The home is a blessing
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Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): “And Allah has made for you in your homes an abode…” [Al-Nahl 16:80]

Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “Here Allah, SWT mentions His complete blessing to His servants: He has given us homes which are a peaceful abode, to which we retreat as a haven which covers us and gives us all kinds of benefits.”

What does the home represent to each one of us? Is it not the place where we eat, enjoy intimacy with our spouses, sleep and rest? Is it not the place where we can be alone and can meet with our wife and children?

Is the home not the place that offers cover and protection? If you think about those who are homeless, who live in shelters, or on the streets, or as refugees scattered in temporary camps, then you will realize the blessing of having a home. If you listen to a distressed homeless person saying, “I have nowhere to settle, no fixed place to stay. Sometimes I sleep in so and so’s house, sometimes in a café or park or on the sea-front, and I keep my clothes in my car”, then you will realize the disruption that results from not having the blessing of a home. There are many motives for the believer to pay attention to putting his house in order.

Firstly: protecting himself and his family from the Fire of Hell, and keeping them safe from the burning punishment: “O you who believe! Ward off from yourselves and your families a Fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and stones, over which are (appointed) angels stern (and) severe, who disobey not, (from executing) the Commands they receive from Allah, but do that which they are commanded.” [al-Tahreem 66:6 – interpretation of the meaning].

Secondly: the great responsibility borne by the head of the household on the Day of Reckoning. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Allah will ask every shepherd (or responsible person) about his flock (those for whom he was responsible), whether he took care of it or neglected it, until He asks a man about his household.”

Thirdly: the home is a place to protect oneself, to keep away from evil and to keep one’s own evil away from people. It is the refuge prescribed by Islam at times of Fitnah (strife, tribulation). The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “The safety of a man at times of Fitnah is in his staying home.”

Fourthly: people usually spend most of their time at home, especially when it is very hot or very cold, when it is raining, early or late in the day, and after finishing work or school, so this time should be spent in worship and Halaal pursuits, otherwise it will be spent in wrongdoing.

Fifthly and most importantly, paying attention to the home is the most important means of building a Muslim society, because the society is formed of the households and families that form its building blocks. Households form neighbourhoods, and neighbourhoods form societies. If the building blocks are sound, the society will be based on the laws of Allah, standing firm in the face of enemies and filled with goodness that evil cannot penetrate. Then Muslim homes will produce pillars of society who will reform and guide it aright, such as exemplary dai’yahs, seekers of knowledge, sincere Mujaahideen, righteous wives, caring mothers and all other types of reformers.