One of the most exciting aspects of the present Islamic Awakening is that a large number of young people are going forward to seek Islamic knowledge. By doing so, they ensure that this awakening is firmly grounded in a correct understanding of Islam; and that it will continue to be distinguished by right guidance.?
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It is the duty of the scholars to embrace these students, teach them, guide them, and honour them. The students of today will be the scholars and leaders of tomorrow. ?One of the first things that a student of religious knowledge needs to know is how to go about the task of seeking knowledge. He needs to be shown clearly the proper way to attain Islamic knowledge and how to avoid the pitfalls that lie in his path. ?Being heedless of these pitfalls can lead to unfortunate circumstances that can be very hard to remedy. They can send the student right off the path of knowledge into all forms of deviance.?
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The quest for knowledge is a passion that can lead to hastiness. There is a tendency among students to pluck fruit, so to speak, before it is ripe. This is why I see it as my duty towards the next generation of promising students to point out to them the different mistakes and forms of deviation that new students are prone to. I speak from my personal experience in my own quest for knowledge and from the experiences of my peers and colleagues. I will cite real examples from the world we live in today.?
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It cannot go unnoticed that times change. Each generation has its own problems and circumstances. Therefore, we need to address topics like these over and over again in order to provide fresh insights. This may be the reason why scholars of every era have written on this topic, from the time of Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr and al-Khatîb al-Baghdâdî until today. Each of these scholars had to wrestle with the problems of his time. He has to face a unique set of obstacles and hindrances and determine how to overcome them.?
I hope that this brief treatise will help to guide the student on his way. I ask Allah to guide us and put our affairs right. I pray that He lets us recognize the truth for what it is and helps us to follow it, and that he lets us see falsehood for what it is and helps us to avoid it. And may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and Companions.?
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Seeking Knowledge for the Sake of it
Sometimes a student will say: ?“I am seeking knowledge for the sake of knowledge”, implying that he is not after a diploma or a degree or something else of that sort. ?However, what he is doing is also wrong.?
One of the pitfalls that a student can fall into is to seek knowledge for its own sake. ?Knowledge is a desire like any other human desire. ?It can be sought for the pure pleasure of acquiring it and not for the sake of Allah. People love to discover new things. It is a natural human inclination. When a person strives long and hard to find something out, then comes upon the answer, it can be quite exhilarating. This encourages him to study further. Islam, however, does not call upon us to seek Islamic knowledge for its own sake, but to put it to use. The scholars of old used to say: ?
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“Knowledge calls out to us with actions. It is either answered by actions or it goes away.” ? ?
Allah describes the people of knowledge in the following way: ?“Those who were given knowledge beforehand, when it is recited to them, fall on their faces in prostration. And they say: ?‘Glory be to our Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer). Truly the promise of our Rabb is fulfilled. They fall on their faces crying and it increases them in humility.” ?(Sûrah al-Isrâ’: ?107-109) ?Here we see how knowledge gives them humility and makes them fall in prostration to Allah.?
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Allah says: ?“Only those who have knowledge truly fear Allah.” (Sûrah Fâtir: ?28) ?Using this verse as their evidence, some people of knowledge have opined that the scholars are the “best of Creation” referred to in Allah’s words: ?“Those who have faith and do righteous deeds, they are the best of Creation. Their reward is with Allah; gardens beneath which rivers flow. They will dwell therein forever. Allah will be well pleased with them and they with Him. This is for those who fear their Rabb.” ? (Sûrah al-Bayyinah: 7-8)?
They argue that since the “best of Creation” are “those who fear their Rabb” and since the only people who truly fear their Rabb are the scholars, it follows then that the scholars are the best of Creation. How could it be otherwise when Sunnah declares the scholars to be the inheritors of the Prophets? This means that scholars are the best people after the Prophets, if they are true scholars. People today have become confused about the meaning of the word “scholar” in this context. Some assume it refers to any person with specialized knowledge in any field, like medicine, engineering, or chemistry. The true scholar in the context of our discussion is a person who has knowledge about Allah, His religion, and His Law. Knowledge, in an abstract, theoretical sense, is not enough. It must also affect the heart. ?Our pious predecessors did not recognize anyone as a scholar merely because had amassed a lot of knowledge. His knowledge had to show in his behavior. He had to be humble, ascetic, and reserved. Some of the pious predecessors had said: ?“The scholar is the one who fears Allah so much that it affects his character, his conduct, and his knowledge.” ??
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Dealings with Other People
Dealings with Parents
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Sometimes you find a student of religious knowledge spending considerable time in the company of scholars, listening to them respectfully and attentively. However, if you were to see how he conducts himself at home with his parents, you would get a shock. He is harsh and uncouth. When his parents ask him to do something for them, he bangs his fist into the wall and shouts at them about how busy he is. Busy with what? ?Busy reading Islamic books, seeking knowledge, sitting with scholars, and engaging in good works! ?This is all well and good, but should he not also be busy looking after his parents? ?Has not Allah commanded us to be good to our parents – even pagan parents? ?He has commanded us to be good to our parents even if they call us to abandon our religion and engage in idolatry. Allah says: ?“If they strive to make you worship others along with Me of whom you have no knowledge, then do not obey them. Yet offer them your good company in this life.” ?(Sûrah Luqmân: ?15)?
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So how much more deserving are they of your respect if they happen to be Muslims, even very sinful Muslims? ?How can a child claim to be seeking Islamic knowledge and be counted among the pious if he disobeys his parents, treats them harshly, or abandons them with tears in their eyes and goes on his merry way? ? It is startling to see a student who gets happy every time he hears a scholarly verdict that diminishes the rights of the parents. ?If he hears, for instance, that due to dire circumstances, going for jihad in a certain country has become an obligation on everyone and it is no longer necessary to solicit the permission of one’s parents, he gets happy. He might even go to participate in that jihad, leaving his parents behind crying. Why? ?Because some scholar ruled that his parents’ permission is not necessary. If he hears from another scholar that obeying his parents is obligatory and their permission is mandatory, he ignores that ruling and heaps a bunch of accusations against the integrity of that scholar. Why? ?Because he finds it difficult to obey his parents. On the other hand, he likes the idea of traveling and going to and fro.?
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When he is away from home and away from his parents he is gentle and good-natured. ?He is cheerful and serves his Muslim brothers and fellow students. His personality changes abruptly when he returns home. He becomes harsh and domineering and expects everyone else in the house to listen to him and accept his opinions. ?When we look for the positive role that this young man plays at home, we do not find it. ?He can neither disseminate knowledge to the members of his household nor warn them against the corruptive influences that pervade the home. He cannot even venture to provide them with books, cassettes, and magazines that might benefit them. He cannot be of benefit to them because of the bad treatment that he metes out. They will not listen to him, because he has destroyed the relationship that he had with them. ?Sometimes, a student of this type tries to justify his behavior by citing the example of some Companions who were forced to go against their parents for the sake of their religion. He will mention that ‘Ubaydah b, al-Jarrâh killed his father. Of course, he fails to mention the fact that those people had parents who were not only unbelievers, but were violently attacking the Muslims at that time.?
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This same student probably has Muslim parents. Maybe they are sinful Muslims. They might even be good Muslims, but because of the young man’s personality, bad upbringing, or youthful zeal, he does not treat them well. They, therefore, take a negative stance with him which only makes him think worse of them. This is a grave pitfall indeed.?
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