The Aadaab of Seeking Knowledge

[Zaahidah]

Assalaamu Aleikum ikhwaanii.

 

I got this from a website.

 

 

The Aadaab of Seeking Knowledge.

 

 

These are some points which should be taken into consideration when setting out to seek knowledge:

 

 

1. Have the correct intention

 

The Prophet Muhammad said, “All actions are by their intentions” meaning all actions are judged according to the niyyah with which they have been done. So even if a good deed was done with a bad intention, it will not be accepted as a good deed because the intention behind it was bad.

 

 

2. Stay away from sins

 

Staying away from sins is essential when seeking knowledge. The story of Imam ash-Shafi’i rahimahullah is very famous where he complained to his teacher Waki’ rahimahullah about his bad memory. So ash-Shafi’i says: “fa-arshadanee ila tark il-ma’aasi” “He advised me to leave the disobedient acts.”

 

Al-Muhaddith, Allaamah Yusuf Binnouri rahimahullah mentions in his book, Ma’aarif us-Sunan that looking with an evil gaze weakens one’s memory.

 

 

3. Act upon what you have learnt

 

It is essential that whatever is learnt, you should try your utmost to act upon it. It is said, “Knowledge without action is like a load without a carrier.”

 

It is narrated in a hadith to the nearest meaning, “man ‘amila bi-ma ‘alim ‘allamahu-llaaha bi-ma lam ‘alim” “The one acts on what he has learnt, Allah will teach him that which he has not learnt.” So if we act on what we have learnt, even if it is very little, Allah will give us more.

 

It is said that the thing Sayyidina Abud-Dardaa radiAllahu anh used to fear the most was that he would be asked on yawm ul-qiyaamah about what actions he did with all the knowledge he had learnt.

 

 

4. Stay away from the mushtabahaat in food and drink

 

It is very important, especially in the student days to make sure that everything you eat is halaal, upto the point that even the things you are not sure about, you should leave them. The Prophet said, to the nearest meaning, “da’ maa yuribuk ilaa maa laa yuribuk” “Leave the things which put you in doubt for those things which do not put you in doubt.”

 

It is narrated of Abdullah ibn Mubaarak rahimahullah that when he went from his home town to ash-Shaam, he borrowed a pen from somebody there. Later on, he forgot about this pen and returned home. When he had reached home, he remembered that he had borrowed a pen from somebody in ash-Shaam, so he travelled all the way back just to return the one pen. He said, “To give back one dirham which I am unsure about is more beloved to me than to spend 1000 daraahim in the path of Allah.”

 

It was known of Sheikh Muzhaffar Hussain al-Kaadhlawi that during the time he was a student, he would only eat dry chapatti. When he was asked why he did not have anything with it, he replied that a mango sauce was usually put inside the gravy to give the flavour, and he was unsure regarding the bay’ of the mango orchards if they corresponded to the laws of the shari’ah, so for this reason he ate only dry chapatti.

 

 

5. Don’t be lazy in the mustahabbaat

 

It is fairly common nowadays so hear, “Oh it is only mandub” or “It’s only sunnah, you don’t have to do it”. But the truth of the matter is that our a’maal are such that we cannot afford to lose out on a single sunnah, be it however small.

Whoever thinks lowly of the aadaab and mustahabbaat, he will soon begin to think lowly of the sunnah. And whoever thinks lowly of the sunnah, he will soon begin to think lowly of the faraaid. And whoever thinks lowly of the faraaid and does not fulfil them, then surely he has lost the dunyaa and the aakhirah.

 

 

6. Be humble

 

It is absolutely necessary to stay away from kibr in any form. Especially in this case, it is impossible to gain any beneficial knowledge without humility. It is said, “Humility is for the one from whom knowledge is learnt” so it is essential that especially with your teachers, and fellow pupils you adopt a humble attitude.

 

 

7. Tolerate all hardships in the way of knowledge with patience

It was the way of the salaf that on the road of seeking ‘ilm, they would tolerate all kinds of difficulties with utmost patience, hoping only for a reward in the aakhirah.

Sheikh Abdul-Fattaah Abu Ghuddah rahimahullah has written on this topic ‘Safahat min Sabr il-Ulama and Shada'id al-Ilm wa tahseel’ in which he mentions some of the difficulties the ulamaa faced whilst studying and seeking knowledge.

Imam Abu Yusuf rahimahullah says, “al-ilmu izzun la zhulla feeh – wa yuj’alu bi-zhullin la izza feeh” Nothing is gained without hardship. Ilm is an honour but to get to it you will have to undergo much humiliation.

Imam Maalik rahimahullah says that the condition of Rabee’ rahimahullah was such that he had even sold the roof of his house for the sake of seeking ‘ilm.

SubhanAllah. This is the true zeal for knowledge. Nothing came in is his to knowledge, till he even sold the roof of his own house! Rabee’ has realised the true importance of knowledge, so he let nothing come in his way when he was seeking it, may Allah have mercy on him.

 

It is said of Imam Sijzi that he was travelling to seek knowledge and he had with him his son who was less that 10 years old. As they were on foot, somebody remarked that he should let at least his son ride. So the sheikh gave a beautiful reply. He said, “ma’azh Allah an narkab fi talabi ahaadithi rasulillah salAllahu alaih wa sallam, wa in ajaza arkabtuhu ala ra’si.”

And our sheikh hafidhahullah says regarding this sentence, ‘uktubuha alal-hanaajir wa law bil-khanaajir’ so we realise how important these words are, for they show the whole attitude of the scholars to seeking knowledge. They were not even prepared to let their small children ride on the way to seek ahaadith! And our attitude is exactly the opposite, we are not even prepared to give a little sacrifice for deen, and if we have to, we moan and groan as if it is the deen in need of us rather than us in need of the deen.

 

 

8. Realise the status of ilm and know your position as one who seeks it

It is said, “al-ilmu yu’taa wa la ya’ti” so it is you yourself who will have to go through trouble to gain ilm, it will not come to you by itself. Remember that you are the taalib and ilm is the matloob not the other way round. And this is illustrated in the story of Imam Maalik rahimahullah who, when asked to teach the sons of the king refused, as ilm is not something so cheap that it will come to the princes in their palace. Ilm is something which must be sought for.

Imam Abu Yusuf rahimahullah says, “al-ilmu shay’un la yu’tika ba’duhu hattaa tu’til-insaana kulluh.” “Ilm is a thing which will not give you even a part of itself until man gives himself wholly to it.”

 

It comes without saying that to achieve such a high status as that of a taalib ilm, for whom the angels spread out their wings, and even the fish in the sea seek forgiveness, you have to fulfil duties and take up responsibilities.

__________________

[Nur]

Jazakellah Kheiran Zaahida sis

 

Seeking of ( Islamic) Knowledge is indeed a Fariidah ( Oblogatory) on all men and women as the Messenger of Allah SAWS said, its importance is just like prayer and fasting, if not more important, do we all see at that way?

 

 

Nur

[Libaax-Sankataabte]

"6. Be humble: It is absolutely necessary to stay away from kibr in any form. Especially in this case, it is impossible to gain any beneficial knowledge without humility. It is said, “Humility is for the one from whom knowledge is learnt” so it is essential that especially with your teachers, and fellow pupils you adopt a humble attitude. "

 

 

Jizakalah.

[Zaahidah]

^^^^ Aaamiin wa iyaakum my dear brothers.

 

Wasalaam