Importance Of Seeking Knowledge

[sadiav]

Please use this thread Insha Allah to post ayahs, hadith, quotes, stories etc. related to the importance of seeking knowledge in Islam, to help motivate and uplift and encourage us to seek out new paths to Jannah

May it be of benefit for us all, Ameen

[sadiav]

Hadith Qudsi 14:

On the authority of Abu Harayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace be upon him), who said:

Allah has supernumerary angels who rove about seeking out gatherings in which Allah's name is being invoked. They sit with them and fold their wings round each other, filling that which is between them and between the lowest heaven. When [the people in the gathering] depart, [the angels] ascend and rise up to heaven.

He (the Prophet p.b.u.h.) said: Then Allah asks them - [though] He is most knowing about them: "From where have you come?" And they say: "We have come from some servants of Yours on Earth, they were glorifying You (Subhana llah), exalting you (Allahu akbar), witnessing that there is no god but You (La ilaha illa llah), praising You (Al-Hamdu lillah), and asking [favours] of You."

He says: "And what do they ask of Me?" They say: "They ask of You Your Paradise." He says: "And have they seen My Paradise?" They say: "No, O Lord." He says: "And how would it be were they to have seen My Paradise!"

They say: "And they ask protection of You." He says: "From what do they ask protection of Me?" They say: "From Your Hell-fire, O Lord." He says: "And have they seen My Hell-fire?" They say: "No." He says: "And how would it be were they to have seen My Hell-fire."

They say: "And they ask for Your forgiveness." He (the Prophet p.b.u.h) said: Then He says: "I have forgiven them and I have bestowed upon them what they have asked for,and I have granted them sanctuary from that from which they asked protection."

He (the Prophet p.b.u.h) said: They say: "O Lord, among then is So-and-so, a much sinning servant, who was merely passing by and sat down with them." He (the Prophet p.b.u.h) said: And He (Allah) says: "And to him [too] I have given forgiveness: he who sits with such people shall not suffer."

It was related by Muslim (also by al-Bukhari, at-Tirmidhi, and an-Nasa'i).

[sadiav]

"Acquire knowledge because doing so is good. Seeking it is worship. Reviewing it is glorifying Allah. Researching it is jihad. Teaching it to the ignorant is charity. Serving the scholars is a way of drawing near to Allah because knwledge is the path of extension to the stations of Paradise. It is a companion in isolation and a comrade in distant lands. It speaks to you in solitude. It is a guide to prosperity and a shield against adversity. It beautifies one among friends and is a weapon against enemies. With it Allah elevates people and makes them guides and bellwethers of good.

The scholars are people whose words are sought and whose actions are imitated. The angels long for the scholars' company and comfort them with their wings. Everything, the fish of the sea, the beasts of the earth, the predators of the land and sea and cattle pray that the blessings come upon them. This is because knowledge enlivens the heart against ignorance, illuminates the eyes against darkness and strengthens the body. It transports the servant to the mansions of the select and the righteous and to the highest ranks in the world and the hereafter. Contemplating it is equivalent to fasting and reviewing it is equal to the Night Prayer vigil. With it, kinship is united and the lawful is distinguished from the unlawful.

Knowledge is an imam which leads to righteous actions. It is craved by the people destined for Paradise and shunned by the people destined for Hell."


- Mu`adh ibn Jabal, radi Allahu anhu



[reported by Abu Nu`aym]

[Nabil Q]

The Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'aleyhi wa sallam) said:
"The scholar is more superior to the devout worshipper by the same amount that I am superior to the lowest amongst you."

Then the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu 'aleyhi wa sallam) added:

"Surely, Allah, His Angels, the inhabitants of heavens and earth, and even the ant in its nest, and the whale in the sea pray for him who teaches people virtue." [Tirmidhi]

And in another narration:

"The scholar is more superior to the devout worshiper by the same amount as the full moon is superior to other planets. Scholars have not left behind Dinar or Dirham. Rather, they left behind knowledge. Thus, whoever seeks it, will have an abundant gain." [Tirmidhi]

[sadiav]

Something similar to what Br Nabeel posted:


Riyad-us-Saliheen
Book Twelve: The Book of Knowledge

Hadith Number 1388

Abud-Darda (radi Allahu anhu) reported: The Messenger of Allah (sal Allahu alayhi wa salam) said,


"He who follows a path in quest of knowledge, Allah will make the path of Jannah easy to him. The angels lower their wings over the seeker of knowledge, being pleased with what he does. The inhabitants of the heavens and the earth and even the fish in the depth of the oceans seek forgiveness for him. The superiority of the learned man over the devout worshipper is like that of the full moon to the rest of the stars (i.e., in brightness). The learned are the heirs of the Prophets who bequeath neither dinar nor dirham but only that of knowledge; and he who acquires it, has in fact acquired an abundant portion.''



[Abu Dawud and At-Tirmidhi]

[Nabil Q]

In a hadeeth which was collected by Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal in his Musnad, the Prophet (saws) was reported by Anas b. Malik (ra) to have said:

"Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim (fareedatun 'ala kulli muslim)"

Also, the hadeeth which was reported by Ad-Darimi, where the Prophet (saws) is reported to have said: "Whoever dies while seeking knowledge in order to revive Islam, will be in Paradise and nothing would be between him and the Prophets except one degree."

[sadiav]

The gatherings where God is mentioned are the gatherings of angels,
whereas those full of chatter and heedlessness are the gatherings of devils

Let the servant decide which of these [two gatherings] is more pleasing and important to him, for he will belong to it in this world and the next


- Ibn Qayyim al Jawziyya
The Invocation of God (al-Aabil al-Sayyib Min al-Kalim al-Tayyib)

[Nabil Q]

This hadeeth was one that we went through at the brothers's halaqa and its a Qudsi hadeeth, which was collected by Bukhari and Muslim:


On the authority of Abu Hurayray (May Allah be pleased with him), who said that the Prophet (sallallahu 'aleyhi wa sallam) said that Allah the Almighty says:

I am as My servant thinks I am. I am with him when he make mention of Me. If he makes mention of Me to himself, I make mention of him to Myself; and if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make mention of him in an assembly better than it. And if he draws near to Me a handspan, I draw near to him an arm's length; and if he draws near to Me an arm's length, I draw near to him a fathom's length. And if he comes to me walking, I go to him at speed.

[sadiav]

I make mention of him to Myself; and if he makes mention of Me in an assembly, I make mention of him in an assembly better than it

SubhanAllah doesnt this just positively BLOW your mind away. So beautiful!! Imagine, ALLAH SWT makes mention of YOU when YOU make mention of HIM! This hadith qudsi is so beautiful, it just makes your heart burst with love for Allah SWT

[sadiav]

Knowledge is not what is memorized
Knowledge is what benefits

- Imam Shafi