7 Benefits Of Teaching Children Fasting From An Early Age

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JAKARTA - Teaching piety in religion in children would be nice to start from an early age. One form of piety that needs to be taught is fasting in the month of Ramadan. One way to teach fasting to children is to ask them to fast half a day or fast for beduk Dzuhur.

Thus, fasting for beduk is actually limited to training, not fasting as mandated in Islam which requires a person to endure hunger and thirst from dawn until sunset. In Islam, small children who have not died have no obligation to fast because they are not included as mukallaf. The Prophet saw said,

You can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't help it, you can't.

That is, the obligation was lifted from three people, namely a small child until he took a billboard, a person who slept until he woke up, and a madman until he realized. (HR Abu Dawud and Ibnu Majah)

The purpose of the hadith above is that young children who are not yet old and old have not been obliged to carry out religious orders such as five-time prayers, fasting in the month of Ramadan, and other obligations. However, all orders in religion will become mandatory when the child reaches the age of full strength.

Even though children who are not yet old are not required to fast, it would be better if parents continued to teach fasting as early as possible so that children become accustomed to it later. There are a number of lessons about fasting from an early age for children. Here are some of them, namely;

fasting from an early age is one of the efforts to shape the spirit of obedience of a child to Allah swt. If it is educated from an early age, God willing, it will form a character of piety for the child. This will be a strong basis of faith for provision to become human beings who are pious by being disciplined in carrying out sharia rules in the next life when they are old (mukallaf).

The first benefit of fasting for children is of course to make it closer to the Creator. This is related to the month of Ramadan which is full of blessings and offers rewards for the various worship or goodness that you do.

Many people become more diligent in praying to mosques, reading the Qur'an, giving alms, and doing other good deeds in this month of Ramadan. This condition is certainly the right time for children to learn the kindness taught by Islam.

Getting used to fasting from an early age for children can also make emotions in him more stable. Because, as many people have been mentioned, the emotions of people who fast are more stable than when they are not fasting. This will certainly accelerate the mental maturity of the child.

Fasting also teaches children about self-control. They learn to endure hunger and thirst, develop patience and the ability to control emotions. This helps children become more patient, mature, and can face challenges better.

Early fasting can also form a spirit of empathy in children. Because, when they are fasting, they will feel how heavy it is to endure hunger and thirst, even if only until beduk time. This experience will foster a child's sense of empathy for others who have been living in poverty so that it is difficult to find a piece of rice. Of course this will be more successful if it is accompanied by education from parents or teachers.

In addition, the benefits of fasting for other children are to increase gratitude. This is because after a day of fasting to endure thirst and hunger, he will find various foods and drinks on the table when breaking the fast. Seeing this, children will feel relieved, happy, and grateful for the sustenance provided.

Fasting from an early age is also able to train children's discipline. Because, by fasting, he will regularly wake up for sahur and break the fast when it is time. This consistent lifestyle will clearly shape disciplined behavior in children and hopefully it can also be applied in more complex daily activities.