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WHAT MY MOTHER HAS ADVISED ME
By: Syed Abid Ali
Hadrat Mu‘awiya bin Jahima said that his father approached Prophet Muhammad (may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him) and said, “I intend going on Jihad. I seek your advice”. The Prophet (may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him) inquired, “Is your mother alive?” He answered, “Yes”. The Prophet (may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him) said, “Go and serve her, for Paradise lies beneath the feet of mothers”. (Ahmad, an-Nasaai, Bayhaqi)
This Hadith right here tells us the importance of the mother. It tells us why we should respect and be obedient to our mother. If we don’t, then we cannot enter Paradise. In this essay, I will be talking about what my mother has advised me and why it’s so important to practice it. These are just some of the many things my mother has advised me about Islam and many other things.
One of the most important things my mother has advised me are the basic five pillars of Islam. The first pillar starting off with the Kalima, “Laa ilaaha Illallah Muhammad ur Rasulullah”, which means: “None is worthy of worship except Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah”. She told me the importance of it and also told me to believe in it. The second pillar being Prayer, she taught me how to pray Salah and advised me to pray it five times a day.
The third pillar is Zakah. She recommended that when I grow up, I pay my Zakah to the less fortunate. She prepared me for this by putting money in my hand and telling me to put it in the Zakah box in the masjid. The fourth pillar is fasting. She taught me how to fast throughout the month of Ramadan. The last pillar of Islam that was taught to me was Hajj. My mother always advised me that at one point of my life I would have to go for Hajj. She also told me that Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) forgave the people that never had the money but told me that if I had the money, then it would be a good time for me to go for Hajj.
My mother has also advised me about some little, but also important things that have made me the Muslim that I am now. She has advised me to be honest and always to tell the truth, no matter what the situation is. She told me the story of Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani (QaddasAllahu Sirrahul ‘Aziz). When he was just a teenager, he went on a journey and he was approached by thieves who asked him if he had any money. He didn’t lie but told them that he had money sewn in the inner part of his clothes. When the thieves found out that he wasn’t lying, they were amazed. They asked him why he never lied and he simply replied that his mother taught him always to tell the truth. The thieves repented and became pious Muslims.
My mother always taught me to have good manners, to respect my elders and to care for them. She always told me to treat others the way I wanted to be treated. I was advised to make good Muslim friends that practised Islam on a daily basis. I was instructed to be friendly with my neighbours and the people around me, and also to care for them. Something else that is important and was advised to me by my mother was to make a habit of reciting the Qur’an everyday. She said that it was very important that I recite the Book of Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) and practice to become more fluent at reciting the Qur’an and to act on its teachings.
Once a person asked the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alayhi wa Sallam), “Who deserves the best care from me?” The Prophet replied, “Your mother (he repeated this three times), and then your father”.
I conclude my essay with this Hadith because it tells us why we should listen to what our mother has to say because she is the most important person in our life. That’s why we should realize that whatever our mother says, we should take it into consideration because it’s going to be based on the teachings of the Qur’an and the Hadith of the Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam). I hope to put the advice of my mother in my daily practice, Insha Allah.
Sha‘ban 1424, October 2003