Absolute Justice, Kindness and Kinship — Page 384
The Teaching of Justice and Kindness Regarding Relatives 375 The first part of this verse speaks of the lowering of the wings of mercy over them. It is just like a bird sheltering its fledglings under its wings. Then in the second part, the Holy Quran teaches a prayer for the grown-up children to recite for their elderly parents which reminds them of their own early life. The prayer implies that the children cannot do everything for their parents like they did for them when they were children, treating them with extreme kindness during their early life. The prayer speaks of three important points: First, justice is taught that on no account may children ever speak harshly to their parents. Whatever intolerance they show, the children should remember that they have reached an old age and it is quite natural for them to do this unintentionally. By referring to their early childhood, Allah reminds the children that even they, during their infancy and later on, caused so much inconvenience to their parents which they tolerated with great patience. They are indirectly reminded: You used to dirty your parents ’ clothes, you used to make their nightly sleep impossible. For your sake they used to wake up all night long and during the day you used to break their precious belongings, making their rest impossible. Sometimes, when they were about to sleep after a tiring day, you suddenly shattered their sleep with your screams. Have you forgotten all this? Thus the