جَاءَ رَجُلٌ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ مَنْ أَحَقُّ بِحُسْنِ صَحَابَتِي قَالَ ” أُمُّكَ ”. قَالَ ثُمَّ مَنْ قَالَ ” أُمُّكَ ”. قَالَ ثُمَّ مَنْ قَالَ ” أُمُّكَ ”. قَالَ ثُمَّ مَنْ قَالَ ” ثُمَّ أَبُوكَ”.
A man came to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) and said, “O Messenger of Allah! Who among the people has the most right to my good company?” He replied, “Your mother.” The man said, “Then who?” He replied, “Your mother.” The man said, “Then who?” He replied, “Your mother.” The man said, “Then who?” He replied, “Then your father.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
Explanation
The mother symbolizes sacrifice, honor, and purity. She is usually the first to look after the child. In this hadith, the Prophet (ﷺ) is asked about the person most deserving of good companionship among the people and he responds that it is the mother. The Prophet (ﷺ) emphasizes this fact three times, which goes to show the high level of regard for the mother over other relatives in the religion.
The father being mentioned only once does not mean that there is deficiency in his right to good treatment, rather, the point is to show the greatness of the mother’s right. Some speculate that the reasons may be due to the abundance of her favors over the child and the many physical and psychological hardships endured by her during pregnancy, delivery, and breastfeeding. She also serves and has more compassion for her children than others. This amount of love and care may blind the child from giving her the treatment that she deserves, or the child may even begin to take her for granted, thus, the Prophet (ﷺ) wanted to emphasize it.
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