The Prophet—may Allah grant him peace and blessings—used to forbid showing insolence toward one’s mother, that is, cutting her off from the rights that are due to her. A mother’s claim upon her child, male or female, is immense—indeed, it outweighs even the father’s. When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked, “Who among people is most entitled to my good companionship?” he replied, “Your mother.” The man said, “Then who?” He answered, “Your mother.” The man asked again, “Then who?” He said, “Your mother.” The man said a fourth time, “Then who?” He replied, “Then your father.”

The mother’s right is so great because she carried her child in hardship, delivered in hardship, nursed in hardship, and wore herself out night and day for his sake; therefore, her due is tremendous. Disrespecting one’s father is likewise a major sin, yet the Prophet ﷺ singled out mothers because offending them is even more severe.

He also forbade the burying alive of daughters. In the foolish era of pre-Islamic ignorance, if a man was given the news of a baby girl he would bury her alive—Allah protect us—while she was still breathing. Concerning this, Allah says:
“When any one of them is given news of a female, his face darkens and he is filled with inward grief. He hides himself from his people because of the bad news he has received: shall he keep her in humiliation, or bury her in the earth?” (Qur’an 16:58–59).

“Shall he keep her in humiliation” means allowing her to live while treating her with contempt and indifference; “or bury her in the earth” means he inters her alive. Some of them—Allah’s refuge is sought—would dig a pit for their own daughter; when a bit of dust settled on his beard as he was about to bury her, she would brush the dirt from his beard, yet he would still cast her in and cover her with soil. Such hearts were harder than stone; even beasts do not treat their young in this way.