Answered by Shaykh Amjad Rasheed
Translated by Ustadha Shazia Ahmad
I live with my mother and she supports me, I am a young man and have no children and no wife. Is it obligatory for me to get a job?
It is not obligatory on the parents to support their children unless the children are poor and unable to earn a living because of childhood, insanity or illness.
If the children are not poor and they have enough money to support themselves, or if they do not have enough money but are able to earn their own living, such as an adult son who has a sound body and mind, then it is not obligatory on the parents to support him. However if they volunteer to do so, it is permissible.
[h: In other words, if one’s parents voluntarily support one, one may accept the money they give one and one is not obliged to earn one’s own living.
The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) taught us, however, that it is superior to earn one’s own living and not be dependent on others. In the case described above, earning your own living and freeing your mother from having to go out and toil to support you would be an example of being good to one’s parents, a highly emphasized quality in our religion.]