By Muhammad Ali Al-Hashimi
“Seeking knowledge is a duty on every Muslim.” — Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)
A Muslim believes that exercising his mind and seeking knowledge and discovering the signs of Allah in the universe is an obligation, because of the above saying of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) which was related by Al Bukhari. Therefore, a Muslim must continue to pursue knowledge, as long as the breath of life remains in his body.
Virtues of Seeking Knowledge
The fact that Allah has raised the status of those who have knowledge, and described them alone as truly fearing Him, should be enough to encourage the Muslim to apply himself or herself to seeking knowledge. For He said: Those of His servants only who are possessed of knowledge fear Allah.
(Fatir 35:28)
No one truly fears Allah except those whose minds are enlightened enough to see the greatness and power of Allah manifested in the creation of the universe and all living things, and these are the people of knowledge. So He has preferred them over those who have no knowledge. Almighty Allah says: Say: Are those who know and those who do not know alike? Only the men of understanding are mindful. (Az-Zumar 39:9)
Once, Safwan ibn Assal Al Muradi came to the Prophet in the mosque and said, “O Messenger of Allah, I have come seeking knowledge.” The Prophet (PBUH) told him,
“Welcome, O seeker of knowledge! Truly the angels surround the seeker of knowledge with their wings, gathering around him in ranks one above the other, until they reach the first heaven, out of love for that which he seeks.”
(authenticated by Al-Albani)
The texts that extol the virtue of knowledge and exhort its pursuit are many; therefore, the true Muslim is either a scholar or a seeker of knowledge, and cannot be anything else.
Continuous Seeking of Knowledge Until Death
True knowledge does not mean obtaining a degree or diploma that will let one earn an income and guarantee a good standard of living, after which one turns away from learning and does not explore the treasure of knowledge any further. True learning means that one continues to read and study, increasing one’s knowledge day by day, in accordance with the words of the Quran:
But say, “O my Lord! Advance me in knowledge.” (Ta-Ha 20:114)
Our righteous predecessors never stopped seeking to increase their knowledge, no matter how high a level of learning they had achieved, and they would continue their pursuit until the end of their lives. They believed that knowledge was a living thing that would thrive if it were actively pursued, but would wither and perish if it were ignored and abandoned. Many sayings are attributed to those righteous predecessors that eloquently express their respect for learning and their keenness to acquire knowledge. Examples of their sayings are given below.
Imam Ibn Abd Al Barr reported that Ibn Abi Ghassan said, “So long as you are seeking knowledge you are knowledgeable, but as soon as you abandon this pursuit you become ignorant.”
Imam Malik said, “No one who has knowledge should stop seeking knowledge.”
Imam Abdullah ibn Al Mubarak was asked, “How long will you seek knowledge?” He said, “Until I die, for probably I have not yet learnt the things that will benefit me most.”
Imam Abu Amr ibn Al Alaa’ was asked, “For how long does it befit a man to seek knowledge?” He said, “For as long as he has life in him.”
Imam Sufyan ibn Uyaynah gave an excellent answer when he was asked “Who is most in need of seeking knowledge?” He said, “Those who have the most knowledge.” He was asked, “Why?” and he replied, “Because if they make a mistake, it is worse.”
www.onislam.net
