The Child's Education in Islam

Secondly : the Pregnancy Stage

1- COAGULATION OF THE FOETUS.

For the physical and psychological safety of the embryo Islam has laid dawn an easy program without hardship and difficulty.

The holy Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) has requested to prohibiting women from taking the followings in first week of her pregnancy, they are:-milk, vinegar, coriander and bitter apple because the effect of these substances make her delaying delivery and make her labor very difficult, It also causes her some sickness [^19] which has effected on the pregnancy and the baby.

like wise the prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) and the Ahlul Bait (peace be upon them) has prohibited from having sexual relation in specified period though this caution has not reach the stage of prohibition but it is offensive as it reflect negatively on the embryo psychological and health wise. Those periods are as followings:-

Between the rising of the fajr (Dawn) and sun rise, between the sun set and the aurora time, immediately after-noon (zuhr), Beginning and middle of the month, during the solar and lunar Eclipse, when red or black or yellow wind are blowing and when earth quake is happening.

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) has encouraged relation at other time after the aforementioned ones. There are other period which has effect on the child's emotional feelings especially during a fearful time as it will cause the child to be indecisive, unrest and fearful and other period which may cause madness,

leprosy and foolishness to the child.[^20]

There are other advices that have connection with sexual relationship.

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "don't converse while having sexual inter-course because if child is granted during that time he is not free to become dumb and none of you should look at his wife's vulva, he should close his eye as looking at the wife's private part during sexual inter-course may cause blindness to the child"[^21].

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said : "It is offensive to have sexual-intercourse with ones wife after having a wet dream until he takes bath from his wet dream, if he does that and the child becomes mad then he should not blame anybody other than himself"[^22].

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "Don't have sexual inter-course with your wife in standing position because that is the action of an ass, if child is granted during that time he will be urinating on the bed"[^23].

the Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "Don't have sexual inter-course with your wife with the desire derived from other than her, I fear if child is granted during that time will become a bisexual or a girl or will become mentally deranged"[^24].

It was understood from this narration that one should not imagine another woman while having sexual inter-course with his wife.

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "If your wife is pregnant don't have sexual inter-course with her except you are on Ablution because not observing that the child will be heartless and a miser"[^25].

At all time Islam has encourage (Zikr), remembrance of Allah before the sexual inter-course and mentioning (Bismillah) in the name of Allah during the sexual inter-course, this is in addition to the uses of a deeper means for the joint of love, cordiality and the holy bond like embracing, kissing, soft speeches and pleasing her.[^26]

2- THE FIRST ENVIRONMENT FOR THE CHILD.

The mother's womb is the first environment from which one originates, so this environment has positive and negative effect on the child because where the child moves about and the fetus is considered part of the mother all the circumstances of the mother are living reflected on the child. It has been established through scientifically research the efficiency of the mother on the embryo's physical and psychological growth. Then the troubles, anxiety, suppression, fears and so on leave its effect on the baby's emotional feelings[^27].

The embryo is affected by the mother's psychological attributes and all that is positively occurred to the mother during the period of pregnancy. Verily (the nervous problems of the mother gives a severe blows to the gifted embryo before he was born, to extend it will change to nervous existence. From this point of view it is necessary to have inter-connection with the mother by giving importance to the pregnancy in order to distance her from misguiding thought, grief, anxiety and to maintain calm and constancy atmosphere)[^28]

The pregnancy period has its positive or negative effect on the emotional stability of the child[^29]. That is why Islam has laid emphasis to this reality before it was discovered by this day's psychologist. The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "The unblessed is one of the wretched in his mother's womb and the blessed is one of the fortunate in his mother's womb"[^30].

The meaning of the wretchedness and fortunate are the reflections that occur to the embryo regards the healthy, physical and psychological condition of the mother, then the baby has the preparedness to be wretched or fortunate. Some of the physical sickness has effect on the embryo and may be born affected with some of it which will accompanied him till his old age and that will be the cause of his wretchedness or may be saved from those sickness and will be accompanied with good health, like wise the situation in terms of his psychological and emotional condition.

The anxiety or tranquility, the unrest or constancy, the fear or rest of mind and other attributes has effect on the embryo and accompanied him if he is not in the midst of a good society to save guides him from the previous effects or the society that will distanced him from having physical and psychological safety.

The followings are the precautionary measures Islam has taken to distance embryo from negative physical and psychological growth.

A- CARES FOR THE MOTHER'S FEEDING:

From the established reality is that the physical soundness of the embryo depends on the mother's physical soundness.

Feeding is among the factors that contribute to the sound health of the mother. We can observe the clear effect of starvation on babies in some countries. The physical weakness and sickness, the deformations in creation are all caused by starvation and mal-nutrition. Verily the opposition is correct.

That is why the Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) and the Ahlulbait (peace be upon them) has cautioned to take care of the feeding of a pregnant woman especially the foods that have effect on the spiritual and psychological attributes of the embryo.

QUINCE (SAFARJAL)

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "Eat quince (safarjal) as it brightening the eyes and create cordiality in the mind and feed your pregnant woman with it because it makes your son handsome"[^31].

MILK

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "Feed your pregnant woman milk because it increases the child's intelligence"[^32].

Imam Ali Ibn Musa Ar-Ridah (peace be upon him) said: "Feed your pregnant woman milk, if there is a baby in her womb, he will comes out brilliantly, scholarly and courageously. If she is a baby girl, she will be beauty, possess good conduct, big buttock and honored by her husband"[^33].

DATES

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) said: "Feed your women dates in her last month to delivery, verily her child will be tolerant and pure"[^34].

The Ahlulbait (peace be upon them) has laid down a complete time table for the types of food that are beneficial for the physical soundness as it was stated in the chapters of foods and drinking in Al-kafi and Makarimul Akh'laq. Like pomegranate, fig, grapes, dried grapes, herbaceous, chard and other fruits and again meat, mash and vegetables.

This is in addition to the prohibition of some foods that are physical and psychologically harmful like dead meat, blood, pig meat, wine and all others that are mentioned in the Qur'an and traditions of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his descendants) regards prohibited foods and drinks.

B- CARE FOR THE PSYCHOLOGICAL SOUNDNESS OF THE PREGNANT WOMAN.