Lesson 45
Relationships Parents and Children
علاقة الآباء بالأبناء
Filial piety (birr al-wālidayn) is one of the most emphasised duties in Islam. Reading scholarly opinions on this topic and writing responses develops the highest level of formal Arabic discourse.
Family Relationships Vocabulary
ArabicTransliterationMeaning
بِرُّ الْوَالِدَيْنbirr al-wālidaynfilial piety / excellence towards parents
عُقُوقʿuqūqingratitude / disobedience to parents
حَنَانḥanāntenderness / affection
حُقُوق الأَبْنَاءḥuqūq al-abnāʾchildren's rights
وَوَصَّيْنَا الْإِنسَانَ بِوَالِدَيْهِ حُسْناً
Wa-waṣṣaynā l-insāna biwālidayhi ḥusnan
"And We have enjoined upon the human being goodness towards his parents." (29:8)
رِضَا اللَّهِ فِي رِضَا الْوَالِدَيْنِ وَسَخَطُ اللَّهِ فِي سَخَطِ الْوَالِدَيْن
Riḍā llāhi fī riḍā l-wālidayni wa-sakhaṭu llāhi fī sakhaṭi l-wālidayn
"Allah's pleasure is in the parents' pleasure and Allah's anger is in the parents' anger." (Tirmidhī)
- وَصَّى بِـ: Form II of وَصَى "enjoined/commanded with" a stronger verb than أَمَرَ (commanded) for moral obligations.
- Parallel structure: رِضَا اللَّهِ / سَخَطُ اللَّهِ the ḥadīth uses perfect parallelism (tibāq) a classical rhetorical technique.
- حُسْناً: Accusative masdar (verbal noun) used adverbially "with goodness / excellently."
- Scholarly response writing: At this level you can read a fatwa or scholarly opinion and write a structured, referenced response in formal Arabic.