I Have Rights Too

You Were Entrusted With Me by God. So Why Do You Hurt Me?

My curse reaches the ears of God. We’ve seen, again and again, parents who — under the illusion that “paradise lies beneath the feet of parents” — commit every kind of injustice against their children. From physical abuse and humiliation to the kind of relentless arguing that leaves a child with low self-esteem and chronic psychological pressure at every stage of their life.

These harms touch children of every gender, across every geography, society, and culture. Take, for instance, cases where parents forced their children into a field of study the child had no interest in. Their grades suffered as a result, and then they were punished all over again — by family and by society — for that decline.

Some parents, the moment you bring up showing a child affection, snap back with: “What more does this kid want? I pay for everything. Do they lack food and water?” Meanwhile they treat their most basic responsibilities as though they were generous favors, and often fail to even meet those properly. Their children may go without proper nutrition, carry the stress of poverty, and struggle with confidence around others because of their family’s situation — among many other difficulties. The result can be involuntary emotional outbursts, anger, or behavior that looks abnormal from the outside.

Children who’ve suffered abuse at home often can’t help but well up when they watch the warmth between their friends and their friends’ families. They watch that closeness with visible longing, sometimes breaking down entirely, telling their friend: “You’re lucky. I wish I had parents like yours.” Then they swallow the sadness and the longing, and stay quiet.

Some parents go even further — with a kind of sadistic cruelty, they beat their children badly enough to put their lives at risk. In some cases, the damage never heals, and the child is left without their health, without their well-being.

Now I want to share how different great figures around the world have spoken out against child abuse.

What Are the Spiritual Consequences of Breaking a Child’s Heart?

Breaking a child’s heart carries real spiritual weight in Islam. According to religious narrations, a child’s curse against their parents — especially one born of emotional oppression and injustice — may be accepted by God.

Shahid Ayatollah Khamenei: Oppressing children, whether through abuse or humiliation, is forbidden and can carry consequences in the afterlife, including divine anger. Parents are bound to respect both the material and spiritual rights of their children. (Source: The official website of the Office of the Supreme Leader)

Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi: Mistreating children — whether through physical violence or humiliation — counts as injustice, and can bring about the curse of an oppressed child, which God may answer. (Source: Anhar website)

Ayatollah Sistani: Harming children, whether through deprivation or breaking their hearts, is forbidden and can bring consequences such as the loss of blessings. Parents should seek forgiveness and work to earn their children’s forgiveness by making amends. (Source: Official website of Ayatollah Sistani)

The Consequences of a Mother Breaking Her Child’s Heart The bond between a mother and child carries special weight in Islam. When a mother breaks her child’s heart, the deep emotional connection between them means the consequences — emotional and spiritual — can be even graver.

According to a narration from the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): “A mother is the paradise of her child.”

A mother breaking her daughter’s heart is seen as an even greater wrong in Islam, given the emotional sensitivity and unique bond shared between mothers and daughters. According to a narration from the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): “Daughters are divine blessings, and respecting them brings blessings.”

If a mother breaks her daughter’s heart through excessive strictness, neglect, or emotional coldness, the wounds it leaves can last a lifetime.

The Consequence of Being Rejected by One’s Child According to the Quran The Holy Quran, as Islam’s central source of guidance, stresses the importance of respecting family bonds and treating them with kindness.

Surah Al-Isra, verse 15, states: “Be kind to parents and treat your children with compassion.” This verse points to the shared responsibility parents and children carry in preserving love and respect between them.

Tafsir Nemuneh explains that breaking a child’s heart — through unfairness or neglect — can create real emotional and spiritual distance. Verse 23 of the same surah goes further, warning against harsh, hurtful behavior within the family.

Together, these verses show that in Islam, breaking a child’s heart isn’t just frowned upon — it can carry real spiritual consequences. The Quran, more broadly, warns against emotional oppression and hurting others’ hearts.

Surah An-Nisa, verse 32, states:

“Avoid injustice toward one another.” Tafsir Nemuneh extends this principle to every form of emotional harm — including harm done to children.

And Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 83, calls for kindness toward relatives, children included.

Taken together, these verses make clear that breaking a child’s heart runs against Islamic ethical and spiritual principles, and that parents must steer clear of it by choosing love and justice instead.

Children are not possessions that belong to us. Every human being belongs to God, and in this world, no one truly even owns their own possessions — let alone another human being. Believing otherwise is simply a mistake. Understood this way, parents are only the means through which a child comes into the world. They are not that child’s owners.

Examining Contemporary Stories and Narratives About Breaking a Child’s Heart and the Rejection of Parents According to local stories from a neighborhood in Shiraz, a father named Asghar spent years emotionally abusing and humiliating his son, until the son eventually left home. Overwhelmed by everything his father had put him through, the son, in a moment of despair, prayed that his father would face the consequences of his ظلم (injustice). Months later, while Asghar was working in his shop, a fire broke out without warning. He suffered severe burns and lost his life.

According to accounts from Karachi, a mother repeatedly abused her daughter physically, driven by addiction and neglect, and kept her from continuing her education. Alone with her grief, the daughter cursed that her mother would face the weight of her own cruelty. Some time later, the mother was in a motorcycle accident, was badly injured, and remained disabled for the rest of her life.

According to popular stories from Tabriz, a father named Reza, jealous of his son’s success, humiliated him and withheld both emotional and financial support. In a fit of anger, the son wished his father would never know happiness again. A few weeks later, while Reza was working in his shop, a heavy tool fell on him, leaving him seriously injured and unable to work again.

The Story of Two Sisters from Tehran Two sisters from a family in Tehran shared that, growing up, they were subjected to physical, psychological, and social abuse by their parents over the smallest things:

“Our parents had been beaten and abused by their own parents when they were young. They poured all that unresolved pain onto my sister and me. They hit us with their fists and belts over any excuse, humiliated us in front of others, until eventually they wore themselves out.

In the end, our father spent the final stretch of his life unable to find peace — cancer, broken bones, unbearable pain, and the weight of his own conscience.

Our mother has been suffering for years too. She’s seen doctor after doctor, but nothing explains what’s wrong with her leg — no physician has been able to find the cause.

Before that, she battled thyroid disease for years and went through a great deal of suffering — and still, through all of it, she kept hurting us emotionally. Through manipulation, cruel words, and psychological games, she pushes us until we’re on the edge of breaking down.

My sister and I will never be able to forget that pain, and we’ll never simply move past it.”

Hadiths Related to Respecting Children

Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (PBUH): “Raise your children with love and respect, because they are divine trusts placed in your care.” (Source: Bihar al-Anwar, Volume 74, Page 80)

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): “The best parents are those who treat their children with kindness and justice.” (Source: Wasa’il al-Shia, Volume 21, Page 482)

Imam Ali (PBUH): “Do not humiliate your child — it breaks their heart and pushes them away from you.” (Source: Ghurar al-Hikam, Page 412)

Imam Reza (PBUH): “Love for children is a sign of faith.” (Source: Bihar al-Anwar, Volume 104, Page 95)

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): “Honor your children and raise them with goodness.” (Source: Nahj al-Fasahah, Hadith 2748)

Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (PBUH): “God’s mercy rests on the heart of a father who shows his child affection.” (Source: Al-Kafi, Volume 6, Page 50)

Imam Muhammad al-Baqir (PBUH): “Fear your child’s curse, because their prayer reaches the heavens.” (Source: Bihar al-Anwar, Volume 74, Page 86)

Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): “Parents who hurt their children will face the same consequences children face when they hurt their parents.”

Imam Zayn al-Abidin (PBUH): “Your child’s right over you is this: know that they come from you, and that the good and bad of this world are tied to how you treat them. So work for their well-being, understanding that your kindness toward them earns you reward, and your wrongdoing toward them earns you punishment.”

If you’ve stayed with me this far, you now understand the effects of ظلم (injustice) toward children, and how it can shape the spiritual and material quality of a parent’s life. But I want to leave a few questions for fathers and mothers — questions to sit with privately, and answer honestly to your own conscience.

Did your child force you to bring them into this world? Did your child steal your right to live? Did someone send you a postcard asking you to have children? Did God’s angels tell you that you were guaranteed paradise simply for becoming a parent? Did someone in your imagined paradise hand you a deed promising you’d get in no matter what you do?

If your answer to all of these is “yes” — congratulations. You’re a sadistic psychopath who, instead of being locked in a psychiatric institution, is walking free among people and torturing them.

But if your answer is “no” — then why do you hurt a child you chose, of your own will, to bring into this world? You brought this child into existence. That means you carry the responsibility to work for their comfort, their peace, their happiness, their well-being. You asked God to entrust this child to you — so why answer that trust with ingratitude? Why repay a divine trust with cruelty? Even if you don’t believe in God, nature will eventually strike hard enough that you understand exactly what you’ve done. Life has its own way of showing us the consequences of our actions.

Everyone’s sustenance rests in God’s hands. It’s God who grants every one of His servants the right to life. So why, when God found you worthy enough to entrust one of His servants to your care, do you lose yourself in your own illusions and start believing you have the right to harm a child who can’t protect themselves?

Let go of this illusion of sainthood. You’re only human — not an idol your child is obligated to bow before, out of fear that you might put their life in danger.

Peace. Sarvenaz