A young man is complaining that his father does not wake him up for Fajr prayer; what should he do?

 

My father does not wake me up for Fajr prayer and I have reached the age of puberty. What should I do?.

Praise be to Allaah. 

Firstly: 

First of all we would like to congratulate you on this
keenness to perform Fajr prayer in the mosque and we ask Allah, may He be
glorified and exalted, to make you steadfast and increase you in guidance
and righteousness. 

Secondly: 

The parents should encourage their children -- males and
females -- to pray regularly on time, because the father is the shepherd of
his household and is responsible for his flock, and the mother is also a
shepherd and is responsible for her flock. 

See the answer to question number
103420 

Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allah have
mercy on him) was asked: 

Is it permissible for a man to go out to pray when his
children are in the house? 

He replied: 

A man is obliged to obey the command of Allah in the verse in
which He says (interpretation of the meaning): “O you who believe! Ward
off yourselves and your families against a Fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and
stones, over which are (appointed) angels stern (and) severe, who disobey
not, (from executing) the Commands they receive from Allaah, but do that
which they are commanded” [al-Tahreem 66:6]. He must tell his family to
pray as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) enjoined when
he said: “Tell your children to pray when they are seven years old and smack
them if they do not do it when they are ten, and separate them in their
beds.” And Allah, may He be exalted, tells us that Ismaa’eel, the father of
the Arabs (interpretation of the meaning): “used to
enjoin on his family and his people As‑Salaah (the prayers) and the Zakaah,
and his Lord was pleased with him” [Maryam 19:55]. 

It is not permissible for him -- the father -- to leave his
children sleeping without waking them up to pray and following up on them.
It is not sufficient just to wake them up; rather it is essential to follow
up, because he may wake them up, then they go back to sleep. End quote. 

Fataawa Islamiyyah, 4/215 

The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
praised the young man who grows up worshipping Allah. It was narrated from
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: “There are seven whom Allaah will shade
with His shade on the Day when there will be no shade but His,” a young man
who grows up worshipping Allaah, and among them he mentioned: “a young man
who grows up worshipping his Lord”.

Narrated by al-Bukhaari (629) and Muslim (1031). 

One of the most important means of helping a young person to
grow up worshipping his Lord is for his parents to take charge of his
upbringing and make him get used to that from a young age, and encourage him
to do it continually. 

Congratulations to the parents for such a son who is upset
that his father does not wake him up to offer Fajr prayer. How many fathers
there are who would be prepared to give everything they own in order for
their sons to be righteous and adhere to obedience towards Allah. It grieves
us that some parents show no interest in encouraging their children to pray
on time or to pray in congregation in the mosque. 

Thirdly: 

If your father gets up to pray on time and prays in
congregation in the mosque, then the matter is simple, in sha Allah. You can
ask him to wake you up to pray and to take you with him, and you can talk to
him about the matter calmly. 

But if he does not pray and he leaves you sleeping because he
feels sorry for you, this is undoubtedly a kind of pity that is
inappropriate, and you have to take means of waking up for prayer, such as
going to sleep early, setting the alarm clock, making your intention sincere
and asking those among your family who wake up to pray to wake you up, or
you can request a reminder phone call from some of your friends, and other
means that will help you to wake up to pray on time. 

It is a good idea to ask the neighbourhood imam to talk about
this matter in a special lesson in the mosque or in a Friday khutbah, so
that your father can hear the Islamic ruling about what he is doing and can
be alerted to the importance of telling his children and family to pray, and
that this is a duty upon him about which he will be asked before Allah, may
He be exalted. 

We ask Allah, may He be exalted, to increase His bounty and
guidance upon you and to open your father's heart to waking you for prayer,
and to make you and your family all among those who pray regularly. 

And Allah knows best.