http://www.wefound.org/ Your website to success through authentic knowledge of Islâm and Da'wah according to the Qur’ân and the Sunnah.
It is a blessing from Allah the Almighty that in this modern
world acquiring authentic knowledge has become more easy and convenient.
Knowledge of Islam according to the Qur’an and the Sunnah has become
available with the publication of books, articles, tapes, Islamic learning programs on CDs, unlimited access to
the internet, lectures and conferences given by knowledgeable scholars and
students of knowledge. For all these various opportunities, it is for our
benefit and success that we must start working towards increasing our knowledge
of Islam. There are several things that we must do before we can begin to
approach the task of acquiring knowledge.
First,
we have to purify our intentions for whatever good things we plan to do,
including seeking Islamic knowledge. Our intention must be to please Allah the
Almighty. If we approach the
pursuit of knowledge with worldly benefit in mind then we have defeated
ourselves before we even start. The
proofs for this come in the form of two ahâdîth.
The first one is the authentic hâdîth narrated by Umar bin
Al-Khattab radiallahu anhu (may Allah be pleased with him) in which he
said:
“I
heard Allah's Messenger sallallahu alaihi wa sallam (peace and blessings
of Allah be upon him) saying, “The reward of deeds depends upon the intention
and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. So
whoever emigrates for worldly benefits or for a woman to marry, his emigration
will be for what he emigrates for.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari 1/1)
From
the above hâdîth we can say that all our pursuits (including acquiring
knowledge) have the same standard of setting our intentions correct before we
can receive the reward and benefit from them.
The second hâdîth narrated by Abu Hurayrah radiallahu anhu
specifically refers to the punishment for anyone who acquires knowledge not for
the pleasure of our Creator but purely for worldly purpose:
“The
Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa
sallam said, “Whosoever learns knowledge by which is to be sought the Face
of Allah, but does not do so except for the goal of this world, he will not
smell the odor of Paradise on the Day of Resurrection.” (Abu Dawud)
With these two ahâdîth we see the seriousness of our intention and that is why we have to make sure that our intention is correct before we go further. Our intention in acquiring knowledge must be purified for Allah’s Cause and Pleasure.
After
purifying our intention, we need to have an understanding of where our knowledge
comes from. Allah has mentioned in
the Qur’an about how He gives knowledge and grants wisdom.
One of those ayaat is in Surah Al Baqarah ayah 169.
Allah the Almighty says:
“He
grants wisdom to whom He pleases; and he to whom wisdom is granted indeed
receives a benefit overflowing.”
We must know that knowledge in Islam comes from the
Qur’an and the (authentic) Sunnah and the right deductions from these two
revealed sources. The Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said,
“Knowledge consists of three things: the decisive verses
(Qur’an ), authentic Hâdîth and prescriptions rightly deduced from the two.
What is beside them is superfluous.”
(Ibn Majah 1/54 and Abu Dawud 2879)
We need to know that Islam requires us to
distinguish the Sunnah from bid’ah or innovated practices. We also need
to distinguish the authentic Ahâdîth from the fabricated ones. We need to know the proofs from the
Qur’an and the Sunnah as these are revealed sources that can give us knowledge
and guidance:
Jabir
Bin ‘Abdullah narrated that
Allah’s Messenger sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said, “The best speech
is that embodied in the Book of Allah, and the best guidance is the guidance
given by Muhammad. The most evil affairs are their innovations; and every
innovation is an error.” (Muslim1885)
Once we know where knowledge comes from then we can
either continue on our own or we can choose to sit in the company of the
learned. The company of the learned
here means the scholars, students of knowledge and those whom Allah has given an
understanding of the religion. According to a Tafseer by Ibn Katheer,
“Those who benefit from the advice are those who have sound minds and good
comprehension with which they understand the words of advice and reminder and
their implications.” There is a
noble status given to the learned and this is shown in the hâdîth narrated
by Abu Umamah, radiallahu anhu which states that the Prophet sallallahu
alaihi wa sallam said,
“A learned one
is as much above an (ordinary) worshipper as I am above the least of you”; and
he added: “Allah, His angels and all those in heavens and earths, even the
ants in their holes and the fish in the water, call down blessing on those who
instruct people in beneficent knowledge.” (Tirmithi)
When
we are receiving authentic knowledge from those whom Allah has blessed with
knowledge, we should not be ashamed to envy them (i.e., the Muslim scholars or
the learned Muslims). The reason
for this is the hâdîth narrated by Ibn Mas'ud in which he said that the
he heard the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam saying,
“There is no
envy except in two: a person whom Allah has given wealth and he spends it in the
right way, and a person whom Allah has given wisdom (i.e. religious knowledge)
and he gives his decision accordingly and teaches it to others.” ( Sahih
Al-Bukhari 2/490)
So
the learned among us have a special place in the learning and teaching of
religious knowledge. We must try to learn from them so that we can implement the
authentic knowledge in our daily lives and also teach or share to others
what we learn.
Another
important point that we need to build within ourselves in acquiring knowledge is
patience. We must have patience when learning. None of us were born knowing
everything at once and the same thing goes for learning the religion. We will
not be able to acquire all of the knowledge and those who have been given
knowledge are still constantly seeking more. The reason lies on the
comprehensiveness of Islam. We can
not learn Islam in just one setting nor years. And so it is important to
understand that we can not comprehend all of Islamic teachings at once and thus
the need for patience and constancy. There are many references to patience and constancy in the Qur’an and one of those is:
“O you who
believe! Persevere in patience and constancy vie in such perseverance,
strengthen each other, and fear Allah, that you may prosper.” (Surah Ali-Imran
ayah 200)
In
order to make learning easy for us we must submit to the will of Allah and build
strong trust in Him that He will help us in our noble pursuit. We should begin
our studying with du'a (supplication). Allah has enjoined all of us
including the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam to ask for knowledge
from Him:
“And
say: ‘My Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer) increase me in knowledge.’”
(Surah Ta-Ha 114)
It
is preferable also that we include in our supplications the following du’a
for patience and constancy:
“Our
Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer)!
Pour out
on us patience
and constancy, and take
our souls unto You as
Muslims (who bow to Your Will)!” (Qur’an, 7:126)
In
addition to these things we need to choose good company from whom we can receive
benefit. The Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam
encouraged us to have company when acquiring knowledge as shown in the
following hâdîth:
Abdullah ibn Abbas
narrated: Allah's Messenger said,
“Acquiring knowledge in company for an hour in the night is better than
spending the whole night in prayer.” (Tirmidhi
256)
It
is for our benefit that we should choose righteous companions. We must remember
that when we choose friends either they will give us some information which we
can benefit from or no benefit at all. Let
us take guidance from the hâdîth in which Abu Musa radiallahu anhu
narrated that the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said,
“The example of
a good pious companion and an evil one is that of a person carrying musk and
another blowing a pair of bellows. The one carrying musk will either give you
some perfume as a present, or you will buy some from him, or you will get
a good smell from him, but the one who is blowing a pair of
bellows will either burn your clothes or you will get a bad smell from
him.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari 7/442)
In order to gain more knowledge or wisdom through
righteous friends or companions, let us include in our supplications the
following du’a from the Qur’an:
“O
my Rabb (Cherisher and Sustainer)! Bestow wisdom on me and join me with the
righteous; Grant me honorable mention on the tongue of truth among the latest
(generations). Make me one of the inheritors of the Garden of Bliss.” (26:83-85)
Also we need to set aside time to study.
If we are constantly too busy to learn anything from anyone or do not
make the time to read even if just one ayah of Qur’an then we will have
no increase in this life or in the next. We
need to spend time learning authentic knowledge of Islam to increase our Faith,
do righteous deeds, enjoin the Truth and develop patience and constancy.
We need to learn all these in order not to be among the losers – those
who will suffer the torments in the Hell-Fire for spending most of their time
and life in this world merely for play and amusements.
Let us take admonition from the following Ayah:
“By
the time, verily man is in loss, except such as have Faith, and do righteous
deeds, and join (together) in the mutual enjoining of Truth, and of patience and
constancy.” (Surah
Al-Asr,103:1-3)
After we have learned things about Islam even if we
think that it is small or everybody already knows it we should still make the
effort to convey what we have learned to our spouses, children and friends. As
we read in the Qur’an in Surah Ar-Rum 30 ayah 47:
“…To
help the believers is incumbent upon us.”
And
one of the ways to help our fellow Muslims is to pass along correct Islamic
knowledge. Zayd Ibn Thabit radiallahu
anhu narrated that the Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam said,
“May Allah
brighten the face of the person who hears what I say and retains it, then
conveys it to others; for sometimes one who hears from another remembers it
better than the original hearer himself.”
(Ahmad and Tirmithi)
The
Prophet sallallahu alaihi wa sallam further said,
“Convey (what
you have learned from me ) even if it is only one verse.” (Sahih Al Bukhari)
In a
world full of opportunities to benefit from the wisdom of others why would we
deprive ourselves by not making the sacrifice for the ultimate success which is
the Hereafter? Let us then take time learning Islam as it is the True Path to
Success. When taking on the task of
learning we need to remember to purify our intentions, understand where
knowledge comes from, choose those who we can learn from, set time to study,
make du’a, and be patient. Once
we begin on this journey towards increasing our knowledge we need to be mindful
that we practice what we learn, continue making du’a to become more
learned, and share with others the authentic Islamic knowledge that we learn.
May Allah bless all of us with beneficial knowledge and bestow upon us success
in this life and in the next. Ameen.
Note: This
enlightening article is one of the requirements that Sister Rita
(Faatimah) Allen
submitted as a participant in the World
Islamic Service for Developing Outstanding Muslims (WISDOM) International
Islamic (Distance) Learning Program.
Sister Faatimah is a teacher at the Islamic School of Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
We, the Wisdom Enrichment Foundation (WEFOUND) management and organizers,
like to congratulate her for successfully coming up with this article. This is
one of the good deeds in Islam that continues to benefit the one who does it
even after his/her death. According to Prophet Muhammad sallallahu
alaihi wa sallam:
“When a man dies, accrual of merit in his favor from good deeds ceases except
from three actions: 1. a charity which continues after his death; 2. knowledge
left behind from which men continue to benefit; and 3. righteous offspring who
pray for him.” (Muslim)
We pray to Allah the Almighty to accept this article as a good deed and reward its Author success, especially supreme success in the Eternal World. May He also enlighten all the visitors of the Wisdom Enrichment Foundation (WEFOUND) website URL:http://www.wefound.org and the subscribers (over 1,600 subscribers) of our Wisdom Global Da’wah Email Service to learn more knowledge of Islam, according to the Qur’an and the Sunnah, and share it with others at least through writing.
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you are interested to learn how to be an effective writer and public speaker or
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