Class 2
FIQH OF ADULTHOOD
PUBERTY AND BEYOND
PUBERTY
There is a day in every person’s life that arrives quietly — no announcement, no ceremony, no preparation. And yet from that day forward, everything changes. One day a child is excused. The next day, that same child stands before Allah as a morally responsible servant. The angels who record deeds begin writing in full. Salah is an obligation now. Every sin is now fully one’s own. That day is the day of puberty — the day a child becomes an adult before Allah.
In reality, adulthood is not Allah burdening a person. It is Allah honouring them. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "The pen has been lifted from three: from the sleeping person until he awakens, from the child until he reaches puberty, and from the insane person until he regains sanity." (Sunan Abi Dawud; authenticated by al-Albani)
For years, the pen was not recording obligations and sins in the same way. But once puberty arrives, the record begins.
The question then becomes: What kind of story will we write? Or What kind of story will we help our children to write for themselves?
In most Muslim homes, that day passes in silence. No parent sits down and says: 'This is what has changed. This is what Allah now expects of you.' That silence is not malicious — it is simply the product of parents who were never taught either. This class breaks that silence. And it does not stop at puberty — it follows the young Muslim into the world of entertainment, celebration, and the pressures of modern life.
What Is Puberty?
For boys:
Emission of semen.
Growth of pubic hair.
Reaching the age recognized by scholars if other signs are absent.
For girls:
Menstruation.
Emission of sexual fluid.
Growth of pubic hair.
Once these signs appear, the person is considered legally accountable.
What Becomes Obligatory
Salah — all five daily prayers
Sawm — fasting Ramadan
Ghusl — after wet dreams, menses, relations
Hijab — obligatory for girls
Lowering the gaze — for both
Zakat — when Nisab is reached
For Parents: Your Obligations Before Puberty Arrives
Here is the difficult truth: by the time puberty arrives, the window of easiest influence is already closing. Puberty is not the beginning of Islamic education — it is the deadline.
The Prophet ﷺ said, “Command your children to pray when they are seven years old, and discipline them for it when they are ten. And separate them in their beds.” (Sunan Abu Dawud, graded Hasan Sahih by Al-Albani)
Imam Ibn Qayyim said, “Whoever does not discipline his child in youth cannot discipline him in old age. The tree bends when it is young — once it has grown, you cannot bend it without breaking it.”
Five Obligations for Parents
Have the Islamic puberty conversation early: a girl who begins her period without knowing Ghusl and Salah has been failed by her parents. A boy who has his first wet dream without knowing his obligation has been failed. This is not the school’s job — it is yours.
Model Hayaa at home: modesty is not taught by lecturing — it is absorbed by watching. How you dress, what you watch, how you speak. ‘Haya is part of faith.’ (Bukhari & Muslim)
Separate the beds at 10: the Prophetic instruction has profound psychological wisdom behind it — it establishes private space, boundaries, and modesty at the most critical developmental stage.
Guard their company: 'A person follows the religion of his close friend — so each of you should look carefully at who he befriends.’ (Sunan Abu Dawud, Hasan by Al-Albani). Before social media gives your child 500 ‘friends,’ manage the real ones.
Honest Reminder to Parents
The most common regret of Muslim parents:
'I did not talk to my child early enough.'
The second: 'I did not model it myself.' Both are fixable — but only before the window closes.
If your child is under 10, you have time. If they are approaching puberty, move with urgency. If they are past it, have the conversation now — with humility, not authority.
A WORD DIRECTLY TO YOUNG ADULTS
If you have reached puberty — you are not a child anymore. That is not a burden. It is an honour. Allah — the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the One who knows every secret and what is more hidden — trusted you with full accountability. He did not do that to make your life harder. He did it because He created you with the complete capacity to handle it.
Every Salah you pray now is yours. Every fast you keep is yours. Every act of honesty, every lowering of the gaze — it is being written. Not your parents' book. Yours. The Prophet ﷺ described a young person who grows up in the worship of Allah as one of seven who will be shaded on the Day when there is no shade. (Sahih Al-Bukhari). That shade is available to you — right now, in these exact years. Do not waste them.
FIQH OF ENTERTAINMENT:
A FRAMEWORK FOR THE MODERN WORLD
Let us be honest: Islam does not hate entertainment. The Prophet ﷺ raced his wife ‘Aisha (radi Allahu ‘anha). He watched Abyssinian warriors perform at the Masjid. He allowed the Duff at weddings. He smiled, joked, and played with children. Islam does not ask you to become joyless. What it asks is that your leisure does not consume your obligations, open doors to haram, or deaden your heart to Allah.
The Five Conditions of Permissible Entertainment
Any form of entertainment — sport, game, gathering, media, entertainment, celebration — is permissible by default unless it violates one of the following five conditions. This framework is drawn from the principles of Islamic jurisprudence (Usul Al-Fiqh) and gives you a practical tool to evaluate any new situation, any new platform, any new trend — without needing a fatwa every time something new appears.
Any entertainment is permissible by default unless it violates one of these five conditions — a framework to evaluate anything without needing a fatwa for every situation.
1. No Haram content
No nudity, vulgarity, Shirk, mockery of Islam, or glorification of sin.
2. No missing obligations
Does not cause missed or delayed Salah, neglected duties, or skipped obligations.
3. No prohibited mixing
No free mixing of non-Mahram men and women.
4. No addiction or excess
Does not waste significant time, numb the heart, or create dependency.
5. No gambling
No financial stakes on outcomes.
Music
Allah says in Surah Luqman (interpretation of the meaning): “And of mankind is he who purchases idle talks (i.e. music, singing) to mislead (men) from the path of Allah…” (Luqman 31:6). Ibn Abbas, Ibn Masud, Hasan Al Basri, Ibn Qayyim all said the idle talk here is singing
And the Prophet ﷺ said: “Among my ummah there will certainly be people who permit zina, silk, alcohol and musical instruments…” (Sahih Bukhari
What is permissible
What is agreed upon as permitted: the Duff (hand drum) at weddings and Eid. The Prophet ﷺ explicitly permitted this. (Sunan Ibn Majah No. 1900, Sahih by Al-Albani).
Nasheeds (Islamic vocal songs without instruments): generally permissible, subject to conditions: no mixing of non-Mahram male and female voices in a manner designed to be attractive, content consistent with Islamic values, not used as a substitute for Quran recitation in the heart and importantly doesnot contain words that are against Tawheed or Islam.
Screens, Social Media, and Digital Entertainment
The screen is not the problem in itself. A knife can be used to cut bread or to cause harm — the knife is neutral. What you point the knife at is what matters. The same is true of the screen. What matters is what is on it, what it does to your time, and what it does to your heart.
The ruling follows the content: news, documentaries, educational content, beneficial lectures, wholesome family entertainment — permissible. Nudity, sexual content, mockery of religion, glorification of sin, gratuitous violence — haram, regardless of how mainstream the platform or how normalised the content has become in broader society.
Social media — the specific dangers: Gheebah (backbiting) committed through posts and screenshots. Spreading unverified information (‘Whoever narrates something they have not verified is sufficient a liar’ — Sunan Abu Dawud, Hasan by Al-Albani). Free mixing between non-Mahram men and women through private messages and public interactions. Seeking validation through haram. These are not hypothetical dangers — they are the daily reality for millions of Muslim users.
The deeper danger: screens reshape attention. A young Muslim trained on hours of social media develops a brain optimised for constant stimulation and instant gratification. The Quran requires the exact opposite — sustained focus, deep reflection, stillness of heart. Guard attention as an act of Ibadah.
For parents: no screens in bedrooms (the Prophetic principle of separate beds at 10 extends naturally to the digital space). No unrestricted internet before puberty. Quran recitation before screen time. Model what you want your children to practise.
The Prophet ﷺ said, “A person will be asked on the Day of Resurrection about four things: his life and how he spent it, his youth and how he used it, his wealth and how he earned and spent it, and his knowledge and what he did with it.” (Sunan Al-Tirmidhi, Graded Hasan Sahih by Al-Albani)
Sports and Physical Activity: Actively Encouraged in Islam
The Prophet ﷺ said, “The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer, though both are good.” (Sahih Muslim)
Physical strength and fitness are Islamic values: the Prophet ﷺ himself was known to wrestle (he wrestled Rukanah ibn ‘Abd Yazid — Sunan Abu Dawud No. 4078), race on horseback, and encourage physical activity among his Companions.
Swimming, archery, and riding: mentioned in narrations as activities to teach children. The general meaning is supported by multiple authentic narrations encouraging physical skills that could be used in service of Islam.
Competitive sports: entirely permissible with the Five Conditions applied. No gambling. No missed Salah. Appropriate dress. No prohibited mixing. Watching sports — permissible with the same conditions. The issue is not competition — it is what surrounds it.
Fantasy leagues and sports betting: if financial stakes are involved on outcomes, this falls under Maysir (gambling), which is explicitly prohibited. This is not a grey area.
GLIMPSES OF YOUNG ADULT LIFE:
ESSENTIAL RULINGS FOR WHAT LIES AHEAD
Between puberty and the great events of marriage, children, and death lies a stretch of life that shapes everything. The following are some essential rulings every young adult needs before the events of this course begin to arrive. We will InShaAllah offer a full course on Fiqh of Adulthood which will treat each of these in depth.
1. Attraction to the Opposite Gender: The Fitrah Framework
Attraction to the opposite gender is fitrah — the natural disposition Allah placed in every human being. It is not a sin. The sin begins with what is done with it. Islam does not deny attraction — it channels it, swiftly and directly, toward marriage.
The Prophet ﷺ said, “O young people, whoever among you can afford to get married, let him do so, for it lowers the gaze and protects the private parts. Whoever cannot, let him fast — for fasting is a shield.” (Bukhari & Muslim)
Key Rulings on Attraction
Lowering the gaze is obligatory for both men and women. (Quran — Al-Nur 24:30-31). The Prophet ﷺ said, 'The eyes commit zina and their zina is the gaze.' (Sahih Bukhari). The first accidental glance is forgiven. A sustained deliberate look is not.
Khalwah (seclusion with a non-Mahram) is haram — in person, in a private message thread, or a late-night phone call. 'A man must not be alone with a woman.' (Sahih Bukhari). Private DMs are the modern Khalwah.
When you feel attraction for someone: bring it to the light of your family, not the darkness of secret communication. A feeling kept secret grows. Pursue marriage through the proper Islamic process — that is the Prophetic prescription.
'Halal dating' does not exist in Islamic Fiqh. It is a contradiction in terms. There is no sanctioned stage between attraction and the Nikaah process. Any stop between those two points is haram territory, regardless of how carefully it is framed.
Fasting is the Prophetic prescription for those not yet able to marry. Not willpower alone — a spiritual and physical tool that genuinely reduces desire and builds self-discipline. This is medical wisdom dressed as worship.
Parents do not vilify attraction in itself its natural, find solutions.
Parents do not unnecessarily delay marriages especially for men.
Islamic Sex Education: What Age, What to Teach
The Prophet ﷺ set the standard: dignified directness. ‘Aisha (radi Allahu ‘anha) said: ‘Allah is not shy of the truth.’ (Sahih Bukhari). If your child learns about sex from the internet before they learn it from you with an Islamic framework, the framing battle is already lost.
Age-Staged Islamic Sex Education
Ages 3–6: Correct names for body parts. Private parts are covered and not touched by others. Body safety and boundaries.
Ages 7–9: The concept of Hayaa. Why we cover. Mahram and non-Mahram. The concept of Ghusl without full detail.
Ages 10–12: Full explanation of puberty before it arrives. Boys: wet dreams, body changes, Ghusl obligation. Girls: menstruation, what it is, how to manage it, the Ghusl and Salah rulings. Both: Salah is now serious business.
Ages 13–15: Attraction is fitrah, not sin. The gaze ruling. Khalwah. Why online relationships are particularly dangerous. Marriage as the real destination — not a distant dream but a real and near option.
Ages 16+: Pre-marriage education — rights, responsibilities, what Islamic intimacy within marriage looks like. This is a gift to give before the Nikaah, not after.
TIPS FOR THE TEST
Do not have to memorise the ayahs or hadeeths word for word and their references, but remember their meanings and the msg being given.
Remember the rulings
ASSIGNMENT
There will be an Assignment Question asked in the Test. Marks will be given based on the following: -
I. Invite atleast 10 people to the course (can invite via WhatsApp, Facebook, Email, telegram or word of mouth) 4 Marks. (check the note below for exceptions)
Note:
Those who have already invited whether on Whatsapp, Email or FB, do not need to invite again.
It does not matter, whether people join or not, our job is to invite.
II. Talk to 3 people (friends or family) about any three topics from the course - (5 Marks)
III. Pray for the Ummah, pray for the ease of all the poor & oppressed Muslims and Maghfirah of the Muslims who passed away. Pray that Allah make us all strong in imaan and give us the hidayah to work for the aakhirah and to help each other. - 1 Mark
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