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Is the statement that a father or mother who did not fulfill their role in upbringing is not owed obedience, devotion, and prayer, based on the Almighty's saying: ﴿as they raised me when I was a child﴾, sound Islamically, and has any of the Salaf said it?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Knowledge should only be acquired from trustworthy scholars. Children must honor and be kind to their parents, even if the parents fall short in upbringing and financial provision. The parents' shortcomings do not justify disobedience to them, and disobedience is a major sin. The proof for this is Allah Almighty's saying: (And lower to them the wing of humility out of mercy and say, "My Lord, have mercy upon them as they brought me up [when I was] small.") Al-Isra'/24. This is a supplication for mercy upon parents in return for their upbringing, and this right does not cease if they did not raise the child or if they passed away.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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