The manners of welcoming the new-bornchild in Islam

Children are a source of delight and an adornment for the world
granted by Allaah to their parents. They give vigor to the hearts, joy
to the souls and pleasure to the eyes. They are thefruit from whom
good is to be hoped for when they frequently supplicate. "My Lord,
have mercy upon them as they brought me up [when I was] small. "
They are the ones in every nation upon whom hope for the future lies,
and they are the youth of tomorrow upon whose shouldersthe call to
Islam is carried. IndeedIslam has elevated the status of children and
has laid down manners for their treatment through different stages,
which start with the manners of welcoming the new born child.
Our Prophet was a living example, educating, cultivating the Muslims
upon the practices ofIslam, teaching them how to worship their Lord in
the best of ways. But a number of Muslims have strayed from his pure
teachings and have substituted that which is gold for that which is
worthless.
Encouragement to have children:
Allaah, Almighty, Says (what means): "…So now, have relationswith them
and seek that which Allaah has decreed for you…" [Quran 2: 187]
The Prophet said: "Marry the loving and fertile because through you, I
will compete with the nations for superiority in numbers." [Abu
Daawood, Ahmadand Ibn Hibbaan]
It is important that the parents bring up their children upon
righteousness, so that the parents will benefit from them during their
lives and after their death.
What has preceded applies equally to both boys and girls, and indeed
Islam has encouragedthe bringing up of girls, and Allaah c
ondemns those that are distressed at the birth of a girl. The
Messenger said: "Whoever takes care of two girls until they reach
adulthood - he and I will come together on the Day of Resurrection
(like this) - and he interlaced his two fingers." [Muslim]
Giving the good news of the birth:
The near of kin who are anxiouslywaiting should be informed so that
they can stop worrying and congratulate the parents and s
upplicate for the baby. Allaah mentions this good news being conveyed
to a number of His Prophets, such as Zakariyyaa' of his son Yahyaa,
may Allaah exalt their mention. Allaah Says (what means): " So the
angels called him while he was standing in prayer in the chamber,
'Indeed, Allaah gives you good tidings of John, confirming a word from
Allaah and [who will be] honorable, abstaining [from women], and a
prophet from among the righteous'." [Quran 3: 39]
Calling the Athaan in the ear of the newborn:
The first practice to do is to call the Athaan in the ear of the
baby,so that the first words that the baby hears is the name of
Allaah, and the Kalimah (There is no god but Allaah, Muhammad is the
Messenger of Allaah).
It is to be called immediately after the birth, or very soon
afterwards as he did with his grandson Al-Hasan, as is related by Abu
Raafi' who said: "I saw theProphet call the Athaan in theear of
Al-Hasan Ibn 'Ali when his mother Faatimah gave birth to him." [Ahmad,
At-Tirmithi and Abu Daawood]
It should be given with its usual wording in a voice which is audible
to the baby, not so loudlythat it risks harm to the baby or alarms it.
The Sunnah has not specified as to which ear it should be given,
however the Messenger of Allaah used to love to do good actions
starting from the right, so it would be more appropriate to give the
Athaan in the right ear.
The Tahneek:
This means to softening or chewing a date and then rubbingthe palate
of the new-born with it just after the birth or soon after. This is
done by putting a piece of the softened date on the finger and rubbing
it from left to right in the mouth of the baby.
Ibn Hajr said: "if one is not able to find a dry date, then a fresh
date should be used, and if that is not available then anything
sweet."
It is not essential to chew the date rather it may be softened in any way.
It is done by the father or the mother or anyone from the people of
knowledge whose supplication is hoped would be accepted. So he should
perform Tahneek and supplicate for the child as was the practice of
the Companions .
Imaam An-Nawawi said: "Scholars are agreed upon the recommendation of
performing Tahneek upon the baby after its birth ." [Sharh Saheeh
Muslim]
Aa'ishah reported: " New-born children used to be brought to the
Messenger of Allaah and he would supplicate for blessings for them,
and rub a chewed date upon their palate ." [Muslim]
Naming the child:
The baby may be named on the day of its birth, third day, or later on
the seventh day or past the seventh day, as this is what is clear
after study of all the evidences from the Sunnah.
It is the father or the mother who choose the name for the baby. If
they differ amongst themselves then it is the father who has the
choice, he may name it himself or give his wife the right to choose.
The fact that this is the right of the father is shown by the
principle that the child is ascribed and attributed tothe father, as
Allaah Says (what means): "Call them by [the namesof] their fathers;
it is more just in the sight of Allaah…" [Quran 33: 5]
It is also allowed for the parents to allow others to name the child,
since our Prophet used to name some of the children of his Companions
.
The name should carry a good and praiseworthy meaning as theMessenger
said: "On the Day of Resurrection, you will be calledby your names and
your fathers' names, so make your names good." [Abu Daawood]
It is recommended to call oneselfAbdullaah (a servant of Allaah) or
the servant of any of the names of Allaah. Then it is recommended to
name a child after a Prophet, due to the Hadeeth: "Call yourselves by
the names of the Prophets." [Abu Daawood]
And the hadeeth: "A son was born to me this night and I calledhim
after my forefather Ibraheem ." [Muslim]
Then it is recommended to name the child after any pious person in the
hope that it will become like him/her. Then it is recommended to name
by any name which has good meaning.
It is forbidden to name a child with a name that denote servitude to
other than Allaah, for example Abd An-Nabi, Abd Ar-Rasool etc., just
as it is forbidden to name them with names that are particular to the
non-Muslims like George, Michael,Susan, etc.
The names of tyrants and evil personalities should be avoided such as
Pharaoh, Qaroon, Abu Lahab etc. Likewise it is disliked to name with
the names of the chapters of the Quran like 'Taa Haa' or 'Yaa Seen' as
is reported from Imaam Maalik and others. There is no authentic
Hadeeth which ascribes the above two as being names of the Prophet .
The 'Aqeeqah:
After the seventh day of the arrival of the new-born, as a formof
welcome for it and to give thanks to the One who gave the blessings,
it is prescribed to slaughter a sheep. The Messenger said: "Every
child is in pledge for it's 'Aqeeqah which is sacrificed for it on its
seventh day, and it is named on it, and its head is shaved." [Abu
Daawood and At-Tirmidhi]
If the new-born is a boy then twosheep are to be sacrificed, and if it
is a girl then one sheep. This is the position of the majority of the
scholars and Companions . The Prophet said: "For the boy two equal
sheep, and for the girl, a single sheep." [Ahmad and At-Tirmithi]
The sacrifice is done by the fatheror a close relative, for our
Prophet performed the 'Aqeeqah for his two grandsons. It is also
obligatory to mention the name of Allaah over it while sacrificing,
and if a close relative is performing the 'Aqeeqah then he adds, 'this
'Aqeeqah is the 'Aqeeqah of so and so' mentioning the name of the
person on whose behalf he is performing the 'Aqeeqah, as is reported
in a Hadeeth related by Al-Bayhaqi.
Shaving the baby's head:
On the seventh day after the birth, the head of the baby should be
shaved. So when Al-Hasan was born, the Prophet told his daughter,
Faatima : "Shave his head and give the weight of his hair in silver to
the poor." [Ahmad, At-Tabaraani and Al-Bayhaqi]
It is not permissible to shave a part of the head and leave a part, as
this was prohibited by the Messenger as reported by Al-Bukhaari.
The shaving should be done after the sacrifice, and our pious
predecessors liked to rub some perfume over the baby's head after the
shaving.
Then it is prescribed to give the value of the baby's weight of hairin
silver in charity, and it is recommended to give this charityon the
seventh day also, but it is not necessary to do so, and may be
delayed.
Circumcision:
It is prescribed that the boy be circumcised, it is recommended that
the circumcision take place on the seventh day, but it is obligatory
to circumcise before