Youth problems and issues that are affecting the young ones is a concerning topic for today’s parents.
Narrated by ibn Abbas: Allah’s Apostle said,
“Take advantage of five matters before five other matters: your youth before you become old; health before you fall sick; richness before you become poor; free time before you become busy; and your life before your death.” [Musnad Imam Ahmad]
If we take a careful look at young people, we will be able to conclude that they are generally of three categories: the upright; the corrupt; the confused
The Upright Young People Issues
Upright young people are believers – in every sense of the word. They believe in their religion in such a way that they love it and are convinced by and content with it. They regard embracing it as profit and denial of it as a clear loss.
Corrupt Young People Issues
These are young people who are religiously deviating. They deviate from the straight path of their religion and from good manners in their behavior.
“[They are] those whose effort is lost in worldly life, while they think that they are doing well in work.” [Qur’ an 18: 104]
Confused Young People Issues
They live in a mental and psychological whirlpool and stand in front of these trends in confusion. not knowing which of the two options is correct. They are largely found among those who have some Islamic education and culture but who on the other hand study mainly worldly sciences that run contrary to religion. either in reality or according to their imaginations. Hence they stand confused, between the two cultures.
Youth Problems
Youth Problems are attributed to many factors most prominent among them are:
Joblessness
Joblessness is a disease that kills mental, intellectual, and physical capabilities. Evil and wicked intentions may occur to them as a result of the depression that befalls them due to their joblessness.
Solution:
In order to be cured of this disease, the affected youth should develop interests that suit them like reading, writing, trading, or any other occupation that can stand between them and unemployment.
The estrangement between the youth and their elders
This problem manifests in a situation where some elders see corruption in young adults. and just stand aloof without making any effort whatsoever to correct them, having lost hope in their reform.
Solution:
Elders also are requested to sense the responsibility towards young people. that rests upon their shoulders and eliminates from their minds ideas of hopelessness regarding the piety of the young. Young people, on their part, should hold their elders in high esteem. They should respect their views and accept their directives. Because they have achieved degrees of experience and realities of life that the young have not achieved.Youth Problems
Being in contact with corrupt people and keeping their company
This situation has a great deal of psychological, mental, and moral influence on young people.
Solution for Youth Problems
The solution to this problem is that young people should choose righteous people as their companions in order to benefit from their goodness, righteousness. They should consider people very carefully before befriending them by studying their conditions and reputations. If they happen to be of noble character, upright, religious, and of good reputation, they will be long-cherished and a form of wealth. They should, therefore, stick with them. If, on the other hand, they happen to be people of the opposite character, the young people must be cautious of them, keep away from them, and should not be carried away by their sweet talk and nice outward appearance.
How beautiful is this poet’s saying:
Study people, if you would like to take them as brethren;
Scrutinize their affairs and examine them.
If you are fortunate to find an intelligent and pious person;
Hold fast onto him happily with both hands.
Reading and viewing destructive, un-Islamic material in books, magazines, TV or internet
These types of materials make people skeptical about their religion and faith and drag them from excellent morality to the abyss of degeneration. Youth Problems
The Solution to these Issues
The solution to this problem is to immediately shift to writings and programs that inculcate the love of Allah and His Prophet(peace be upon him) in one’s heart and those books help to actualize in faith. There are many useful books that help in this situation. the most important of which are the noble Quran and its Tafseer (explanation).
Islam, in truth, does not impose restrictions on liberties. Rather, it regulates and perfectly controls them in such a way that one person’s liberty will not collide with another’s. One who wants absolute freedom will discover that he or she can have it only at the expense of other people’s rights. and if that should happen there will be a clash between the two. Youth Problems
“These are the limits [set by] Allah, so do not approach them.” [Qur’an 2: 187]
“These are the limits of Allah, so do not transgress them.” [Qur’an 2: 229]
Therefore, life as a whole involves submission to certain regulations so that things can move along according to set goals. If submission to the social regulations is for the betterment of society. Islamic regulations should also be expected for the well-being of the Ummah.
