Flowers for the Women Wearing Veils - Volume I — Page 65
! ! 65 A naly z e the weakness es in your behavior and once you have found them out, strive to remove those weakness es. Look around at your own gathering s and see how w omen fight and argue as if humans and animals a re gathered together in the same room. Refor m your habits and your morals. Wherever you go, be on your best behav ior and practice good etiquette. Meet each other with affection and love ; speak to each other with warmth and compassion. If someone speaks to you harshly, exercise patience and restraint and treat each other nicely. Conclusion This is the Islam ic teaching which I have briefly put before you. Implement it so that you may become Muslims. One who does not act upon this, will have n o right to call himself a Muslim. The Injustice o f Ignorant Mothers In some cases , it has been noticed that when the father reprimands his child for not saying his Salāt or for other unruly behavior , the oblivious mother stare s at the father angrily and as soon as he leaves, she hugs the child and comforts him. She utters such words which make s him think tha t his father is a tyrant who is harsh in matters such as Salāt. Slowly and gradu ally, the child loses respect for his mother on one hand and becomes disobedient to his father on the other. This leads to a point whe re the child does not fulfill his parents ’ rights and ends up as a disbeliever. In the beginning, it appears to be a minor matter , but the result of this behavior is his moral and spiritual destruction. By nature , children are inclined to be truthful. If t he y cause any damage , t he y will answer in the affirmative if t he y are questioned regarding whether t he y really caused the damage. It is the mother who teaches him to say , “No, I d id not do such and such. ” In this way, they make them aware that they can take advantage of speaking in a way that contradicts what actually happened. (Nikah [Muslim marriage] sermon delivered November 20, 1920)