Respect Your Elders In Islam
Showing respect your elders and giving affection to the younger ones, in the light of Glorious Al Quran and blessed Hadees, is the best act. The Quran and Hadith are quite explicit on how to treat and respect one’s elders. One hadith recounts how a mob of listeners gathered around the Prophet Muhammad refused to allow an old man to approach him. “Whoever fails to… respect our elders is not one of us,” the Prophet remarked, observing this failing. According to another hadith, helping the elderly is equivalent to serving Allah. The Quran specifically mentions being courteous to old parents 11 times; in fact, mistreating or disrespecting seniors might result in being refused entry to heaven. “We have imposed on people compassion to parents,” the Quran says twice.
Is respect something we only have for our own family?
Certainly not. Our parents, grandparents, and other relatives deserve our respect the most, therefore we should strive to be flawless in our treatment of them; nevertheless, the finest individuals are those who treat everyone with respect, regardless of who they are.
Interacting with Elders
When engaging with seniors, Muslims must always show reverence, especially if they have a familiar connection (such as grandfather and grandson). When strolling together, for example, the younger should walk somewhat behind and to the right to indicate that the elder comes first. The elder should always enter and depart before the younger. In a conversation, the older should always be permitted to speak first and should be taken seriously. A younger Muslim should employ a calm, compassionate tone when speaking to an older; even in argument, the younger must remain submissive. It is considered rude to become furious or confrontational.
Why should you do all that?
Allah commanded us in the Qur’an to be kind with our parents. The prophet (saw) also stated that we must act in this manner with seniors and that elders must show pity and love to young children.
If you’re very smart, you’ll see that whatever Allah has asked us to do is for our own welfare. It vastly improves our quality of life. Consider how you feel when you do something nice, when your family is pleased with you and you can see it in their expressions and feel it in their embraces or other gestures. It’s wonderful when everyone in the home is happy with each other, and it’ll feel much better when you meet Allah and realise how delighted He is with you.
Rewards of helping the elderly
This demonstrates how advantageous it is for us to make an effort to care for and be patient with our elders. Indeed, we are reminded that if Allah wills that we live to that age, we will face the difficulties of old age. May Allah grant the old strength and honor those who assist the elderly.
We learn that honoring the rights of our elders is an essential component of being a Muslim. According to Ibn Abbas:
“The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, ‘He is not one of us who is not merciful to our young, nor respects the rights of our elders, nor enjoins good, nor forbids evil.’” (Sunan al-Tirmidhi) “
This world serves as a training ground for the next. It is here that one must strive for excellence in order to fulfil the purpose of his life. However, he cannot reach perfection until he interacts with society, that is, by living with other people of different ages. Old age is defined by knowledge, wisdom, experience, and observation. Before a person becomes totally senile, he possesses certain traits, as evidenced by the following Qur’anic Verse:
It is Allah who creates you, then makes you die, and some reach the age of dotage so that having acquired knowledge they don’t know a thing. Allah is indeed All-Knowing and All-Mighty
One More Thing Which Is Related To Our Teachers
Teachers, according to Islamic teachings, are extremely essential in one’s life. This indicates that if a student is obedient and respects his or her Quran tutor, tuition teacher, University professors, Allah will help him or she achieves his or her goals. This is the primary reason why we should always respect our instructors and listen to what they have to say.
Respecting Others.
Muslims have subtle ways of displaying respect even when they are not directly interacting with an elder. When an older Muslim enters the room, for example, younger Muslims will rise. As a sign of respect, they avoid touching or establishing eye contact with the elderly person. When greeting a gathering of individuals, the eldest is always greeted first and given the greatest attention. Younger Muslims always utilise proper titles and names rather than nicknames while speaking to or even about elder Muslims.
Spend some time with them.
Many seniors become lonely as they age, whether they are retired and no longer have a social routine at work, or they have lost their spouse and some friends. Regardless, individuals require a large social circle to be happy, as many people get isolated over time, which can lead to health problems. It’s critical to make time to visit older loved ones in order to not only spend quality time with them and learn from them, but also to provide them with a sense of purpose, as connections are essential for healthy ageing. When you’re with an elder, pay attention since the senior’s words come from a place of many decades of experience. Both of you may benefit from the chat.
Eat together.
One of humanity’s biggest social practises is eating together. You get to catch up and have fun while also nourishing your bodies. Try to eat together on a regular basis, whether you go to a favourite restaurant, plan a picnic, or visit your senior loved ones at home.
The Importance of Elders in Islamic Teachings
The Quran and Hadith are very clear about how one should treat and respect one’s elders. According to one hadith, a crowd of listeners gathered around the Prophet Muhammad failed to make place for an elderly man to approach him. “Whoever fails to… honour our elders is not one of us,” the Prophet noted this shortcoming. According to another hadith, assisting the elderly is the same as serving Allah. In fact, mistreating or showing disrespect to elders might result in being refused admittance to paradise, according to the Quran, which instructs 11 times to be nice to old parents in particular. “We have imposed on humans kindness to parents,” the Quran says twice.
