Wednesday, November 24, 2010

How To Be A Good Muslimah - Respect to Parents

When writing about "How To Be A Good Muslimah", of course, there are the basics: the five daily prayers and the reading of the Quran. The fasting, the charity, and the good manners. But more than that, how should a modern girl living in the West try to be a good muslimah? What steps should she take to set her apart from the rest?

(I will attempt to write on this topic in a series of short posts, but I want to add that I am not attempting this question by claiming that I know the answer. Instead, I am answering it to clear my thoughts and in fact, encourage myself.)



This is how you be a good muslimah, Muslim Girl.

I think the thing that deserves to be number one is Respect to Parents. I think most people underestimate the amount of honor parents (especially mothers) hold in Islam, myself included. Sometimes we talk to them in a way that we wouldn't even talk to our own friends - people who have been in our lives for a few simple months or years. Yet the way some of us treat our mothers (or parents) makes it seem as if they have been bothering us since the day we were born!

If I ask myself, "what would make me happy", the answer would probably be something like, "success in this world and the hereafter." But today, I asked my mother what would make her happy, and without a moment's hesitation, she answered, "The happiness of my children." I guarantee your parents will have the same answer. And so, with that, what is the first step that a good muslimah can take to honor her parents? Make dua for them.

Imagine it is the Day of Judgment. The scorching heat of the sun is an arm's length away, and good deeds are scarce. You don't know if you even have enough to make it to Paradise - when all of a sudden, your status is raised, and in amazement, you ask 'How is this for me??' Imagine the joy you will experience when you are told, 'By your child's seeking forgiveness for you*.' Subhan'Allah. This is what will happen to the parents whose children make dua for them and seek forgiveness for them in this world, so make the same dua for your parents, and insh'Allah, may your children do the same for you.

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