The Connection between Abstinence and Knowledge Counter intuitively, instead of pursuing material gain, the best teachers of deen practice zuhud; abstaining from the quest for the perks of worldly life and possessing little of its luxuries. Ibn Abi’d-Dunya was told by some scholars: ‘The scholar should praise Allah for having deprived him of the luxuries…
What Qualities a Teacher of Deen Should Have The observation of Allah Almighty, in the life of a teacher, is perhaps the single most important aspect a teacher should have; the others are secondary features that fall into place when the first is present. As the teacher is acting as a representative of Allah and…
How to Keep Knowledge Safe Moving Away from Student Mentality We all know that from experience that sitting in a classroom as a student is not the same as being in the class as the teacher. The difference is in the preparation. If you were the teacher, you would have prepared the subject matter, what topics…
How Do You Know When You Have Enough Knowledge to Teach? The Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) said: ‘Allah illuminates (or make radiant the face of) a man (or a woman) who hears a hadith from me, preserves it carefully, and passes it on onto others.’ What You Need before You Spread Knowledge…
Inheriting a Lasting Legacy Allah Almighty chooses individuals amongst humanity to lead people to Him. These Messengers are receiving divine revelation from Allah Almighty. It is neither their wealth or possession but rather their knowledge and their responsibility that separates them from the rest of humanity. The Messenger of Allah (peace be on him)…
Road to Paradise The Messenger of Allah Almighty (peace be on him) said: ‘Whosoever travels upon a path, seeking knowledge thereupon, Allah Almighty will ease for him a path to Paradise’ [Muslim] The Physical Road Travelled The ‘travels upon a path’ could be taken literally as one’s physical journey to seek knowledge. Allah Almighty narrates…
What gives scholars superiority over others? The Lofty Task of Transmitting Knowledge The blessing of knowledge is essential for the advancement of humanity and its happiness in this life and the next, for knowledge is a lofty blessing whichever form it takes; seeking it is a blessing, benefiting from it and benefiting others by it…
Does Allah really suffice People of Knowledge? ‘Whosoever acquires an understanding of the religion of Allah, Allah suffice him in his, matters of concerns and provides him sustenance from source which he could not expect.’ (Abu Hanifah heard Abdullah Ibn Jaz’ relate what the Prophet (peace be on him) said in Makkah) Allah Almighty…
The Greatest Gift is to understand the Deen The Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) mentioned one of the greatest virtues of knowledge as recorded by Imam Bukhari, he said: ‘Whomsoever Allah wishes good for, He gives him understanding in Deen (religion)’ [Bukhari] The person who finds Deen understands the basic principles of this…
How can you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him? Love As we cannot physical see Allah Almighty we can feel His presence strongly in the heart. The realisation of Allah’s presence, by His knowledge and mercy, is so great that the person feels he is witnessing Allah Almighty in front of him. The…
Attaining excellence with the right foundation From the hadith Jibreel found in the collection of Imam Bukhari, we can ascertain the basics of our religion. The religion of Islam in a simplistic view can be separated into three categories. Firstly, Imaan – the belief in Allah, His Angels, His divine books, His Prophet’s (peace be…
Levels of Knowledge True knowledge leads to insight which in turn raises our rank in the eyes of Allah and confers a level of responsibility and leadership. Not everyone, however, who acquires knowledge attains this level. A closer examination reveals what differentiates the ranks of those who seek knowledge. Above every possessor of knowledge there…
Should we seek any knowledge? What are the signs of beneficial knowledge? When we say ‘My Lord, increase me in knowledge’ we are not specifying the type of knowledge we want Allah to grant us, as Allah did not want to restrict the knowledge to any particular science but rather left it open to include…
The connection between knowledge and spirituality How does knowledge lead to illumination? Why knowledge is a lifelong quest. Why we need knowledge more than food and water And say (Muhammad): ‘My Lord! Increase me in knowledge.’ [Taha: 20:114] The more we know the more we feel closer to Allah. And for this reason, the…
Why is it necessary to seek knowledge? What do we gain from it? There are many hadiths showing the virtues and merits of knowledge. In the following hadith reported by Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) said: ‘Whoever follows a path searching for knowledge,…