the names of) their fathers: that is juster in the sight of Allah. But if ye know not their father's (names, call them) your Brothers in faith, or your maulas. But there is no blame on you if ye make a mistake therein: (what counts is) the intention of your hearts: and Allah is Oft-Returning, Most Merciful.

— Quran[31]

• Islam and humanity
• Child marriage
• Islamic views on slavery
• Women in Islam
• Religion and children

• Muhammad's children

• Juynboll (1910). Handbuch des Islamischen Gesetzes. Leyden.
• Khalil bin Ishaq. Mukhtasar tr.Ignazio Guidi and David Santillana (Milan, 1919).
• Levy, Reuben (1969). The Social Structure of Islam. UK: Cambridge University Press.
• Phipps, William E (1999).Muhammad and Jesus: A Comparison of the Prophets and Their Teachings. Continuum International Publishing Group.
• Sachau (1897). Muhammedanisches Recht. Berlin, Germany.
• Stewart, P.J (1994). Unfolding Islam. UK: Garnet & Ithaca Press.
• Watt, William Montgomery (1974). Muhammad Prophet and Statesman. Oxford University Press.
• Yust, Karen-Marie (2006).Nurturing Child And Adolescent Spirituality: Perspectives from the World's Religious Traditions. Rowman & Littlefield.

General

• Encyclopaedia of Islam. Ed. P. Bearman et al., Leiden: Brill, 1960–2005.
• Esposito, John (2004). The Oxford dictionary of Islam. Oxford University Press.
• Suad Joseph; Afsaneh Najmabadi, eds. (2003). Encyclopedia of Women & Islamic Cultures: Family, law, and politics. BRILL. Missing or empty |title= (help)