Abdul Muqit Chowdhury :
All virtuous deeds aim at the pleasure and acceptance of Allah, the Creator. A pious person seeks Divine Mercy, Forgiveness, and Salvation by way of approaching through his/her virtuous activities.
Fasting is a medium to obtain Blessings of Allah. But, Allah may not accept the fasting of
a person who is not loyal to his/her parents, not submissive and humble and does not discharge his/her duty to them.
The Holy Quran says : “Thy Lord hath decreed/ That ye worship none but Him, /And that ye be kind/ To parents. Whether one/ Or both attain/ Old age in thy life,/ Say not to them a word of /Contempt, nor repel them, /But address them /In terms of honour.”
“And out of kindness, /Lower to them the wing/ Of humility, and say: /My Lord! Bestow on them/ Thy Mercy even as they/ Cherished me in childhood.” (Sura Isra (Bani Israel) : Ayat 23-24, The Holy Quran Translation and Commentary by A. Yusuf Ali).
Allama Yusuf Ali comments : “…The metaphor is that of a high-flying bird which lowers her wing out of tenderness to her offspring. There is a double aptness. (1) When the parent was strong and the child was helpless, parental affection was showered on the child : when the child grows up and is strong, and the parent is helpless, can he do less than bestow similar tender care on the parent ? (2) But more : he must approach the matter with gentle humility : for does not parental love remind him of the great love with which God cherishes His creatures ? There is something here more than simple human gratitude : it goes up into the highest spiritual region.”
Allama Yusuf Ali adds comments : “Note that we are asked to honour our father and mother, not “that the days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giventh thee,” (Exod : XX12) but upon much higher and more universal grounds, such is befit a perfect revelation. In the first place, not merely respect, but cherishing kindness, and humility to parents, are commanded. In the second place this command is bracketed with the command to worship the One True God : parental love should be to us a type of divine love; nothing that we can do can ever really compensate for that which we have received. In the third place (see next verse) our spiritual advancement is tested by this : We cannot expect God’s forgiveness if, we are rude or unkind to those who unselfishly brought us.”
Islamic injunctions are related to and connected with one another. Acceptance of a worship by Allah is subject to some other virtue or virtues. Loyalty and obligation to parents should not be considered separately from the Holy fasting. Fasting teaches us self-restraint. But one who fails to treat his parents humbly and without harsh words and cannot speak to them kindly, fails to follow the teachings of fasting. So, one cannot be sure about the acceptance of fasting by Allah.
The parents should always be treated very humbly with respect. Otherwise Mercy of Allah cannot be obtained and gained.
All virtuous deeds aim at the pleasure and acceptance of Allah, the Creator. A pious person seeks Divine Mercy, Forgiveness, and Salvation by way of approaching through his/her virtuous activities.
Fasting is a medium to obtain Blessings of Allah. But, Allah may not accept the fasting of
a person who is not loyal to his/her parents, not submissive and humble and does not discharge his/her duty to them.
The Holy Quran says : “Thy Lord hath decreed/ That ye worship none but Him, /And that ye be kind/ To parents. Whether one/ Or both attain/ Old age in thy life,/ Say not to them a word of /Contempt, nor repel them, /But address them /In terms of honour.”
“And out of kindness, /Lower to them the wing/ Of humility, and say: /My Lord! Bestow on them/ Thy Mercy even as they/ Cherished me in childhood.” (Sura Isra (Bani Israel) : Ayat 23-24, The Holy Quran Translation and Commentary by A. Yusuf Ali).
Allama Yusuf Ali comments : “…The metaphor is that of a high-flying bird which lowers her wing out of tenderness to her offspring. There is a double aptness. (1) When the parent was strong and the child was helpless, parental affection was showered on the child : when the child grows up and is strong, and the parent is helpless, can he do less than bestow similar tender care on the parent ? (2) But more : he must approach the matter with gentle humility : for does not parental love remind him of the great love with which God cherishes His creatures ? There is something here more than simple human gratitude : it goes up into the highest spiritual region.”
Allama Yusuf Ali adds comments : “Note that we are asked to honour our father and mother, not “that the days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giventh thee,” (Exod : XX12) but upon much higher and more universal grounds, such is befit a perfect revelation. In the first place, not merely respect, but cherishing kindness, and humility to parents, are commanded. In the second place this command is bracketed with the command to worship the One True God : parental love should be to us a type of divine love; nothing that we can do can ever really compensate for that which we have received. In the third place (see next verse) our spiritual advancement is tested by this : We cannot expect God’s forgiveness if, we are rude or unkind to those who unselfishly brought us.”
Islamic injunctions are related to and connected with one another. Acceptance of a worship by Allah is subject to some other virtue or virtues. Loyalty and obligation to parents should not be considered separately from the Holy fasting. Fasting teaches us self-restraint. But one who fails to treat his parents humbly and without harsh words and cannot speak to them kindly, fails to follow the teachings of fasting. So, one cannot be sure about the acceptance of fasting by Allah.
The parents should always be treated very humbly with respect. Otherwise Mercy of Allah cannot be obtained and gained.
