Thursday 20130912 – The Prophet of Islam, Muhammad Sallallahu’Alayhi Wa Sallam has said, “Keep justice for all your children in your mind even when some of them are away. If you desire treatment of love, kindness and justice from your children, then give them similar treatment.”

A family unit is like a small society; the parents manage its affairs.  As running a country is not possible without justice and equality, so is the management of a household not possible without justice and equality for all. Selflessness, love, affection and unity are possible only in an environment of justice and equality. Children will learn to be just and fair from the example set to them by their parents. If the parents are ignorant of the need for justice and fair play, so will be their children.
Just and equitable parents treat all their children equally and refrain from showing particular preference to any particular child. Be it a son or a daughter, pretty or not so pretty; the parents show the same feelings of love and affection for all of them.
The Prophet Sallallahu’Alayhi Wa Sallam noticed that a person was more attached to one son than to the other. He told him, “Why don’t you keep in mind the need for justice and equality?"
 
It is crucial that parents thoughtfully adopt such fair and just standards of treatment for their children that they don’t give rise to the feelings of partiality, hatred, jealousy and resentment.

Ml Yusuf elucidates this concept further and cites the example of Prophet Yusuf (AS) and his brothers.

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