Growing Spirituality in Children

The Impact of the Coronavirus Outbreak

The Coronavirus outbreak has led to many industries and Government authorities promoting self-care and urging many to look after their mental wellbeing, more than ever before. The virus has forced most of the world to slow down, which in turn has had an impact on our daily routines. We are all staying at home, spending time with our children and now have some new-found time to reflect on ourselves.

As a result of this, many of us on a daily basis experience moments of frustration from being confined to social distancing, or have a fear of losing one’s job (or indeed have already), or are unintentionally feeling ungrateful for what we do have. Prior to the pandemic taking over, we would still face similar thoughts and feelings towards something we have seen on social media or heard about from family, a friend or colleague. This could include being envious of someone’s belongings or achievements, which they have shared on social media, or indeed boasting about our own.

Whilst these emotions make us human, it’s our intentions and actions that decide whether we are a ‘good’ person, whether in the eyes of one’s self, our friends and family, our colleagues, or in the eyes of Allāh .

Pre-Coronavirus, many of us lost the capacity to sit still and reflect upon ourselves. Now that we have the time to look back and contemplate, perhaps we need to think about why we are feeling these negative emotions. Why do we feel a sense of loss or frustration within our family relationships, for example?

The Issues Facing our Youth

The mental and spiritual health of our youth have also been profoundly impacted by the continuing pandemic crisis:

• The isolation caused by Covid19 has meant that their faith is being eroded and indeed some are now finding themselves losing their purpose in life.
• In the absence of sufficient parental and scholarly guidance and attention, our youth have become neglected and confused, alongside the ever-rising influence of the Internet and social media.
• The moral teachings of the Prophet are being challenged, leading to Muslims looking for other ‘more attractive’ and alternative options.
• So many of them are experiencing low self-esteem and low self-worth due to a significant loss of career opportunities as a result of the severe economic downturn, leading to depression and resulting in Muslims questioning their faith, and in some cases, leaving the fold of Islam.
• Such mental health issues are perceived as a sign of ‘distance’ from Allāh or an indication of a lack of faith, preventing them from seeking any kind of support at all.

Spiritual Illnesses & the Importance of Tarbiyyah

Just as we seek the best medical treatment to avoid illnesses and improve our physical health and wellbeing, whether that be paracetamol to treat a mere headache or something more substantial like chemotherapy to treat cancer, ourselves as well as our children can also suffer from spiritual illnesses such as riyā (showing off), takabbur (pride and arrogance), hasad (envy), lack of shukr (ingratitude), hubb al-jāh (love of fame), hubb al-māl (love of wealth), karāhiyat al-qadr (displeasure with the Divine Decree) and the like.

The upbringing and education (tarbiyyah) of our children is therefore of utmost importance, in terms of their conduct (sulūk), etiquette (ādāb) and good character (akhlāq). Tarbiyyah is a process of developing our children to become more conscious of their deeds because it aims to put us (as parents) as well as them on a path of continual self-analysis, self-correction and self-development as they develop their spiritual, mental, social and cultural values towards becoming outstanding citizens, as well as ambassadors of Islam.

“The Day when neither wealth nor children will be of any benefit. Only those who come before Allāh with a pure heart (will be saved).” [As-Shu’arā’ 26: 88-89]

Growing Spirituality in our Children

The education of tarbiyyah, if delivered effectively, instills a passion for truth, righteousness and justice, encouraging our children to become closer to Allāh  and His Rasool . It helps them to come to terms with their humanity, improve a sense of self and thereby offer a sense of well-being as their relationship with Allāh  is reconstructed. It is ultimately about improving the spiritual health of our children towards feelings of contentment (qanā’ah), sincerity (ikhlās), patience (sabr), gratitude (shukr), love of Allāh  (hubb AIlāh), contentment with the Decree (ridā bil-qadā), trust (tawakkul) and submission (taslīm).

Allāh  says, “As for those who struggle in Our cause, We will surely guide them along Our Way. And Allāh is certainly with the good-doers.” [Al-’Ankabūt 29:69]

The Prophet  said, “The one who strives in the way of Allāh the Exalted is he who strives against his soul in the obedience of Allāh.” [Musnad Ahmad 23967]

Making tarbiyyah accessible however to a new generation is of utmost importance especially in times of a spiritual vacuum and great uncertainty. As loving parents, if we help our children recognise the importance of cultivating spiritual health, we will begin to see real change in sha’ Allāh.

Allāh  says, “Indeed, Allāh would never change a people’s state (of favour) until they change their own state (of faith).” [Ar-Ra’ad13:11]

Author:
Jamal Parekh, Ibn Daud
ibndaudbooks.com