Does the ceremony of "Chathi" i.e naming of the child on the sixth day after birth have any Islamic basis?
Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa
Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be
upon all of you)
One of our
brothers/sisters has asked this question:
Assalam Aleykum, Could you please give some
guidance on the naming of a child. Does the ceremony of "Chathi" i.e naming of the
child on the sixth day after birth have any Islamic basis? How is the child to
be named and by whom? Why is the Adhan
and Iqamat recited in the ears of the newly born
child? Thank you
(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)
Answer:
In the name of Allah, We praise
Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can
misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We
bear witness that there is no one (no idol,
no person, no grave, no
prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone,
and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of
His Messengers.
Your comment: Could you please give some guidance on the naming of a child.
The Messenger of Allah (saws)
recommended that the believers give the adhaan (call
to prayer) in both the ears of the new born.
It is also the Sunnah, that on the 7th day:
Appoint a good name to the new
born.
Shave the head of the new born,
and give the equivalent weight of the shaved hair in silver as sadaqa (charity).
Do the ‘aqiqa’(sacrifice one animal for a female born, or two animals for a male born).
The Messenger of Allah (saws)
said that it is the right of the new-born upon their parents, that they appoint
a good name for him/her. He (saws) also
said that the best names in the sight of Allah are: Abdur-Rahmaan and
Abdullah.
Other good names could be
anything which personifies being the slave of Allah by using any of the hundred
names of Allah: like Abdus-Shukoor, Abdur-Razzak, Abdul-Hameed, Abdul-Aziz, etc.
Then there are the names of any
of the Prophets of Allah; like Mohamed, Adam, Noah, Ibrahim, Ishaaq, Ismael, Musa, Isa, etc.
Then there the names of any of
the noble companions of the Last Messenger of Allah (saws); like Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthmaan, Ali, Salmaan, Ammar, Abbas, Saad, Muaadh, Khalid, Hasan, Hussain, etc.
For a female, one can use the
names of any of the wives or mothers or daughters of the Prophets; like Sarah, Hajrah, Maryam, Aisha, Fatemah, Zainab, Safeeyah, Hafsah, etc.
Your question: Does the ceremony of "Chathi" i.e naming of the child on the sixth day after birth have any Islamic basis?
The Gujrati
term ‘Chatthi’ basically means the ‘sixth day’…. And this term or rasm
has absolutely no basis or relation to Islam.
On the contrary, the ‘Chatthi’ rasm is more prevalent in the pagan cultures of Hinduism!
The Messenger of Allah (saws) has
advised the believers to name their children on the seventh day after the birth
of the child.
Your question: How is the child to be named and by whom?
As described in the
first answer, on the seventh day it is Sunnah to do
the ‘aqiqa’,
shave the hair of the new born and appoint a good name for the new born.
The parents have the biggest
right over their children, and it would be best if they name the child. There is no harm if the parents wish to
honor a close friend or a relative to name their child.
Your question: Why is the Adhan and Iqamat recited in the ears of the newly born child?
It is Sunnah
to declare the adhaan in both the ears of the
new-born child as soon as possible after its birth. The wisdom behind this act is that the first
words the new arrival to the world hears, are the words of Tauheed
and the Oneness of his Lord and Creator, Allah Subhanah,
and the declaration or testification of the faith of
Islam, that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah Alone, and that
Mohamed (saws) is the Messenger of Allah!
Whatever written of Truth and
benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error
is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He
is the Only Source of Strength.
Your Brother in Islam,
