Each new born child is a cause for happiness and joy for parents and also brings new responsibilities. The duties of parents can be grouped in three topics:
To meet the material needs of child. To meet the needs of child, like nourishment,shelter clothing , health are among the main duties of family. Hadrat Prophet stated that, among the spending of a person in the way of goodness, his spending for his family brings most merit and in another hadiths he declared :
“A person's leaving his family member miserable is enough as sin for him.” (1)
Showing love and compassion towards child. Many hadiths were communicated from Prophet; about his great compassion and affection towards his own children, grandchildren, and also to the children of others, his embress and caress them, kissing them, forgiving faults, making jokes, and even participation to their plays. He criticized a person who found strange his conmpassion to his children by saying :
“ If Allah The Most High took out compassion from your heart. What can I do for you? (2)
Modern psychology explains that the love and care of parents for children is at least as important as material care, the children who are deprived of this care have some problems of accordance and their tendency for commit crime is greater. Also nourishment of children with breast feeding? Is seen as very useful both in repsect of physical and psychological health. So the importance of the holy verse in the meaning of
"The mothers shall give suck to their offspring for two whole years if the father desires to complete the term. But he shall bear the cost of their food and clothing on equitable terms. No soul shall have a burden laid on it greater than it can bear. No mother shall be treated unfairly on account of her child nor father on account of his child. An heir shall be chargeable in the same way if they both decide on weaning by mutual consent and after due consultation there is no blame on them. If ye decide on a foster-mother for your offspring there is no blame on you provided ye pay (the mother) what ye offered on equitable terms. But fear Allah and know that Allah sees well what ye do.” (3) is understood better.
The education of child: The religious, moral and occupational education of child is as a difficult but also a very important duty of family. Hadrat Prophet's hadiths: ”My Lord educated me, He educated in such a beautiful way.” indicates that education is a profession that has a sacred aspect. Muslim savants of education and ethics see the word “Rab” one of the names of Allah in the meaning of ( The One who educate and teaches) as a prof for this. The hadith of hadrat Prophet: “I was only sent to complete good morals”(4) shows that education is the proffession of Prophets.
----------------------------
(1) Ebû Davûd.
(2) Buhârî.
(3) Chapter Bakara, 2/233.
(4) Ibn Mâje.
The basic goal of education is to provide children to be cultivated? Donanımlı ? on knowledge and morals. The hadith with the open expression : “Neither of fathers can leave a legacy to his children more valued tham good education.” Also the hadith of “ To demand knowledge is binding duty for each Muslim” load a responsibility to parents in this matter.
Because family is an environment of education at the same time, Muslim educationalist and moralists also stressed the importance and style of family education like modern educationalists do. Following proposals exist in the works written on this subject: Older people should try to be good samples for children with their behaviours, during education they shouldn't see them as little ones and try to undestand them, let them to play, direct children to educating plays, always should give right and consistent information to them, should observe the principle of tolerance with care, but they should be careful about adjust its degree well and not to cause to spoil and impudent of children.
------------------------------------------
Tâc.
Ibn Mâce