Guidance for parents of Waqifeen-e-Nau

To present one’s child to Allah is an extremely important event and is no ordinary thing and it is a form of gift which one should present to Allah in a beautiful way. The beauty of a human is through his Taqwa – righteousness. So, before these children have grown to an age that they are to be ‘given’ to the Jama’at, their parents have a great responsibility.

Hazrat Khalifatul Massih IV (rh) On 10th and 17th February 1989, Huzoor (rh) mentioned some of the responsibilities of parents towards Waqifeen-e-Nau. Parents have a great responsibility as their Waqf-e-Nau children will be the leaders of the future nation. Tarbiyyat plays a great role, and the first example children see are that of their parents.

Responsibilities

1. Parents should watch their children closely.
2. They should pay special attention to certain aspects of moral training.
3. If the parents think their child is not worthy for Waqf, then they should fear God and inform the Jama’at.
4. Parents should inculcate love and truthfulness in the heart of their children.
5. Parents will have to attend to their own training before training their children.
6. Parents will have to be more cautious and careful during conversation in their homes and avoid any kind of gossip.
7. They should be taught contentment and dislike to greed for wealth and material gain.
8. Parents should help their children to attain the highest standard of honesty and trust worthiness.
9. Parents should teach their children to be jovial and pleasant.
10. Good humor and forbearance are the two qualities that Waqifeen-e-Nau should be taught.
11. From the beginning, Waqifeen-e-Nau should be taught the Holy Qur’an.
12. Parents should inculcate in their child the habit to recite the Holy Qur’an daily and with comprehension.
13. Parents should ensure that their children have a vast religious and secular knowledge.
14. Parents should subscribe to magazines and newspapers for their children.
15. Parents should instill in them the habit of reading books that will increase their knowledge
16. When Waqifeen-e-Nau go to school, parents should choose such subjects for them that will introduce them to science. They should have some knowledge of all the diverse subjects.
17. Waqifeen-e-Nau should be taught patience and tolerance.
18. Waqifeen-e-Nau should be taught from childhood the habit of stating what is known to be a fact as a fact and what is a surmise as a surmise.
19. They should be taught typing.
20. They should be taught how to keep account. There should be great emphasis on honesty.
21. Huzoor (rh) said “Great nations are made in their homes”
22. From childhood, Waqifeen-e-Nau should be made strong and obedient to the Nizaam-e- Jama’at.
23. Parents should not say anything against the Nizaam-e-Jama’at in their homes.
24. Waqifeen-e-Nau should be trained to become great leaders.
25. Teach loyalty to your children.
26. Explain to your children that Waqf is a solemn matter; that it is a vow that you made with Allah.
27. Huzoor (rh) said “Once I had the chance of visiting Disneyland in America. There was a ride that had extremely dangerous turns and a very fast speed. It took sudden turns that could be dangerous for individuals with weak hearts. So they had posted warnings stating that you can go back at this point and in the end there was a warning in red that said; “This is the end. Now you cannot go back.” So, there will be a ‘gate’ when the children who have been dedicated for Waqf now, will be told, “This is the last door after this you cannot go back. If you have courage to bargain your life, if you can offer everything to Allah irrevocably, only then come forward otherwise go back immediately.” So make them ready to pass through this gate now.”
28. It is important and necessary to pay attention to their physical health from the childhood. They should be encouraged to partake in sports.
29. Keep them away from absurd literature.
30. Great emphasis should be laid on Arabic and Urdu. After that their local language. Chinese and Russian are also important.
31. Their good manners should win the hearts of the people.
32. Waqifat-e-Nau should be taught home management and household account.
33. Waqifat-e-Nau should be taught teaching, medicine, computer science, typing, languages.
34. Great emphasis should be laid on prayers so they have a close and personal relationship with Allah from childhood.

Moral Training

Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Khalifatul Massih V (Aba) delivered many Friday Sermons and Addresses regarding the responsibilities of Waqifeen-e-Nau and their parents. Addressing parents, Huzoor (Aba) mentioned in his Address on 06th May 2012 at the Baitul Futuh Mosque “I would also like to advise the parents of the Waqf-e-Nau about training of their children. They should supervise and cater for the moral training of all of their children and not just for those who are part of the Waqf-e-Nau scheme…..You should always remember that if your eldest child is a Waqf-e-Nau, then if you carry out his moral training properly, he will become a positive role model for his younger siblings. In this way, they will learn from his good behaviour.”

The Pledge

Further, our beloved Huzoor (Aba) stated in his historical Friday Sermon on 28th October 2016 “The training of every Ahmadi child depends on parents and parents want good for their child. The parents who are inclined toward religion, want his secular education, training and religious education as well. But this should be remembered that every child, especially Waqf-e-Nau child is a trust of the Jama’at with them. His training and making him the best part of the Jama’at and the society, is the duty of the parents. But, the training of the Waqf-e-Nau children, their secular and religious education with special attention and handing them over to the Jama’at after preparing them, becomes a responsibility for another reason as well. That, before birth, the parents pledge that whatever will be born, boy or a girl, they will present it for Allah’s religion, for the completion of the mission of the true servant of the Holy Prophet (May peace be on him) which is the mission of the completion of the propagation of the guidance, which is the mission of spreading the Islamic education in the world, which is the mission of drawing the attention of the world toward fulfilling the right of God and which is the mission of spreading the Islamic education of fulfilling the mutual rights of every person in the world.”

Actions verses words

Huzoor (Aba) also mentioned in the same Friday Sermon that parents should be an example for their children and that their words and actions should go side by side. Huzoor (Aba) said “I want to tell the parents that no matter how much training they impart verbally, it will be ineffective until their words and actions do not conform to that. The parents will have to model their praying conditions. They will have to establish the patterns of reciting and teaching of the Holy Qur’an. They will have to become a role model of high morals. They themselves will have to turn to acquiring religious knowledge. High standards of hating falsehood will have to be founded. Despite harm done to some by some office bearer, they will have to refrain from talking in their homes, against the Jama’at system or the office bearers. On MTA, at least my sermons will have to be listened to regularly.”