A Muslim Child's Way of Life

Children say the testimony of faith long before anyone explains what it commits them to. That is not a criticism; it is how it works. But at some point the explanation has to arrive, and this book is written for that point.

The First Purpose

To signify the meaning of the statement of faith — La ilaha illallah — and what position it should hold in a life. Its conditions and its requirements are set out in a style a child grasps without difficulty, which is harder to write than it sounds: the conditions of the Shahadah are a technical subject, and simplifying them without emptying them is real work.

Then all the Articles of Faith, explained in the same register. A child who reads this comes away with a clear idea of what belief actually requires of him rather than a list he can recite.

The Second Purpose

Worth knowing, because it is unusual. The publisher also wrote the book to promote healthy extracurricular activity among schoolchildren — debates, writing competitions and sports, which develop a child mentally and physically and teach him to express himself in speech and in writing.

That thread runs through the book alongside the creed, which makes it useful to a school as well as to a family.

Related Reading

• Day in the Life of a Muslim Child — the daily practice that follows from the belief
• Lying is in the Hell-fire — how truthfulness relates to faith
• Pillars of Islam and Iman — the pillars of Islam and Iman, for adults