How Can I Help My Parents When I Don’t Work?
Answered by Ustadha Shazia Ahmad
Question
How can I provide for my parents? How to overcome anxiety related to Salah? I would love to be a housewife, but I also worry about looking after my parents- could you suggest ways I could provide some amount for them? Also, I procrastinate in praying because it seems like a weighty task, and I’m afraid of getting it done wrong. And is implying that you do not like a certain reciter’s voice a sin?
Answer
Thank you for your question. May Allah reward you for your sincerity to be dutiful to your parents and persevering in your prayers.
Parents
It is not always obligatory to provide financially for your parents. One must provide for them if one is able and if they need help. Please see the details here: Fiqh of Financially Supporting One’s Parents and Relatives
That being said, it is a great charity to spend on them and be good to them. There are many creative ways for a housewife to come up with money and I recommend that you experiment with what you are good at. Some ideas include cooking, baking, tutoring, babysitting, buying and selling (flipping items), working part-time, running an online business, trading stocks, etc.
Please see these links as well:
14 Real Ways Homemakers Can Earn Money from Home
How to earn extra income for housewives
Prayer
Procrastinating in your prayer because you are worried about doing it wrong will only make your worries worse. The Devil is winning by making you think that it’s so hard, and you must ignore the feelings and just pray. Prayer is not about perfection, it’s about turning to Allah because He deserves to be worshipped.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “Truly, this religion is ease. And no one makes religion difficult except that it will overwhelm them. So remain committed; do the best you can, and be of glad tidings (…).” [Bukhari; Muslim]
Please see these links as well:
How Do I Overcome My Anxiety of Reciting Incorrectly During Prayer?
Doubts on the Validity of Prayer
A Reciter’s Voice
It is not sinful to say that you don’t like a reciter’s voice, but silence is superior, as I’m sure that giving your opinion is unnecessary. The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, should not hurt his neighbor and whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, should serve his guest generously and whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, should speak what is good or keep silent.” [Bukhari]
May Allah give you the best of this world and the next.
[Ustadha] Shazia Ahmad
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadha Shazia Ahmad lived in Damascus, Syria, for two years, where she studied aqidah, fiqh, tajweed, tafsir, and Arabic. She then attended the University of Texas at Austin and completed her Master’s in Arabic. Afterward, she moved to Amman, Jordan, where she studied fiqh, Arabic, and other sciences. She later moved back to Mississauga, Canada, where she lives with her family.
