What is the right age to get children used to fasting?

What is the age at which children are obliged to fast? How can we
encourage them to fast and pray in the mosque, especially Taraweeh
prayer? Are there any simple religious ideas which can be used to fill
children's spare time in Ramadaan?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
Fasting is not obligatory for young children, until they reach the age
of adolescence, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) said: "The penshave been lifted from three: from one who has
lost his mind until he comes back to his senses, from one who is
sleeping until he wakes up, and from a child until he reaches the age
of adolescence." Narrated byAbu Dawood, 4399; classed as saheeh by
al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
Nevertheless, children should be told to fast so that they can get
used to it, and because the good deeds that they do will berecorded
for them.
The age at which parents should start to teach theirchildren to fast
is the age at which they are able to fast, which will vary according
to each child's physical makeup. Some scholars have defined this as
being ten years of age.
Al-Kharqi said:
When a child is ten years old and is able to fast, he should start to do so.
Ibn Qudaamah said:
This means that he shouldbe made to fast and told to do so. And he
should be smacked if he does notdo it, so as to train him and make him
get used toit, just as he should be made to pray and told to do it.
Among those who were of the view that a child should be told to fast
when he becomes able to do it were 'Ata', al-Hasan, Ibn Sireen,
al-Zuhri, Qataadah and al-Shaafa'i.
Al-Awzaa'i said: If he is able to fast for three consecutive days
without interruption and without becoming weak, then he should be made
to fast Ramadaan. Ishaaq said: When (a child) reaches theage of twelve
I think that he should be made to fastso that he gets used to it.
The age of ten is more likely, because the Prophet (peace and
blessings of Allaah be upon him) enjoined smacking children for not
praying at this age, and regarding fasting as beinglike prayer is
better, because they are close to one another, and because they are
both physical actions that are pillars of Islam. But fasting is
harder, so attention should be paid to when the child becomes able
forit, because some may be able to pray who are not yet able to fast.
End quote.
Al-Mughni, 4/412
This is what the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of
Allaah be upon him) did with their children; they would tell those who
were able to fast to do so, and if one ofthem wept because of hunger,
they would give him a toy to distract him, but it is not permissible
toforce them to fast if it willharm them in cases of physical weakness
or sickness.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen said:
A young child should not be forced to fast until he has reached the
age of adolescence, but he may be told to fast if he is ableto do it,
so that he may get used to it and it will be easier for him after he
reaches puberty. The Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) –
whoare the best of this ummah – used to make their children fast when
they were young. End quote.
Majmoo' Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen, 19/28, 29
And the Shaykh (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked:
My young son insists on fasting Ramadaan even though fasting is
harmful for him because he is so young and his health is not good.
Should I use force with him to make him break his fast?
He replied:
If he is young and has notyet reached puberty, he is not obliged to
fast, but if he is able to do it withouthardship, then he should be
told to do so. The Sahaabah (may Allaah be pleased with them) used to
make their children fast, and if the younger ones cried they would
give them toys to distract them. But if it is proven that it is
harmful to him, then he should be stopped from fasting. If Allaah has
forbidden us togive youngsters their wealth if there is the fear that
they may abuse it, then it is more appropriate that they be stopped
from doing something if there is the fear of physical harm. But that
should not be done by force, because that is not appropriate in
raising children. End quote.
Majmoo' Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen, 19/83
Secondly:
The parents can encourage their children to fast by giving them a gift
each day, or by exploiting the spirit of competition between them and
their peers or those who are younger than them. They can encourage
them to pray by taking them to pray in the mosques, especially if they
go out with their father and pray in different mosques each day....,

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He died and left behind a wife, three sons and five daughters

My father died and left us 25 million riyals. He has a wife, three
sons and five daughters. How should the estate be divided?.
Praise be to Allaah.
If a man dies and leaves behind a wife, three sons and five daughters,
and the heirs are limited to these people, then his estate is to be
divided as follows:
The wife gets one eighth, because there are descendants of the
deceased. Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the
meaning):
"but if you leave a child, they [wives] get an eighthof that which you
leave after payment of legacies that you may have bequeathed or debts"
[an-Nisa' 4:12].
The male and female children get the rest, with each male getting the
share of two females, because Allah, may He be exalted, says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"Allah commands you as regards your children's (inheritance); to the
male, a portion equal to that of two females"
[an-Nisa' 4:11].
So the common denominator in this issue is eight. So the wife gets one
eighth, which is one share. The remaining seven shares cannot to
bedivided according to the number of children. The correct way is to
divide it into 88 shares, of which the wife gets 11, each male gets 14
and each female gets 7.
The wife's share = the estate × 11 ÷ 88
= 25,000,000 × 11 ÷ 88 = 3,125,000
The share of each male = the estate × 14 ÷ 88
= 25,000,000 × 14 ÷ 88 = 3,977,272.70
The share of each female= the estate × 7 ÷ 88
= 25,000,000 × 7 ÷ 88 = 1,988,636.30
And Allah knows best.

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Where Are the Answers?

"What am I going to do? Why is my life so messed up? Why can't I find
happiness? Why am I alone? Why do I feel stuck? Why do I have these
problems?'…
These questions only have meaning if we direct them to Allah. No one
else can answer them. Consider thewords of the Prophet Ya'qub
(alayhis-salam, peace be upon him) when his son Yusuf (as) was
secretly thrown into a wellby his brothers. They then reported to
their father that Yusuf had been killed by a wolf.
And he turned away from them and said, "Oh,my sorrow over Yusuf," and
his eyes became white from grief, and he fell into silent melancholy.
They said, "By Allah , youwill not cease remembering Yusuf untilyou
become fatally ill or become of those who perish."
He said, " I only complainof my suffering and my grief to Allah , and
I know from Allah that which you do not know.
- Quran, Surat Yusuf, 12:84-86
"I only complain of my suffering and my grief to Allah…"
When you feel stuck, whenyou feel that no one understands your
situation, when you're in pain and you can't even imagine a solution,
only Allah has the answers. Youcan't see a way forward, but He can.
You don't see your own worth, but He does. You can't figure out the
road to happiness, but He can show you.
I remember a night in Arizona when I was twenty six years old. I lay
on a cot in a small, frigid cell. There was snow outside and I had
only a thin blanket. As I often did,I put on all my clothing in layers
– three pants, three shirts, an army jacket and a pair of boots – and
still I kept waking up shivering and shaking. Yet, even more than the
physical discomfort, my spirit was tired. I had made mistakes in my
youth and had been locked up for almost five years. I had become hard
mentally and physically, but my heart was full of sorrow. I lay there
that night and I thought, "I have nothing in life. I haveaccomplished
nothing. I have no university degree, no wife, no children, and not
even my freedom."
That was a bad time. But I had my faith, and I used toweep to Allah,
asking Him to have mercy on me. I think I gave up on myself for a
while, but I never gave up on Allah. It would not even have occurred
to me to do so. I did cry to Him sometimes saying, "Why, Allah? Why?
Why am I here, suffering like this?" But it wasn't despair, only
confusion. In my heart I knew that He heard me and that an answer
would come.
Shortly after that I received a letter from the parole board granting
me early release. I had previously been told very clearly that I was
not eligible. It was entirely unexpected, and if you are familiar with
the Americanpenal system, miraculous. But for Allah, nothing is
impossible or even difficult.
Within a few months I wasfree. I found a job a week after my release,
and I excelled. I began writing, sitting at my desk every night after
work and disciplining myself to workon poetry, stories and articles.
Eventually I went back to school and began a new career, got married,
bought a beautiful house, and one day had a child…
What can I say except Alhamdulillah! SubhanAllah! What can I do except
weep in gratitude for these blessings that I did nothing to earn, but
were given to me by my Lord who loves me and cares about me, and wants
goodfor me. I am so deeply touched and moved by theway Allah has
answered my prayers from the depths of darkness. If I did anything to
merit His blessings, perhaps it was only that I directed my pleas to
Him. I knew that no one else could help me.
This is a very emotional post for me to write. I want every Muslim to
havethis sense of Allah as their friend, as someone who cares for them
deeply. I want to put that awareness into your heart like a gift.
When I was in that cell I used to pray the same dua'over and over,
begging Allah repeatedly. If I had made such pleas to a human being
they would have stopped hearing me long ago. When we're needy with
people it pushes them away, but when we're needy with Allah He comes
closer to us! He never tires of answering our need and forgiving us.
I know of many similar stories of people who havehit rock bottom and
have called upon Allah – or , noteven knowing "Allah" by that name,
have called to the Supreme Being, saying,"I know you hear me, tell me
what I need to do, show me the way!" – and then, like a circle of
sunlight piercing a cloud, something or someone comes into their lives
to show them the way forward.
When we're out of ideas, surrounded by problems, and feeling totally
alone… we're not alone . Allah is with us. If we pray sincerely and
strive, He willput light in our hearts and help us from directions
wedid not expect.

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poem Everything to Gain

I open to you like a door
on a spring morning.
Your voice is a sun song.
Your words are water and earth.
I hold your heart like a newborn.
I hang on
because I have everything to gain.

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