What are the prescribed sunnahs upon the birth of a newborn?
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The questioner : The questioner asks: What is the sunnah that must be done when a Muslim is blessed with a newborn?
The Shaykh : Yes. It is a sunnah to hasten to name the child if he has prepared a name. The names most beloved to Allah are 'Abdullah and 'Abd al-Rahman; this is the best: to name your son 'Abdullah or 'Abd al-Rahman. It appears to me, and Allah knows best, that following these are all names compounded with the names of Allah the Exalted, such as 'Abd al-Wahhab, 'Abd al-Karim, 'Abd al-'Aziz, 'Abd al-Hafiz, 'Abd al-Wali, and the like. So choose for him the best of names. That is one point. Second:
If there is a person who chews a date and then rubs it against the child's palate, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do this when a child was born to the Companions; they would bring it to him and he would chew it for it. Some scholars said that this was specific to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) because his saliva is a blessing and no one else is equal to him, while others said that the ruling in this matter is that the first thing to reach this newborn's stomach should be the taste of dates, because dates contain much good. When Mary, the daughter of 'Imran,[Maryam 19:23] Allah made a palm tree easy for her, so she remained at the trunk of the palm tree. I am not with my child; the story is strange. She was told: [Maryam 19:25] Glory be to Allah, I do not know if this fresh date is from the beginning or if Allah created it at that moment, so Allah knows best. But the verse indicates that she was a woman [Maryam 19:23], and a woman's nature is usually weak, yet she was told to shake the lower part of the palm tree trunk toward you. The custom is that when a person shakes the lower part of a palm tree, the upper part does not shake, and then when she shook its trunk.
Dates would fall on her, and fresh dates would fall to the ground without spoiling. It is customary that if fresh dates fall from above, they spoil, yet the fresh dates of this woman were among the signs of Allah the Exalted. In any case, this is also prescribed for the newborn, and the 'aqiqah is also prescribed. The 'aqiqah is on the seventh day. If he is born on a Thursday, when is the seventh day? Excuse me.
If a child is born on a Thursday, the seventh day is a Wednesday, meaning the seventh day is one day before the day of birth. If born on a Saturday, the seventh day is a Friday. It is recommended (*sunnah*) for a boy to have two goats that are close in age, color, and body size, and for a girl, one. If a person does not have a goat for a male child, we say that one is sufficient. And if he has nothing, it is dropped. If he has nothing, it is dropped, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:[At-Taghabun 64:16] And among the most important things regarding children is attending to them and caring for them, because a person is responsible for them, by the Qur'an and the Sunnah. Allah the Exalted said: [At-Tahrim 66:6] This means that Allah has entrusted us with our children.
And the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:Sahih al-Bukhari 2751. It is obligatory for a person to care for his family and children more than he cares for his wealth.
Many people today care for their wealth more than their children. You find him staying awake at night over his ledgers and his trade, but he does not care about his child. This is a great error. The wealth for which you stay awake at night, who is it for? Either you spend it in your lifetime and its end is the toilet in the bathroom, its owner absent, or you leave it after you, and it is for whom? For the heirs. But if your child is righteous through your hand, he will pray for you in your lifetime and after your death, and you will be safe from the responsibility.
So among the most important things is raising the children. And let a person know that he is responsible. I ask Allah to help me and you in raising our children and guiding them to the correct direction.
The questioner : The questioner says: Honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh : You see, we have gone a bit beyond the usual.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Upon you, my brothers.
The Shaykh : Yes. It is a sunnah to hasten to name the child if he has prepared a name. The names most beloved to Allah are 'Abdullah and 'Abd al-Rahman; this is the best: to name your son 'Abdullah or 'Abd al-Rahman. It appears to me, and Allah knows best, that following these are all names compounded with the names of Allah the Exalted, such as 'Abd al-Wahhab, 'Abd al-Karim, 'Abd al-'Aziz, 'Abd al-Hafiz, 'Abd al-Wali, and the like. So choose for him the best of names. That is one point. Second:
If there is a person who chews a date and then rubs it against the child's palate, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do this when a child was born to the Companions; they would bring it to him and he would chew it for it. Some scholars said that this was specific to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) because his saliva is a blessing and no one else is equal to him, while others said that the ruling in this matter is that the first thing to reach this newborn's stomach should be the taste of dates, because dates contain much good. When Mary, the daughter of 'Imran,
And the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm tree.
فَأَجَاءَهَا الْمَخَاضُ إِلَىٰ جِذْعِ النَّخْلَةِAnd shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree; it will drop upon you ripe, fresh dates.
وَهُزِّي إِلَيْكِ بِجِذْعِ النَّخْلَةِ تُسَاقِطْ عَلَيْكِ رُطَبًا جَنِيًّاAnd the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm tree.
فَأَجَاءَهَا الْمَخَاضُ إِلَىٰ جِذْعِ النَّخْلَةِDates would fall on her, and fresh dates would fall to the ground without spoiling. It is customary that if fresh dates fall from above, they spoil, yet the fresh dates of this woman were among the signs of Allah the Exalted. In any case, this is also prescribed for the newborn, and the 'aqiqah is also prescribed. The 'aqiqah is on the seventh day. If he is born on a Thursday, when is the seventh day? Excuse me.
If a child is born on a Thursday, the seventh day is a Wednesday, meaning the seventh day is one day before the day of birth. If born on a Saturday, the seventh day is a Friday. It is recommended (*sunnah*) for a boy to have two goats that are close in age, color, and body size, and for a girl, one. If a person does not have a goat for a male child, we say that one is sufficient. And if he has nothing, it is dropped. If he has nothing, it is dropped, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted:
So fear Allah as much as you are able
فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْO you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قُوا أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًاAnd the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
and a man is a guardian of his family and is responsible for his charges
الرَّجُلُ رَاعٍ فِي أَهْلِهِ وَمَسْئُولٌ عَنْ رَعِيَّتِهِMany people today care for their wealth more than their children. You find him staying awake at night over his ledgers and his trade, but he does not care about his child. This is a great error. The wealth for which you stay awake at night, who is it for? Either you spend it in your lifetime and its end is the toilet in the bathroom, its owner absent, or you leave it after you, and it is for whom? For the heirs. But if your child is righteous through your hand, he will pray for you in your lifetime and after your death, and you will be safe from the responsibility.
So among the most important things is raising the children. And let a person know that he is responsible. I ask Allah to help me and you in raising our children and guiding them to the correct direction.
The questioner : The questioner says: Honorable Shaykh.
The Shaykh : You see, we have gone a bit beyond the usual.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Upon you, my brothers.
Source
دروس وفتاوى المسجد الحرام لعام 1419هـ - 41 — binothaimeen.net (48:38)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.