“Give thanks to Me and your parents.” [Quran: 31:14]

There is a great need to remind ourselves of the importance of our parents, our role with them and the conduct we should apply to them. I wanted to share some of these Prophetic Narrations, which most of us have read, heard or come across during our life’s.

‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar said, “The pleasure of the Lord lies in the pleasure of the parent. The anger of the Lord lies in the anger of the parent.” Ibn ‘Abbas said, “If any Muslim obeys Allah regarding his parents, Allah will open two gates of the Garden for him. If there is only one parent, then one gate will be opened. If one of them is angry, then Allah will not be pleased with him until that parent is pleased with him.” He was asked, “Even if they wrong him?” “Even if they wrong him” he replied.

‘Abdullah ibn ‘Amr said that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “Reviling one’s parents is one of the great wrong actions.” They asked, “How could he revile them?” He said, “He reviles a man who then in turn reviles his mother and father.”

Abu Hurayra said, “The Prophet was asked, ‘Messenger of Allah, to whom should I be dutiful?’ ‘Your mother,’ he replied. He was asked, ‘Then whom?’ ‘Your mother,’ he replied. He was asked, ‘Then whom?’ ‘Your mother,’ he replied. He was asked, ‘Then whom?’ ‘Your mother,’ he replied. He was asked, ‘Then whom?’ He replied, ‘Your father.‘”

Abu Hurayra reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “Three supplications are answered without a doubt: the supplication of someone who is oppressed, the supplication of someone on a journey, and the supplication of parents for their children.”

All of the above are from the Al-Adab al-Mufrad of Imam al-Bukhari, referenced from the chapter dealing with I.Parents.

The above narrations have all been taken from the SunniPath.com Library ; which is full of resources that we should take advantage of.

Let us not forget the status of our parents, our interactions with them -of kindness and humility. As related by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani in a Answer (from the Q/A Service) (Parents’ role in our life and obeying them): “Being good to one’s parents is an unconditional duty.”

The SunniPath.com Library has the complete book online: Al-Adab al-Mufrad of Imam al-Bukhari , including the full chapter on I.Parents and various chapters of the book such as; VI. Neighbours, VII. Generosity and Orphan, XVIII. The Elderly, XXV. Compassion

Whoever obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah. [Quran: 4:80].

Say: If you love Allah, then follow me and Allah will love you. [Quran: 3:31].

SunniPath.com also includes the following Hadith Collections within the library: Al-Muwatta’ of Imam Malik| Riyad as-Salihin (The Meadows of the Righteous) | The Sahih Collection of al-Bukhari | Forty Hadith Qudsi

A added bonus is that Ustadha Zaynab Ansari, is doing a course on: “Imam Nawawi’s cherished and timeless collection of hadiths, focusing on the language of the hadiths, their implications in Sacred Law, and their relevance to our lives as Muslims in the 21st century”. For more details on the online course, visit the following link: The Forty Hadith of Imam Nawawi

And a very well run and sucessful course on: The 77 Branches of Faith Imam Bayhaqi’s Collection Explained by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani should keep our eagerness to learn the prophetic life, example and wisdoms at rest too.