Teach a Child the Verbal Declaration of Faith

Ibn 'Abbas   (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said,

"Make the word 'There is no god but Allah' the first word that your children hear, and on their death,  help  them  say,  'There  is  no  god  but Allah'."

In his  book,  Ahkam al-Mawlud, Ibn al-Qayyim said, "When   a  child   struts  to  speak, his  parents should  teach  him  to say, 'There  is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.' A child should first hear something    related to the knowledge about Allah, Most High; His Oneness, His Sovereignty and His Attributes. Therefore, the best names in the sight of Allah are 'Abdullah   and "Abd ar-Rahman.  Thus, when a child commences  to discern the  meanings  of  things,  he  will  understand that  he is  a servant  of Allah,  and  that  Allah  is  his Master."

"Abd al-Karim ibn Umayyah reported that the Messenger of Allah (Peace  be  upon  him) used  to teach children of  Banu  Hashim   to  say,  “And  say 'Praise  be  to  Allah,  Who  begets no son,  and has  no partner in (His) dominion:  nor (needs)  He any to protect Him from humiliation: And magnify Him,  for  His Greatness   and   Glory.'” (Surah Al-Isra':111) seven times once they start to talk.[1]

In this connection, Ibn Zhufr al-Makki narrated, "When Abu Sulayman Dawud ibn Nasir at-Ta’i (may Allah have mercy on him) turned five, his father sent him to an instructor, who started to teach him the Qur'an. The child was keen to memorize what his instructor taught him.  When he memorized Surah Al-Insan by heart, his mother saw him on a Friday, looking at the wall, reflecting and pointing (to something) with his hand. Being worried about him, she called him saying, ‘O Dawud!  Go out to play with the other boys.'  He remained silent and his mother pressed him to her bosom, saying, ‘Woe to me!' The child said, 'O mother! Is there anything wrong with you?' She replied, 'What   are   you thinking about?' He responded, ‘About the servants of Allah.' She wondered, 'Where are they?' He disclosed, 'In Paradise.'  She asked, 'What are they doing there?'  He declared,   “...  Reclining in the (Garden) on  raised  thrones,  they  will see  there,  neither the  sun's  (excessive  heal)  nor  excessive  cold.”[2] He, then, continued reciting the surah until he reached the verse that reads, “... Verily this is a reward for you, and your endeavor is accepted and recognized.”[3] He impressively asked, 'O   mother! What was their 'endeavor'?' As  she was  unable  to  answer  him,  he said  to her,  'Please,  leave  me  alone  to enjoy  their company   for  an  hour.'  His mother informed his father about the issue. Thus, his father answered his question saying, 'Their 'endeavor' was that they said: ‘There is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.' Therefore, the child continued to recite this statement most of the time."[4]

On receiving the mission, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) called 'Ali ibn Abi Talib (may Allah be pleased with him) to Islam although 'Ali was not more than ten years old. On his part, 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) believed in his mission and secretly accompanied him to the outskirts of Makkah to perform Prayer, away   from   his   parents    and family.  When  the child's  father,  Abu Talib,  saw  his son perform  the prayer with the Messenger of Allah, he  asked  the  Prophet  (peace  be  upon  him),  "O my nephew! What is that religion you are calling to?" The Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) answered him, "O uncle! This is the religion of Allah, His angels, and His Messengers. It is the religion of our forefather Ibrahim. Allah has sent me as a Messenger to all people. You are more deserving of my call than the others, and so you are to believe in it and help me in this regard.”[5]

Zayd ibn Harithah, who was brought  from Syria as a prisoner  of war by Khadijah's  uncle  Hakim  ibn Huzam,  was  the  first  slave  to embrace  Islam.  The Mother   of  the  Believers,  Khadijah   (may  Allah  be pleased  with  her)  chose  Zayd  to  be  her  slave-boy, and  later,  the  Messenger  of  Allah  (Peace  be  upon him)  asked  his  wife,  Khadijah,  to  give  him Zayd. Thereupon, the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) set him free, and adopted and educated him.[6]

That was the way in which the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him) founded his newly-born Islamic State, focusing his attention on children. He concerned  himself with them, cared about them )   and called them to Islam, 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) played a vital role on the occasion of the Prophet's  Hijrah to  Madinah,  when he slept  in the house  of  the  Messenger  of  Allah  (Peace  be  upon him). That was the Prophetic methodology  in raising children  to  be  the  leaders  of  the  future  and  the founders of the newly-born Islamic community.