This is the sixth in a series of translations of selections from the work Matali al-Budur fi jawami akhbar al-Burur by Sheikh Ahmed al-Sideeq al-Ghumari al-Hasani. This excellent book is a compilation of Hadith divided into over 80 chapters on the topic of being good to parents (Birr al-Walidayn). ‘Birr al-Walidayn’ can mean to show parents kindness, righteousness, obedience, to give them excellent companionship, and to maintain ties with them amongst many other meanings. In-sha-Allah I will be translating excerpts and adding some of the Sheikh’s commentary as footnotes. Wa billahi al-tawfiq.
Part 6 – Paying Back Your Parents Is Impossible
Abu Hurayra reported that:
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said “The child cannot repay his parent unless he finds him as a slave, purchases him and then frees him!”
Ibn Abi Shaybah, al-Bukhari (in adab al-Mufrad), Muslim, Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nisa’i, Ibn Majah and al-Bayhaqi
Buraydah reported that:
A man said said ‘O Messenger of Allah ﷺ, I carried my mother through an intensely baking hot land. (It was so hot that) had a piece of meat been thrown onto it, it would have cooked! Have I fulfilled the gratitude I owe her? The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said “Perhaps what you did is equivalent to one of her contractions.” 1
Al-Tabarani in al-Awsat
Muadh ibn Jabal (may Allah be pleased with him) was asked ‘What are the rights of the parents over the child?’. He said:
“Even if you were to leave your family and your wealth (for them) you still would not have fulfilled their rights.”
Ibn Abi Shaybah
Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) once saw a Yemeni man performing tawaf around the Ka’ba whilst carrying his mother on his back. He was saying ‘I am her humble camel. If her mount is scared, I am not scared.’ He then said ‘O Ibn Umar. Do you think I have paid her back?’. He said:
“No. Not even for one contraction.”
al-Bukhari in al-Adab al-Mufrad
Footnotes
1. I.e. one contraction during childbirth.
Orthodox Muslim 