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Left Handedness, The Bible and The Quran: Implications for Parents and Teachers

Alhassan AB

This paper is about a little studied aspect of Humanity and one of the last unorganized minorities in society. It x-rayed handedness and its types. The frequency of left-handedness is greater in Euro-American than in oriental cultures and restrictions on using left hand are ingrained in the belief system and social interpretation in a given culture. The descriptive research approach was used to unravel what the Bible and the Quran say about Left-Handedness. The right hand is mentioned positively 100 times in the Bible, while the left hand is mentioned only 25 times, all negatively. The Bible’s emphasis on ‘the right hand’ is a reflection of reality. The dominant hand is always stronger than the other arm, and 90 per cent of people are right handed. By implication, in the vast majority of people, the right hand is stronger. Thus, the Bible uses the right hand as a symbol of strength and honor (and stated that) in the left hand are riches and honor. The Sunnah of the Prophet illustrated that it is desirable to use the right hand in everything that we wish to honor. Handwriting is a highly valued and prized skill. The position of the Qur’an is that the child can write with his/her left hand without any problem. It is unnecessary to insist upon the child writing with his/her right hand or using the right hand when engaging in other activities requiring of extra degree of manual dexterity. For a lefthanded child to use his/her right hand for such acts can have detrimental consequences for the child’s confidence, education and self-esteem. In light of the findings of this study, the paper recommended that a parent should make left-handedness feel like a blessing instead of a curse by treating it as one thing that makes a child distinct and special. Thinking outside the box is a specialty of lefties, which translate well to problem solving at school and in the society. Teacher training institutions should ensure that every teacher is trained to recognize and provide for the needs of the left-handed children.