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Chapter 436 of 5614 min read
النبوة الخاتمة والشهادة
ඍ ® '-:-- ; J J.)-l ; ; ' . ., ஓ,,, / / J | .., ,,. J J ., , ,,,. ,,. ,.,, ,,,. , ,, ' / "" " ,,. ,,. ;;:; ,,.,, #;!त-}_,J I J; ' 1QUi) I ଫ!_>c_J__J େIA II Z J৷৸৹ ৶I "Indeed, there has come to you from Allah a light and a plain Book wherewith Allah guides all those who seek His Good Pleasure to ways of peace, and He brings them out of darkness by His Will unto light and guides them to the Straight Way" (al-Maaidah 15-16). I Ibid. 2 Cf., Sultaan, p. 3 1 7. 1089 - Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi Hence, the one who seeks knowledge is following the best and easiest path to Allah. Therefore, the path to Paradise will be made easy for him in both this life and the Hereafter. Actually, there is no way for a person to know what the path to Paradise is except through knowledge. What is meant here by "knowledge," again, is that knowledge which is contained in the books Allah revealed and which His messengers taught mankind. If a person is ignorant of that knowledge, he, in reality, has no knowledge of the path to Allah or the path to Paradise. The reason true knowledge should lead one to Paradise is that true knowledge increases one's knowledge of Allah. This knowledge leads to love of Allah as well as fear and hope in Allah. 1 It leads one to act in ways that are pleasing to Allah. In fact, Allah has said about the people who have that true knowledge, tj!:j:j\ o)ं l ;;1\ '• ಲ , di // •, B ৳ @ "It is only those who have knowledge among His slaves who fear Allah" (Faatir 28). The Concept of Seeking Know ledge The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, , /. C) C) ,,,., .,. ._ ,,.. ( _ 1:81L. ȱ 1.11 l:.iY . ::U1 · , . • ·' (0'· Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi narrated that hadith [directly from the Prophet] was in Egypt, so I bought a camel and traveled to Egypt. . . "1 The Companion Abu Ayyoob traveled all the way to Egypt to ask Uqba ibn Amr about one hadith. He told Uqba that only he and Uqba were left who had heard that particular hadith directly from the Prophet (peace be upon him). After hearing the hadith his business was completed in Egypt and he returned to Madinah. 2 Furthermore, the Follower Yahya ibn Abu Katheer said, "Knowledge is not acquired with laziness." (Recorded by Muslim.) Unfortunately, nowadays, too many people want knowledge to be served to them on a silver platter. They want everything according to what is convenient and easy for them. They are not very much willing to sacrifice in order to attain that knowledge. If there is going to be a lecture, it has to be at a time and place convenient for the person otherwise he will not attend. Many times, people will not even give up their time for shopping in order to benefit from a visiting speaker's lecture. If there is a book for sale on Islam, they will only buy it if it is cheap-- much cheaper than any other book that they could purchase today, either on computers, cooking or whatever. Is it any wonder, with this kind of attitude, that the number of scholars and the number of people who have a relatively deep knowledge of Islam are very few today? This knowledge is something very precious. It will lead a person to great heights in Paradise, Allah willing. Therefore, no one should expect to get it without a corresponding willingness to sacrifice and strive for it. "No people gather together in a house of the houses of Allah, reciting the Book of Allah and studying it among themselves . . . " After mentioning the importance of seeking knowledge, the Prophet (peace be upon him) mentioned one of the greatest means by which knowledge is attained: the reading and study of the Quran. This also implies that if one seriously reads and studies the Quran, the path to Paradise will be made easy for him. This hadith demonstrates the great blessings that come about through the reading and study of the Quran. Indeed, in another hadith, the Prophet (peace be upon him) stated, 1 Ibn Hajr says that this version has a good chain. See ibn Hajr, Fath al-Bari, (Dar al-Ifta), vol. l , p. 1 74. 2 Al-Khateeb al-Baghdaadi, Al-Rihlah ft Talab al-hadith (Beirut: Daar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyah, 1 975), p. 1 1 8-120. Hadith #36: "Whoever Relieves a Believer. . . " "The best of you is one who learns the Quran and teaches it." (Recorded by al al-Bukhari.) The purpose of the Quran is not simply its recitation. The purpose of reading it is to ponder over its meaning and to understand it. Allah has said, ., ,,.. .,.,., 0 J J ;:ii ;;J "" JJ ,,. ....