we are taking kids for hajj. is it permissible to scold or get angry with them in the state of ihraam while feeding them or when they misbehave. my kids are 3 yrs and 7 yr old boys. please advice.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

A person who is in a state of Ihraam for Hajj or ‘Umrah should avoid acts of disobedience, swearing and arguing as Allaah Says (what means): {Hajj is [during] well-known months, so whoever has made Hajj obligatory upon himself therein [by entering the state of ihram], there is [to be for him] no sexual relations and no disobedience and no disputing during Hajj.}[Quran 2:197]

However, if a parent blames his son while he/she is in the state of Ihraam, and he/she does not swear at the child or reach the extent of transgressing the limits, then we hope that one is not sinful for doing so.

This is not included in the prohibited dispute that is mentioned in the aforementioned verse, but it is better to avoid doing so. `Abdullaah ibn Al-Mubaarak said about the interpretation of this verse: “…If you (while in a state of Ihraam) rebuke your slave and make him angry without beating him, then this is permissible, Allaah willing.”

Therefore, if a parent in a state of Ihraam rebukes his/her child for the purpose of educating him and rectifying him then this is within the meaning that is mentioned by Ibn Al-Mubaarak and we hope that it is permissible. However, one should avoid getting angry as this may lead a person to commit acts of disobedience and disputes that are prohibited in the verse.

For more benefit on how to treat anger, please refer to Fatwa 86681.

Allaah Knows best.