The family role in the education of children in the Islamic civilization

Thursday, 09 December 2010

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Written by Dr. Ragheb Elsergany

Introduction

First; we should note that the students in the Islamic civilization put great interest in the progress of their civilization in the world. This goal was not an end in itself, but a way to appease the Lord of the Worlds.

It is very strange to read to that the scientists in ancient Greece were ridiculed by the public and a flagrant mocking example for those who wanted to deride this great civilization.[1]

However, the Islamic civilization has explicitly declared since the beginning of the Revelation to the Prophet (peace be upon him) that the people of knowledge are the most fearing of Allah. Allah (Exalted and Glorified be He) says: "Those truly fear Allah, among His Servants, who have knowledge" [Fatir (Originator) 35: 28]. Therefore, these godly values were then instilled in every individual of this civilization. Muslims knew that scientists were the real masters of this nation; because "the scholars are the heirs of the prophets."[2]

Therefore, thousands of the sons of this civilization rose up, since their early age, to learn. The bringing up of those scholars was eternal stories and an example to be copied.

Etiquettes of students

Some of the etiquettes used by the students of this civilization were humility and perseverance in acquisition of knowledge. Abdullah ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them), the great scholar of this nation, narrated: "When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) died, I said to a man from the Ansar (Helpers): 'Let's ask one of the Companions of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him); they are now many.' He said: 'How strange you, Ibn Abbas! Do you think people are in need of you, while the Companions of the Prophet are among the people?'[3] He said: 'The man left and I started to ask the Companions of the Prophet about the Hadith. Sometimes, when I was reported of a Hadith by a man, I would come to his home and lay myself on my robe in front of his home while the wind blowing dust while he was taking a siesta. When the man came out and saw me, he said: "O cousin of Allah's Messenger. Why have you come here? Hadn't it better to send to me and I would come to you?'" I said: 'It's me who should come.' And I started to ask him about the Hadith. The Ansari man lived until he saw people gathering around me and asking me. He (the Ansari) said: 'This boy was wiser than me.'"[4]

Therefore, competition between knowledge seekers was one of the characteristics of this civilization. Whenever we read about any era of the Islamic civilization we find a spirit of competition between knowledge seekers. In this regard, many exciting stories are related. Madinah jurist Salih ibn Kaysan (died 140 AH) said: "I met with al-Zuhry (Muhammad ibn Shihab) when we were acquiring knowledge. We said: We shall write the Sunnah (Prophetic Traditions). So we recorded all that was reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him). He said to me: 'Let's record what is reported from the Companions; it is also Sunnah.' I said: 'No, it is not Sunnah, and so we should not write it down. But he recorded what they said and I did not. And therefore he succeeded and I missed.'"[5]

Amazingly, the caliphs and princes were keen to seek knowledge from an early age. Some of them were eager to recall these solemn days, wishing to like the poor students, who sought knowledge tirelessly. Caliph al-Mansur (died 158 AH) in his youth was seeking knowledge from source, together with the Hadith and Fiqh (jurisprudence). He acquired a reasonable part of this. It was said to him one day: "O Commander of the Faithful, is there still something of pleasures you has not got so far?" He said: "One thing." They said: "What is it?" He said: "It is when a Muhaddith (Hadith scholar) said to a sheikh: whom have you mentioned – may Allah have mercy upon you?" therefore, his ministers and scribes met and sat around him and said: "We're ready Commander of the Faithful to dictate something of Hadith on us." He said: "You're not them. It is those whose clothes dirty, their feet are cracked, and their hair are long; those who travel across countries, sometimes in Iraq, sometimes in Hijaz, sometimes in the Levant, and sometimes in Yemen. They are the Hadith recorders."[6]

The parents' care to educate their children

The parents were keen to educate and guide their children from an early age. The parents raised up their children on the quest of seeking knowledge. Father of the erudite scholar of Andalusia, al-Humaidy (born before 420 AH), used to carry his son on his shoulders and go everywhere to attend Hadith lessons in 425 AH. In 448 AH he left for Egypt after he had attended lessons given by Ibn Abdul-Barr[7] and Ibn Hazm and memorized the former's books and reviewed them with him. He took much of his knowledge from Ibn Abdul-Barr, and accompanied him and became on his Madh-hab(schools). But he did not show this. He also attended lessons in Damascus and elsewhere. He narrated from al-Khatib al-Baghdady and wrote about most of his works. He attended al-Zanjany's lessons in Makkah, dwelt in Wasit (in Iraq) for sometime after he left Baghdad. He returned to Baghdad and dwelt in it and wrote most of the Hadith and Athar (whatever reported from the Companions of the Messenger) and other arts. He compiled many works, and was one of the Muslim imams in memorization, knowledge, proficiency, trustworthiness, honesty, nobleness, religion, piety, integrity, magnitude of knowledge and keenness to disseminate knowledge among its seekers.[8]

More strangely, parents were involved with their children in traveling for seeking knowledge. This happened with `Ubadah ibn al-Walid ibn `Ubadah ibn al-Samit and his son al-Walid. He said: "I went out with my father for seeking knowledge in this neighborhood of al-Ansar before they perish. The first one we met was Abu al-Yusr, a Companion of Allah's Messenger, with a boy with him. He stated the Hadith."[9]

The journey to seek knowledge

The journey to seek knowledge with the children was a new Islamic addition to the course of the human civilization; no class distinguished itself from others in this regard. The Commander of the Faithful Sulayman ibn Abdul-Malik, for instance, traveled together with his two sons to meet `Ata'. They sat down while he was praying. When he finished his prayer, he turned to them and they kept asking him about Hajj (Pilgrimage) rituals until he turned his face. Sulayman told his sons: "Stand up." They stood up and he said to them: "O my sons do not fall short of seeking knowledge."[10] Caliph Harun al-Rashid also traveled with his sons, al-Amin and al-Ma'mun, to attend lectures on al-Muwatta, the famous Hadith book compiled by Imam Malik of Madinah.[11]

Some parents prevented their children from seeking knowledge, due to hardship and lack of money. But the community was keen to help those talented students continue seeking education. Ibn Katheer narrated that "Hashim ibn Bashir ibn Abu Hazim al-Qasim Abu Mu`awiya al-Silmy al-Wasty's father was a cook for al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf al-Thaqafy and then a pickle seller. He prevented his son from seeking knowledge in order to help him on his job, but the son refused and insisted on attending Hadith lessons. It happened that Hashim fell sick. Accompanied by a throng of people, Wasit's judge Abu Shaibah came to visit him. Expressing joyfulness on seeing this, Bashir said: 'O my son, has you become so great that the judge came to my house? I will not prevent you from attending Hadith lessons any more.” Hashim became a leading scholar and transmitted Hadith from Malik, Shu`bah,[12] al-Thawry[13] and others. He was also a pious, devoted person."[14]

There is no doubt that the social responsibility that made the Madinah's judge and many of its notables came to a poor young man, who had nothing but to persevere in learning successfully. This confirms that the Islamic civilization respects science as well as those involved in the learning process, from the students to the scholars and teachers. This situation and the like undoubtedly deepens our conviction that the Islamic civilization placed students in an advanced position in its social system, which was not found in any other nation that used to give priority to material things, power and superstition.

Mothers teach their children

Mothers played undeniable role in urging their children to learn. Some mothers set the finest examples of full awareness enjoyed by women in those eternal ages. One of those great mothers was the mother of Rabi`at al-Ra'y,[15] the sheikh of Imam Malik. Her husband, Farrukh, went in an expedition to Khorasan during the Umayyad era, leaving his wife, Rabi`ah, pregnant. The wife undertook the upbringing and education of her son. The father left 30,000 dinars when he departed. When he returned, after twenty-seven years, he entered Madinah Mosque of the city to find a circle full of students around a sheikh. He approached to find Imam Malik, al-Hasan, and notables of Madinah around the sheikh. Asking about the lecturer of the circle, he was told that he was Rabi`ah ibn Abdul-Rahman (his son)!

He returned to his home and said to his wife and mother of his son: "I have seen your child in a status that I have never seen any scholar and jurist in." She said to him: "Which is more favorable to you: thirty-thousand dinars or that which he reached?" He said: "No, by God, it is this (i.e. the status his son has reached." She said: "I spent all the money on this.” He said, “Sure, I have not wasted it."[16]

It was wonderful to know that Sufyan al-Thawry was the fruit of his mother's care. Al-Thawry (may Allah have mercy upon him) was the jurist and Muhaddith (narrator of Hadith) of the Arabs, and the leader of the faithful in Hadith; about whom Za'idah[17] said, "Al-Thawry is the master of Muslims"[18] and al-Awza`y[19] said, "The only one the whole nation acceptably agree upon is Sufyan (al-Thawry)."[20]

Illustrating this, he says: "I wanted to learn. I said to myself: O my Lord, I want livelihood. As I was seeing knowledge declining, I said: I should devote myself in pursuit of it." He also asked Allah to provide him with sufficient livelihood. Allah bestowed him a mother who said to him: "O my son, go in pursuit of learning and I will spare you (working for) livelihood with my spinning wheel."[21]

Therefore his mother (may Allah have mercy upon her) used to work on her spinning wheel to afford the expenses of books and learning of her son, so that he could devote himself to learning. More important, she often encouraged and advised him to continue learning. One day, she said to him: "My son, if you write down ten letters look at yourself: do you see in yourself an increase in your fear (of Allah), tolerance and humility. If you do not see so, be sure it is harmful not beneficial to you."[22]

Thus, as his mother was supportive to him he was a leading Imam in knowledge and religion.

We can not fail here to mention the role of mother in the lives of well-known Imams, such as the leading Hadith collector Imam al-Bukhari, who grew up an orphan and his mother brought up him and provided him better education. She encouraged him for more learning, piety and good acts. She even travelled with him when he was sixteen years old to Makkah for performing Hajj. Leaving him there to learn from native Arabians and then return the great Hadith scholar, al-Bukhari. She set an example who Muslim mothers, and widows in particular, raise up their children, and their role in the progress and renaissance of the nation.

As for the mother of Imam al-Shafi`y, she traveled with him when he was two years old from Gaza, his hometown, to Makkah where knowledge, virtues and desert, in order to correct his language.[23] Al-Shafi`y was the fruit of the efforts exerted by this virtuous woman.

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