Allah has said in the Quran that he has given the responsibility of earning and providing for the family to the man of the house because Allah has “given the one more than the other”. In the same way it is the responsibility of the woman to take care of the house, her children and her family as well. However, we have taken this concept to mean the responsibilities of each are mutually exclusive of one another. WE should know that they are not.
If the husband earns to support his family financially that does not mean that the wife cannot help out her family as well by earning too, ofcourse not at the cost of taking care of her children and home. In the same way, if the wife is responsible to cook for her family, that does not mean that the husband cannot help in cutting the vegetables. They can, they both can!
Once Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) went to Ali and Fatima’s house and there he saw that while Fatima was busy cooking, Ali stood beside her and was sieving the pulses. The Holy Prophet was overwhelmed with love for the couple saying that:
“O Ali, I do not speak except what is revealed to me. Anyone who helps his wife in her domestic affairs obtains a reward of one year of worship equal to the amount of hair on his body. This year of worship will be as if he has fasted during its days and prayed during its nights. Allah will reward him equal to the reward of all the patient ones, Hazrat Dawood (a.s.) and Hazrat Isa (a.s.).”
Such is the importance of a husband helping out his wife in the chores of the house. Same is true for the wife helping out her husband financially by working and putting her skills and education to use in this day and age where expenses have reached an all new height. Indeed, by doing so Allah wishes to create harmony between the couple, so much so that they begin to appreciate the difficulties and pleasures of each other’s jobs and mutually benefit each other in a way that gives way to further love and harmony between the two.
Recent Comments