Flowers for the Women Wearing Veils - Volume II — Page 172
172 the other hand, as our Jama'at emphasizes the presence of all women, they come to the m osque s al ong with their small children. If children were to stay home, then either the mother or the father would not be able to come to the m osque. When all the adult members of the family, both men and women, come to the m osque then children w ill ob viously accompany them. This occurred during the time of the Holy Prophet sa as well. According to Hadith , during the time of Holy Prophet sa , the mothers would bring their children al ong with them. W hen the children would begin to cry, he sa would sometimes shorten the Sal ā t for their sake. The Holy Prophet sa used to say that at this time, or when a child cries , the mother should hold him in her lap. T his act does not break the Sal ā t. Thus , the practice of persuading women to come to the m osque only prevailed either in the time of the Holy Prophet sa or in our time. A period in between these two times came upon Muslims in which they were negligent in persuading women to be present in m osque s. In this period, e ither elderly women came to m osque s, those who were free from obligations of childcare, or such women cam e who could leave their chil dren with other women at home. No one compelled them to come to m osque s , although the Holy Prophet sa made attendance obligatory on certain occasion s. For example , at the occasion of Eid [ Muslim religious celebration ], when the Holy Prophet sa commanded that a ll men and every kind of wom a n , the child ren , the young and the old should be present. By saying so , the Holy Prophet sa made Muslims realize that it is necessary for women to attend such occasions as well. Therefore, on the one hand, it is the duty of Lajna to train the members and make them understand their responsibilities, and then to devise new means to solve this problem. For if children make noise , we w ill be depri ved of the blessings of sermons and if they urinate , the m osque w ill be spoiled. On the other hand, every one should understand that when, in order to abide by Sharia h , we persuade women to come to the m osque , then children w ill inevitably accompany them. N aturally , when children come, t hey w ill make noise in the m osque. During the period of Holy Prophet sa , women used to come to the m osque along with their children and, we have come to know through the various Ah adith that they used to make noise due to which the Holy Prophet sa would sometimes shorten the Sal ā t. Thus , it is the duty of the entire Jama'at to