24...VIRTUE STARTS AT HOME

My father would often say that Allah concedes and responds to a dad’s entreaty for his children as much as the children’s one for their parents without fail. For this rationale dad had frazzled the need of bringing up his children with much more concern to instill in them the reverence for religious studies, morals and strict compliance to the rulings of Islam.

Place of Allah in our life that of his prophet and the due place of parents and family members and our individual duty to all of them was what he fervidly accentuated in his day today teachings. Group prayer was mandatory and so was the individual traditionals. Recital of the Quran and Hadeeth with meaning and commentary was indispensable.  Unlike the family code today, Arabic Urdu and Persian were the first languages we had to learn before other school curriculum. This was the family code.

He would say compliance 

e to God’s commands and the ones his prophet had said is one of the ways of demonstrating our gratefulness to Him. Showing gratitude to the near and dear and those who really are worthy of, is also being grateful to Allah. He used to put emphasis on one of the sayings of the prophet very often. A man who had not displayed due gratitude to one who deserved, my dad would often stressed, was ungrateful to Allah. Even the beasts and the other living kinds, he would say, are worthy of our thankfulness.

I should first of all say all praise and loads of gratitude to my lord and salaam and thanks to the Rasool e Akram Muhammad sal Allahu WA Alaihi WA Sallam. I am then grateful to my dad for all he had taught me and then to my mom who really took pains in shaping my life on every step I struggled hard to go ahead. Then I would be doing disservice if I would really omit my wife who uncomplainingly and unwaveringly endeavored to chart a plan for our living, and put it to reality.

I would not be a refined man in thought, utterance and action if I forget my indebtedness to my adorable daughter who did a lot to attain this status of my present life with all her care and fond affection. She was phenomenal for my hajj and umrah. She elevated our life to this present standing. She gave an import to my meandering life.  My son made me bold enough to live when I had lost sense to blast ahead. He owes my love and gratitude for his unparalleled kindness and compassion in times of my need. Oh! Allah I owe to you and to all of them my honest indebtedness.