The Prophet (ﷺ) brought his grandchildren to the Masjid, and they climbed on him, etc; so it is permissible to bring them to the Masjid. That the Prophet (ﷺ) was merciful and kind towards the children. Bringing children to the masjid, however, is a reality that not everyone will embrace them. Even if your child is adorable, there will always be someone who is bothered by their presence. They’ll also let you know how they’re feeling on occasion.
At the same time, one must be careful to instill decent manners in children, prohibiting them from interfering with other people’s prayers or causing havoc in the mosque. It’s also important to have a gentle and tolerant demeanor while exercising patience so as not to scare or intimidate them. Overreacting may startle a youngster and cause them to be afraid of the mosque; the goal is to teach a child to appreciate and be devoted to mosques. The Prophet said, “There are seven whom Allah will shade in his shade on the Day of Judgment when there is no shade except His … a man whose heart is attached to mosques …” [Bukhari]. A child should know that the mosque is a place full of grants, mercy and blessings.
It is very important to raise our children with a strong attachment and love for their religion, and community, and thus it is important for them to have a strong and positive attachment to the mosque from a young age, especially in non-Muslim environments.
These hadith show the prophet’s (ﷺ) reaction to children in the masjid.
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) came out to us for one of the two later prayers (dhuhr or asr), carrying Hasan or Hussein. The Prophet (ﷺ) then came to the front and put him down (next to his right foot) said takbir for the prayer and commenced praying. During the prayer, he performed a very long prostration, so I raised my head and there was the child, on the back of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), who was in prostration. I then returned to my prostration. When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) had offered the prayer, the people said: ‘O Messenger of Allah! in the middle of your prayer, you performed prostration and lengthened it so much that we thought either something had happened or that you were receiving revelation!’ He said: ‘Neither was the case. Actually, my son made me his mount, and I did not want to hurry him until he had satisfied his wish.'” (Reported by Nasaa’i, Ibn Asaakir, and Haakim)
“He (the Prophet (ﷺ)) was praying. When he performed sajdah, Hasan and Hussein jumped onto his back. When the people tried to stop them, he gestured them to leave the two alone. After offering his prayer, he placed them in his lap and said, ‘Whoever loves me should love these two.'” (Reported by Ibn Khuzaimah and Baihaqi)
“The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was praying and he was carrying Umama the daughter of Zainab, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah, and she was the daughter of ‘As ibn Rabi’a ibn Abdu-Shams. When he prostrated, he put her down, and when he stood, he carried her (on his neck).” (Reported by Bukhari and Muslim)
“The Prophet (ﷺ) said: ‘When I stand for prayer, I intend to prolong it, but on hearing the cries of a child, I cut it short, as I dislike to trouble the child’s mother.'” (Reported by Bukhari)
“In Turkey, after teraweh, children are invited to play with the Imam. So that they are happy to go to the mosque. Even some new mosques in Turkey such as the Hamdi Cami mosque in Ankara have a playground in the mosque in the lower right corner of the stairs. If the mosque does not have a place to play inside, it is prepared outside the mosque like a garden. The mosque became the Center of happy people.
They seem to believe in what their predecessor, Sultan AlFatih, commanded that, “Be worried if your mosque no longer hears the voice of a child”.
We must therefore prioritize the education of our successors by drawing lessons from the beloved Prophet (ﷺ), who has served as humanity’s greatest role model throughout history, not only through his words, which provide guidance, but also through his actions, which serve as a source of inspiration for many.
