12 Newborn Baby Rights in Islam

In a family, the birth of baby is always a great joy. It is as if they have a miracle in the house, listening to the cry of the baby. In Islam, a birth of a baby is also an extraordinary event, in which a new Muslim is born to the world. May Allah SWT always bless the baby and guide them for the rest of their life.

Islam has its own custom when it comes to welcome a newborn baby. Nonetheless, there is no exact provision on how a parents should welcome their baby. But there are certain newborn baby rights in Islam that should be fulfilled.

Our Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

“When any human being is born, Satan pinches the body with his two fingers, except ‘Isa, the son of Maryam, whom Satan tried to pinch but failed, for he touched the placenta instead”. (Bukhari)

All the rights and sunnah of the newborn baby was performed to protect the baby from evil intention of Satan. There are also many more meaning behind it. Here are the newborn baby rights that should be fulfilled:

1. Adhaan from Their Parents

As soon as the baby was born, the parents or guardian should do Adhaan to the right ear and Iqamah on the left. It has a meaning to introduce the baby to Allah SWT and his duty in the world. The tradition had started by the Prophet himself. Also read Rights of Servants in Islam

As narrated by ‘Ubaidullah bin Abi Rafi’: That his father said: “I saw the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) say Adhaan in the ear of Al-Hasan bin ‘Ali – when he was born to Fatimah – the Adhaan of Salat.” (Tirmidhi)

2. The Tahneek Tradition

Tahneek is a sunnah where elder chew something sweet such as honey or dates, then put in the newborn baby’s mouth so that it can be easily swallowed.

It was reported that Abu Moosa said: “I had a baby boy, and I brought him to the Prophet (peace be upon him). He named him Ibraaheem, did Tahneek with some dates and prayed for Allaah to bless him, then he gave him back to me.” (Bukhari and Muslim).

3. Given a Good and Meaningful Name

Naming is one of the most important sunnah to be done to a newborn baby. Name contains dua and hopes from the parents to their baby. A Muslim parents should name their child according to an Islamic sunnah, with a beautiful and honorable name. Also read Rights of Minorities in Islam

Ibn Umar (RA) reported that Allah’s Messenger said that “the names dearest to Allah are Abdullah and Abdur-Rahman.” (Muslim)

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4. Aqeeqa on the Seventh Day

Among the newborn baby rights in Islam is Aqeeqa. Aqeeqa is sacrificing animal, which is part of Prophet Ibrahim’s (RA) religion. According to sunnah, a baby boy costed 2 goats while a baby girl costs only one.

It is reported by Abdullah bin al-As that the Prophet said, “To whomsoever a child is born and he wants to perform a sacrifice of Aqeeqah on behalf of it, he should sacrifice two goats for a boy and one goat for a girl”. (Abu Dawood)

5. Their Head to be Shaven

Shaving the head of a newborn baby is part of Aqeeqa. It is also a tradition that still going in most of Islamic countries around the world. The amount of the hair shaved should be equivalent with silver and gold, to later be donated to the poor and needy. Also read Virtues of Helping The Needy in Islam

Ali (RA) reported that the Messenger of Allah slaughtered a goat on the occasion of Hasan’s birth, the son of Fatimha (RA) and Ali (RA) and said “Oh Fatimah! Shave the head of Hasan and pay silver equal to the weight of the hair as charity”. (Tirmidhi)

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6. Have a Circumcision

Male circumcision in Islam is an obligation with the reason of cleanliness. Circumcision removed several potential diseases in the future when the baby has grown up. It is strongly recommended that a baby is circumcised when he was just born.

Narrated Abu Hurayah (RA), I heard the Prophet saying “five practices are characteristic of the Fitrah: circumcision, shaving the pubic hair, cutting the mustache short, clipping the nails and depleting the hair of the armpits”. (Bukhari)

7. Getting Breastfeed from Their Mother

To be fed with their mother’s milk is one of the newborn baby rights in Islam. No food in the world is better than breast milk, and nothing more nutritious than it. Breastfeeding is more than just giving milk to the baby. It is also time to create bond with the child. Also read Rights of Inheritance in Islam for Women

It is narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “For a child, there is no milk better than the milk of the mother.”

8. Being Adopted

Some babies are born without no luck in the world. Their parents could be died before and during the labor, as well as no guardian to bring them up. Certain circumstances like financial difficulties could also be the cause of adoption. There are several adoption rules in Islam that should be followed: the biological family should never be hidden and the child should know they were adopted but not to be treated differently.

9. Visited by Their Family

After a baby was born, many people will go to visit them. In Islam, visiting a sister who has just having baby is an obligation to maintain the kinship. It is common for close family and relatives to pay a visit within a week after the baby was born, and the neighbor or friends will be visiting weeks after the birth. It is to protect the baby from illness. A new mother will be in convalescence for 40 days after the birth, and during the times, family and relatives often provide meals for the family. Also read Rights Of Parents in Islam

More on Newborn Baby Rights in Islam

Here are more rights of a newborn baby to be fulfilled:

• Being cleaned and bathed right away to cleanse the blood.
• Give a black piece of strings with small pouch that contained dua, tied around the wrist or neck (taweez).
• Weaned by their mother for 2 years.

Those are all the newborn baby rights in Islam. The birth of a baby is something worth celebrated. Don’t forget to pray for the baby so that they will always be blessed by Allah’s SWT.