Attraction of Prayers for children

Daily ritual Prayer is the highest manifestation of remembrance of God and the pillar of Islam.

Imam Reza (Peace be upon him) says: “Ritual prayer makes an individual constantly in the remembrance of God, both day and night, so that one must not forget one’s Lord, Master, Administrator and Creator, since forgetfulness will cause rebellion. Prayer is attention to permanent standing before God so that it safeguards human from disobedience and protects him from corruption and destruction.”

Performance of daily ritual prayers is obligatory for every Muslim who has reached the age of puberty and giving it up is considered one of the great sins. Prophet Mohammad (Blessing of God upon him and his progeny) says: “My intercession does not include he who belittles his prayer and by God such a person would not join me at the fountain of Kawthar.” There are a lot of hadith and narrations on the ample bounties and blessings of daily ritual prayers including proximity of God, distance from corruption, prevention of corruption, distance from vanity and arrogance, getting rid of negligence, pure and enlightened life, tranquility and many other benefits. Every Muslim depending on how much attention he has paid to prayer will experience the unique impacts of prayer.

Despite the importance and the high impact of daily ritual prayer on human happiness and fate, some people ignore performing this obligatory deed and bring misery and losses for themselves. Religious experts believe that the root cause should be searched at their childhood. Daily ritual prayer is obligatory five times a day. Illness, inability and even war and are no permission for quitting prayer and it is only the way of performing prayer which changes. Although daily ritual prayer is obligatory for girls at the age of 9 and for boys at the age of 15 it requires certain educations even before birth of a child. If these preliminaries are ignored by parents or instructors, performing daily ritual prayer will be burdensome and boring for the teenager.

Religious education of a child starts even before his/her birth. There are many narrations which advise mothers not to ignore remembrance of God during pregnancy and observe haram and halal. They should recite the holy Quran and seriously try to fulfill their divine duties. The child whose physique and personality takes shape in such circumstances will certainly be more ready to accept truth. Preparing a child for subservience of God is so vital that according to a hadith from the holy Prophet at the initial moments of birth, Azan and Iqama should be whispered in the infant’s ears. All these pave the way for the child to be a maintainer of prayer at adolescence and adulthood.

Children often take their parents as their role model. Usually as soon as the child is able to sit and stand, he/she imitates his/her parents and prostrates. This continues in the later ages and the child copies various motions of prayer. Therefore one of the first steps to make the child interested in prayer is a good model. If parents perform prayers listlessly they won’t instill a good picture of this act of worship. Imagine a house in which parents, get prepared for prayers shortly before Azan, take ablution, wear clean clothes and as soon as hearing the sound of Azan they fervently stand for prayer calmly. Thus the child views prayer as a lovely act. He realizes that no act can gladden them as much as prayer.

The parents, who register their children in one of the good kindergartens of Iran, realize that their children have got a specific interest and attention at the time of prayers. They realized that the principal of the kindergarten every day spreads her prayer mat in one of the rooms and stands in prayer with a beautiful chador. She puts sweet-smelling perfume on the children who came to her. Indeed, without preaching on prayer, she instills the beauties of prayer in the kids.

Imam Sadeq (PBUH) says: “Try to lead people to truth with your behavior rather than your tongue.”

The narrations of Ahlul-Bayt (Peace be upon them) stress the stage by stage education of prayer to children. Imam Sadeq (PBUH) says: “When the child reaches the age of three make him say seven times La Illaha Illallah. As soon as he is 3 years, seven months and 20 days teach him to say Mohammad Rasoul Allah [Mohammad is the Messenger of God] and repeat it 7 times.” The hadith goes on to advise that at the age of 5 the child should learn prostrating and at the end of the age of 6 make him hold prayer and teach him Roku’ [genuflection] and sajda [prostration]. At the age of 7, teach the child to wash his hands and face and tell him to hold prayer. At the age of 9, teach him full prayer and ablution. After every stage Imam Sadeq (PBUH) advises to let him free. This might be an emphasis on the issue that the acts of worship should not impose something beyond the child’s ability but the hadith says that parents should blame the 9 year old child for neglecting prayer. Yet, he should not become pessimistic to prayer.

Hojjatoleslam Panahiyan, who presents practical recommendations in the field of religious upbringing, advises that for encouraging children to perform daily ritual prayer they shouldn’t be told that prayer is an easy task since it will make they think that it is unimportant; but we must say daily ritual prayer is a very significant task and it is only the deserving persons who can perform it. He believes that since children and teenagers are willing to go carry out important tasks, it is better to speak to them on the true importance of prayer.

As the child grows and his understanding increases, parents and instructors should speak to him in childish language about God, divine blessings, thanksgiving and the philosophy of holding daily ritual prayer. Encouragement may be an incentive in the initial stages but it is not sufficient for his intellectual growth. Experts of religious education believe that a child should learn politeness at the age of 7, politeness before parents, teachers and in meetings and various atmospheres such as school, street and gatherings. From the age of 7 onward, a child should be taught thanking and appreciating. The child who learns the value of politeness and appreciating will consider daily ritual prayer as politeness before God and appreciating His blessings and this will be pleasant for him. In this case, love of the Almighty will be imprinted in the child’s heart and he will experience the pleasure of prayer.

Therefore, according to the behavior and practice of the Prophet and the Ahl al-Bayt (Blessings of God upon them), teaching daily ritual prayer to children should not be confined to the age of puberty but it should start step by step since childhood and from easy phrases like saying La Ilaha Illallah. In these phases, one should not force the child beyond his ability but pave the ground for him to be interested in and familiar with the significance and status of prayer.

FK/RM/ME