Page 92 - Solution, the values of the Qurʼan

The Trouble the Elderly Experience

I In crowded buses, elderly people

stand while seated youngsters avoid
Ieye-contact… Elderly people wait in
queues for hours under the hot sun or in
heavy rain… Frail aging parents need to
be cared for and are thus perceived of as
burdens in the house… Elderly women
and men with mental and physical
weaknesses whose presence no more
endears them to their beloved ones.
These are only a few things those
who grow old, who definitely deserve
respect, not neglect, face in the later years
of their lives. In disbelieving countries,
people who experience aging-related
problems, both physical and spiritual,
experience a lot of trouble. Many
individual and societal challenges related
to the quality of life in old age make life
hard for these people. The mistreatment
they receive, and the type of places in which they are left, add greatly to their problems.
Protecting the elderly and showing them due respect, however, are commanded in the
Qur'an. In the following verse, Allah relates the
respect elderly people deserve:
Your Lord has decreed that you should
worship none but Him, and that you should
show kindness to your parents. Whether
one or both of them reach old age with you,
do not say to them a word of contempt out of
irritation and do not be harsh with them but
speak to them with gentleness and generosity.
(Surat al-Isra: 23)

The Unesco Courier,
January, 1999