5 Tips for Bringing Joy to Children’s Lives
The greatest and most serious
mission in existence is raising children, a responsibility the Qur’an warns
about: “O you who have believed, protect yourselves
and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones.” (At-Tahrim
66:6).
Building future generations is
among the heaviest responsibilities. A child must grow in a stable environment,
enjoying the stages of childhood and life. Bringing joy to them is one of the
most important duties, so they grow up well-adjusted, able to give and
contribute just as they were taught in their early years.
Therefore, we must pay attention
to methods of bringing happiness to children so we can guarantee them a stable
and balanced future, without neglecting their interests.
Among the Ways of Bringing Happiness to Children are:
1. Understanding the Principle of Generational Exchange
Many make the mistake of
measuring a child’s needs by comparing them to what they themselves needed in
childhood, forgetting that each era has its people, its tools, and its
circumstances.
One wise man said: “Do not
raise your children on your manners, for they were created for a time other
than yours.” Sa‘id ibn al-Musayyib would pass by children in their learning
circles and say: “These are the people after us,” reminding us of the
necessity and importance of understanding generational exchange.
2. Sharing in the Child’s Needs
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be
upon him) gave us the best example. Hadith books narrate how he once said to a
child who had lost his bird: “O Aba `Umair! What did the Nughair (a kind of
bird) do?” The Nughair is a small bird resembling a sparrow. This gesture
to a sad child over the loss of his bird shows the Prophet’s(peace be upon him) humility and deep empathy for children’s
concerns, which adults might dismiss as mere play or a waste of time.
3. Asking About Their Toys
One important way to bring joy to
children is to show interest in their toys. ‘Aishah (may Allah be pleased with
her) once had a toy horse with wings. When the Prophet (peace be upon him)
asked about it, she replied that it was Solomon’s horse, which had wings. The
Prophet (peace be upon him) smiled at her answer. Therefore, ‘Aishah would
later say: “Estimate the time a young girl eager for amusement would wait.”
4. Cleaning the Child Without Complaining
It is essential to make the child
feel that cleaning and caring for them is easy and not a burden to their
caregiver.
The Messenger of Allah (peace be
upon him) loved Usamah ibn Zayd dearly. He would wipe his nose with his own
garment when he was small, and once, when Usamah fell and hurt his head, the
Prophet (peace be upon him) sucked the blood from the wound, spat it out, and
said: “If Usamah were a girl, I would have adorned him and dressed him until
I married him off.”
5. Praising Their Understanding and Thinking Skills
It is important to praise a
child’s abilities, encourage their thinking, and plant self-confidence within
them.
When the Prophet (peace be upon
him) asked about “a tree is similar to the believer,” the
young companion ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar said: “The people started thinking about
the trees of the desert. And it occurred to me that it may be the date-palm… But
I was shy. So I informed my father about what I had thought of, and he said:
'If you had said it, that would be more beloved to me than this or that.'”
Read Also:
- Raising the Next Generation in an AI World: Opportunities and Obstacles
- Islamic Path to Emotional Well-being
- Islam Protected Fetal Rights Long Before Modern Laws!
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