Paradise Under Your Feet — Page 173
Appendix 4: Hygiene, Puberty, and Sex Education 173 Your child will have a healthy, positive attitude towards sex and its role in marriage, which he/she will take with him/her into adulthood and his/her future marriage. This can help him/her avoid some of the pitfalls and challenges of a marital relationship. Hazrat Khalifatul-Masih II (ra) wrote in “ Way of the Seekers ” that the test of a child who is morally educated is that when he grows up “ (he) should obey and practice the Law, the Shari ʿ ah , in word, deed and thought, (and he) should be strong enough to (be) immune against future mischief. ” May all Ahmadi Muslim parents reap the fruit of properly educating their children and providing them with a moral upbringing, Ameen. Islamic Education about Sexuality, Marriage and Personal Hygiene This is the best time to open the channels of communication with the child, while staying in the limits of modesty. Children should be made comfortable to ask any question that comes in their mind. They should know that parents are the best source of getting the answer to any questions. Therefore, parents must open the channels of communication with their child depending upon their age, and educate them with the Islamic guidelines in this regard. The most important source of education is the Holy Qur ’ an. A mother can start teaching her child the Holy Qur ’ an with translation and a brief explanation; most of these issues are discussed in the Holy Qur ’ an. Mother can explain step by step, rather than shying away and passing by the subject without discussion. Mother can also ask her child to read the explanation and, if he or she has any questions, they can discuss them together.