🔖Supplicating for Children and Babies Is an Islamic Tradition and a Practice of the Prophets
Duʿāʾ or supplication is an important type of worship since it plays a crucial role in Muslims’ lives, especially Muslim children, which this article aims to highlight, In Shāʾ Allāh. The Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) emphasised this importance saying: “Duʿāʾ is worship.”[1]
Islam encouraged parents to supplicate for their offspring, for Allāh said about His obedient slaves:
وَالَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا هَبْ لَنَا مِنْ أَزْوَاجِنَا وَذُرِّيَّاتِنَا قُرَّةَ أَعْيُنٍ وَاجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا
“(They are) those who say: ‘Our Lord! Bless us with spouses and offspring who will be the joy of our hearts, and make us role models for righteous people.’”
[Al-Furqān, 25:74]
Ibn Kathīr (d. 774 AH) (رحمه الله) commented: “Those who ask Allāh to bring forth from their loins offspring who obey Him and worship Him alone.”[2]
Therefore, Allāh encouraged parents in this verse to supplicate to have righteous children who will be leaders for other righteous people, consequently bringing joy to their parents’ hearts.
Allāh also said:
حَتَّىٰ إِذَا بَلَغَ أَشُدَّهُ وَبَلَغَ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً قَالَ رَبِّ أَوْزِعْنِي أَنْ أَشْكُرَ نِعْمَتَكَ الَّتِي أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيَّ وَعَلَىٰ وَالِدَيَّ وَأَنْ أَعْمَلَ صَالِحًا تَرْضَاهُ وَأَصْلِحْ لِي فِي ذُرِّيَّتِي ۖ إِنِّي تُبْتُ إِلَيْكَ وَإِنِّي مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ
In time, when the child reaches his prime at the age of forty, he prays: “My Lord! Inspire me to (always) be thankful for Your favours with which You blessed my parents and me, to do good pleasing deeds to You, and to instil righteousness in my offspring. I truly repent to You, and I truly submit (to Your Will).”
[Al-Aḥqāf, 46:15]
The Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) added: “The supplication of the oppressed, the traveller, and a father for his child are three supplications that will be answered.”[3]
Al-Manāwī (d. 1031 AH) (رحمه الله) explains:
The father truly has compassion for his offspring and prioritises them over himself. Therefore, when the father’s compassion was sincere, his supplication was answered.
The mother was not mentioned, although the importance of her rights indicates that her supplication is closer to being answered than the father’s supplication, because it is known that the answering of her supplication takes precedence over the answering of his supplication.[4]
Therefore, parents must supplicate for their children’s guidance, their safety and their protection, their health, their general well-being, and their forgiveness, as parents should supplicate for their children to be knowledgeable, wealthy, and righteous.
In fact, children are allowed to ask their parents to supplicate for them. Yūsuf’s siblings said to their father, Yaʿqūb, as Allāh relayed:
قَالُوا يَا أَبَانَا اسْتَغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا إِنَّا كُنَّا خَاطِئِينَ ﴿٩٧﴾ قَالَ سَوْفَ أَسْتَغْفِرُ لَكُمْ رَبِّي ۖ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ ﴿٩٨﴾
“They said: ‘O our father! Pray for the forgiveness of our sins. We have certainly been sinful.’ He said: ‘I will pray to my Lord for your forgiveness. He (alone) is the All-Forgiving, Most Merciful.’”
[Yūsuf, 12:97-98]
✍🏽Dr.Dr. Abū Wāʾil Musa Shaleem
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