Seerat Ki Dunya

As a good and righteous son, how should we treat our parents? In this matter, the teachings of the Noble Prophet ﷺ are the best guidance for us, and his blessed life is the perfect example to follow. By adopting this example, we can gather the blessings of both this world and the Hereafter. On the other hand, turning away from it brings nothing but destruction, ruin, humiliation, and failure in the Hereafter. Before the blessed arrival of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, just as people were involved in many other evils, their treatment of parents was also extremely degrading and disgraceful. You can understand the severity of this evil from the fact that: When, in those times, a father passed away, his sons would divide the wealth and property he left behind. They would also consider the mother as part of the inheritance—just like an object. The son who “received” the mother in this division would either marry his own mother or sell her to acquire wealth and property. The Noble Prophet ﷺ, through his pure teachings, eradicated all these evils and informed his Ummah about the true rank and status of parents. He declared honoring, respecting, and serving them to be a means of entering Paradise. It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Umamah رضي الله عنه that: A man asked the Noble Prophet ﷺ: “O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! What rights do parents have over their children?” He ﷺ replied: ھما جنتك ونارك “They are your Paradise and your Hell,” meaning—honoring, respecting, and serving them will be a cause for you to enter Paradise, while dishonoring and disobeying them will be a cause for you to enter Hell. (Ibn Majah, Hadith 3662) In another hadith, it is mentioned: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: رَغِمَ أَنْفُهٗ رَغِمَ أَنْفُهٗ. قِيلَ: مَنْ يَا رَسُولَ اللّٰهِ؟ قَالَ: مَنْ أَدْرَكَ وَالِدَيْهِ عِنْدَ الْكِبَرِ أَحَدَهُمَا أَوْ كِلَاهُمَا ثُمَّ لَمْ يَدْخُلِ الْجَنَّةَ. The Noble Prophet ﷺ said: “May his nose be rubbed in dust, may his nose be rubbed in dust, may his nose be rubbed in dust.” It was asked: “Who, O Messenger of Allah ﷺ?” He ﷺ replied: “The one who finds his parents—either one of them or both—in old age, and yet does not enter Paradise.” (Sahih Muslim – Book of Birr, Ties of Kinship, and Manners, Hadith 6511)

The Beloved Prophet ﷺ taught his Ummah to serve their parents, and he himself demonstrated this through his own conduct. His biological parents had passed away when he was still a child, but his foster parents (meaning the noble woman who nursed him ﷺ and her husband) were alive. Whenever they visited him ﷺ, he would treat them with great honor and affection. On one occasion, during the Battle of Hunain, when Sayyidatuna Halimah Sa’diyyah رضي الله عنها came to meet the Beloved Prophet ﷺ, he ﷺ spread his shawl for her to sit upon. (Al-Isti‘ab fi Ma‘rifat al-Ashab, vol. 4, p. 374)

On one occasion, Sayyidatuna Halimah Sa’diyyah رضي الله عنها came to the Beloved Prophet ﷺ and informed him of a drought. At the instruction of the Noble Prophet ﷺ, Sayyidatuna Khadijah رضي الله عنها gave Sayyidatuna Halimah one camel and forty goats. (Al-Hada’iq by Ibn al-Jawzi, vol. 1, p. 169)

After the Battle of Hunain, when the Noble Prophet ﷺ had finished distributing the spoils of war, the chief of the tribe of Banu Sa’d, Zuhayr Abu Surad, came to the court of the Beloved Prophet ﷺ along with several dignitaries. They presented a request regarding the release of the prisoners of war. On this occasion, Zuhayr Abu Surad delivered a very moving speech, the summary of which is as follows: O Muhammad ﷺ! You drank the milk of a woman from our clan, Halimah. Among the women you have kept confined in those enclosures are many who are your foster paternal aunts and many who are your foster maternal aunts. By Allah! If any king among the kings of the Arabs had drunk the milk of a woman from our clan, we would have placed great hopes in him. And from you, we have even greater expectations. Therefore, please release all these captives. Hearing this speech, the Holy Prophet ﷺ was deeply moved and said: I waited for you people for a long time, but you took too long to come. At the time of Zuhr prayer, they presented this request before the assembly, and the Noble Prophet ﷺ said before the gathering: I only have authority over my own share of the captives, but I request all the Muslims to release theirs as well. Upon hearing this, all the Ansar, Muhajirun, and the rest of the warriors said: O Messenger of Allah ﷺ! Our share is also at your disposal—please set them free as well. In this way, six thousand prisoners of war were freed at once. (Seerah Ibn Hisham, vol. 4, pp. 488–489)