child into this world. She is acknowledged for this
on a daily basis. The virtue of motherhood is
metaphorically compared with a “rare” or a “pre-
cious” entity.
Islam grants a very high status to motherhood.
Hence, many Afghan women marry young, as their
primary aim is to become a mother. Motherhood is
perceived as the ultimate goal of every woman. The
status of a mother is more respected than the status
of a father because of the hardships childbirth
brings. The high status of the mother is clearly
expressed in the religious saying: “Heaven is under
the feet of the mother.” Motherhood is believed to
grant the mother a high status in Heaven.
Islam asserts that parents, particularly mothers,
are to be cared for in their old age and treated
kindly. Traditionally, children will look after par-
ents in old age. This is the time when mothers are
repaid for all their hard work raising children. A
mother must always feel that she controls the fam-
ily and her children should do what she says, par-
ticularly in old age. Afghans prefer to have many
children so that they will be secure and well taken
care of in later life. They believe that more children,
especially more sons, will carry the family name
and their fathers’ traditions.
The mother’s responsibility is to raise her chil-
dren in the best possible way. Religious guidance
and moral codes are of utmost importance. Good
mothers need to ensure the smooth running of the
family and household matters. In addition to tak-
ing care of her children, a good mother should
ensure that the family life is harmonious. Whether
a woman is a good mother or not is usually judged
by how the children turn out. However, under the
Taliban regime in Afghanistan, some women were
denied the opportunity to ensure that their children
would be educated.
Living in a new country brings many changes in
the women’s lives as mothers, particularly their
decision to have children. Shabnam, an Afghani
immigrant to Australia said: “The way of living
was different in Afghanistan than it is in Austra-
lia...I think that many Afghans are having fewer
children. Bringing up children here is harder because
their future is uncertain. Parents may fear that they
won’t be obeyed like they are in our country.”
Being a migrant mother
Moving to a new homeland is a significant life
change. Moving to another country as a mother is
even more difficult. For many women, moving
away from Afghanistan is the only option for them
to raise their children. Despite difficulties, most
women feel positive about being in Australia. They
australia 511are grateful that their children have escaped from a
war-torn country. In Australia, children are free to
attend school and enjoy the social environments
that Australia has to offer. Many women feel that
being a migrant mother in Australia has motivated
them to raise their children as good Muslims. They
wish to be seen as a person who is a “good migrant.”
It is a challenge for them.
Many women arrive in Australia as refugees.
Their past experiences impel them to see their chil-
dren succeed. They tolerate hardship as long as
they can bring up children to have a better life than
theirs. Women anticipate the trials of the future.
They fear that their children will want to discon-
nect from Afghan traditions and follow Australian
ways. Many feel that being in Australia creates an
extra pressure for them to succeed in raising their
children.
Generally, women feel very satisfied with being
migrant mothers. As refugees, some women were
separated from their husbands and families as they
had to escape their countries at different times.
Because of this, being together with family is an
important factor in their lives. Women realize how
lucky their children are to be in Australia, in com-
parison to those still living in Afghanistan.
Women also hope that their children will become
educated in religion and have good moral characters.
Some hope that their children will escape the nega-
tive influences within Australian society. Women
are concerned about the future of their daughters
because girls are considered more vulnerable in
Afghan culture. A man can always take care of him-
self but a daughter needs to be taken care of. A con-
cern for many women is that their daughters find
good husbands who will treat them well. Good
moral character is an important aspect of Afghan
culture, particularly for girls. If a young girl is of
bad character, this is a reflection upon her mother
and sometimes the entire family may be labeled as
“bad” and disrespected. Therefore, mothers always
try to bring their girls up in the best possible way.
In summary, mothers are held in the highest
regard and are granted respect from children and
society. Motherhood is thus the ultimate goal of
Afghan women. Despite some differences between
individual women, collectively, the trend is positive
and the women share a view that their new lives in
Australia are comparatively better and easier than
for those who remain in Afghanistan.Bibliography
J. Bernard, The future of motherhood, New York 1974.
DIMIA (Department of Immigration and Multicultural
and Indigenous Affairs), Commonwealth of Australia,