Part 20

In this verse, Allah coins a parable of resurrection of the dead by likening it to how He revives the earth with vegetation after it has been barren. This same parable can be found in several places in the Qur’an. Allah (%) mentions,

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And of His signs is that you see the earth stilled, but when We send down upon it rain, it quivers and grows. Indeed, He who has given it life is the Giver of Life to the dead. Indeed, He is competent over all And:

+ And who sends down rain from the sky in measured amounts, and We revive thereby a dead land — thus will you be brought forth.) Children relate easily to features of nature, so these types of parables can be very effective. Parents should encourage them to ponder the wonders of nature and how the land is brought back to life after its death. This is truly an amazing phenomenon that we often take for granted. The seasons of the year are a sign of Allah’s power and majesty, and a reminder of our own death and resurrection. We should not allow them to pass without taking notice and being grateful for Allah’s bounties.

The whole creation itself is reminder of the ability of Allah to create and re-create.

Have they not considered how Allah begins creation and then * repeats it? Indeed that, for Allah, is easy. Say [O Muhammad): Travel through the land and observe how He began creation. Then Allah will produce the final creation [development]. Indeed, Allah, over all

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And it is He who begins creation; then He repeats it, and that is | [even] easier for Him. To Him belongs the highest description — [attribute] in the heavens and earth. And He is the Exalted in Might,

Allah has created this vast universe; would it not then be within His ability to create something less significant, which is the human being?

Pann a ae a a Ree ey teee OL SAS Ses wi Gy sel @ 20 gi Is not He who created the heavens and the earth Able to create the likes of them? Yes, [it is so]; and He is the Knowing Creator. His command is only when He intends a thing that He says to it: Be! —

and it is. So Exalted is He in whose hand is the realm of all things, and to Him you will be returned.) (Quran 36: 81-83)

A family’s vacation trip can easily be tured into a lesson integrating these verses and signs. A garden in the backyard can be a daily opportunity to remind children of Allah’s might and bounties. Studies in science should consistently be tied to verses from the Qur’an and hadiths of the Prophet (#%) so that children realize that the miracles of science exist only by the will of Allah. Humans have no power or ability compared to that which Allah possesses. Many scientists in current times disregard this fact due to their failure to connect knowledge and discoveries to the power and might of Allah.

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The death of a loved one or family friend would be an appropriate occasion to discuss the issues of death and the afterlife with a child. The discussion should be candid, but should also fit the developmental stage of the child. Regardless of the age, children can be told that everyone, including themselves, will die at some time. Children should understand, however, that their loved one is not gone, but has only passed on to the next phase of existence. Death is only a stage that s/he has passed through, as we all will one day. S/he will be raised again on the Day of Resurrection with his or her family and all other humans. Rather than grieving and being sad for this person, there should be an element of joy that they have gone on to meet their Lord. Older children may be provided information regarding the barrier or interval before the Day of Resurrection, and life in the grave. They may also be taken to graves as a further reminder of the reality.

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And it is He who takes your souls by night and knows what you have committed by day. Then He revives you therein [by day] that a specified term may be fulfilled. Then to Him will be your return; then He will inform you about what you used to do.} (Quran 6: 60)

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Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those that do not die [He takes] during their sleep. Then He keeps those for which He has decreed death and releases the others for a specified term. Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought.? (Quran 39: 42)

? Bukhari > Bukhari and Muslim

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It is the habit of righteous people to remind themselves and others about death. This assists the believer in remaining constantly prepared for his or her own death, since the exact moment is unknown. To be prepared means to have correct belief, to be consistent and persistent in performance of religious obligations, and to hasten in the performance of righteous deeds. In essence, remembrance of death leads a person to strive to reform and purify himself or herself. This is one of the main purposes of the message of Islam.

One of the key aspects of parenting is to teach children that they are responsible for their actions and that one day they will be brought to account before Allah. Allah, the Exalted, the Almighty, mentions this fact in the Qur’an:

The individual will stand alone on that day.

And all of them are coming to Him on the Day of Resurrection

There will be no one to speak on his or her behalf or to defend him or her, not even close family members or friends.

On the Day a man will flee from his brother, and his mother and his father, and his wife and his children; for every person, that Day, will

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be a matter adequate [to occupy] him for him. He will be concerned only with himself, thus forgetting all others. (Quran 80: 34-37)

This understanding will prove invaluable for discipline and behaviour management of a child. Self-control is something that must come from within and this is exactly the outcome of belief in the Day of Resurrection and the hereafter. It must be imprinted on the minds of children that Allah will weigh the deeds of a person and reward those whose deeds are heavy; those whose deeds are light will not be successful. Allah (3%) says,

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And the weighing [of deeds] that Day will be the truth. So those

whose scales are heavy — it is they who will be successful. And

those whose scales are light — they are the ones who will lose

themselves for what injustice they were doing toward Our signs and

The nature of this world

In this way, children will realize that the purpose of this life is only as a preparation for the next. They will use it to prepare themselves for the hereafter and the foremost test that awaits them. They will strive to increase the weighing of their scales in order to have the best outcome. This will become their primary goal and that which they continually endeavour to achieve. Other goals in their worldly life become secondary to this central aspiration.

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Children should also understand that Allah sometimes tests us in various ways to determine if we are deserving of His rewards in the hereafter.

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{Do the people think that they will be left to say: We believe. —And they will not be tried? But We have certainly tried those before them, and Allah will surely make evident those who are truthful, and He will surely make evident the liars.) (Quran 29: 2-3)

The stories of the Prophet (2) and his Companions may be useful in this regard. They suffered severe physical and mental hardship in order to prove their sincerity to Allah and their commitment to Islam.