How does this benefit?

A famous hadith a lot of us have come across says, “Teach your kids swimming, archery and horse-riding.”

Have you ever wondered what the wisdom behind this is? Are these skills going to benefit us as Muslims, or was it intended only on the basis of recreation?  I decided to do some reading on this and here’s what I found:

Swimming

Health Benefits:

-       Endurance

-       Cardiovascular fitness

-       Builds muscle strength

Spiritual Benefits:

-       Can prove to be a form of meditation that can help you attain a feeling of well-being.

-       Develops skills of sportsmanship, time-management, self-discipline, goal setting and increased sense of self-worth through participation in the sport.

-       Alleviates stress

Archery

Health Benefits:

-       Works upper body strength

-       Improves balance

-       Boosts hand-eye coordination

Spiritual Benefits:

-       Develops focus, flexibility and attention skills

-       Teaches the benefits of patience

-       Encourages teamwork

-       Improves self confidence by driving satisfaction from having won a personal mental battle – irrespective of the outcome

-       Teaches responsibility and abiding by rules

Horse-Riding

Health Benefits:

-       Stimulates muscles in the dorsal and abdominal regions

-       Can prove beneficial for folks with diabetes, due to the glucose-metabolizing effects

-       Improves posture and balance

-       Improves muscle tone and flexibility

Spiritual Benefits:

-       Improves self-confidence

-       Learn to take risks responsibly

-       Improves problem solving skills

-       Encourages self-discipline

-       Increases patience and focus

-       Instills love and respect for other beings

All these activities put together (or even on their own) prove to be so much more than just physical health. What better way of training our children in qualities such as patience, self-discipline and goal setting than through sport?