The Manners Of the Knowledge Seeker by Abu ‘Abdallah Muhammad Sa’id Raslan

Ibn Jama’ah said:

“From the best ways to help yourself understand the knowledge you are dealing with and to prevent boredom from it is to eat very little, and from what is halal.

ash-Shafi’i said: “For the past sixteen years, I never ate my fill.” The reason for this is that eating excessively leads to excessive drinking and sleeping, dulling of the senses, and laziness of the body. This is all in addition to the fact that doing so is disliked in the Shari’ah, and exposes the body to all types of dangerous disease, as it was said:

Indeed, most of the diseases you see * Are from eating and drinking… And none of the famous scholars or awliya’ were ever described as having eaten much, or was ever praised for doing so. Rather, excessive eating is a trait of mindless animals. A person’s intellect is the source of his deeds, and it is too noble to be hampered and wasted by such a despicable thing as excess food. If there were no downside to eating too much other than that it forces one to use the bathroom, this would’ve been enough for the intelligent one to steer clear of such a practice.

And whoever attempts to be successful in seeking knowledge while insisting upon excessive eating, drinking, and sleeping is attempting the impossible.”62

Ibn Qudamah (may Allah have Mercy on him) said:

“The desire of the stomach is the most destructive of them all, and it is what caused Adam (peace be upon him) to exit Paradise, and from the desire of the stomach comes the desire for sex and wealth. These leads to many problems, all the result of satisfying one’s appetite.

‘Uqbah ar-Rasibi said: “I entered upon al-Hasan while he was eating, and he said: “Come eat with me.” I said: “I have already eaten until I can eat no more.” He said: “Subhan Allah! Does the Muslim eat until he can eat no more?!”” Eating in moderation consists of raising one’s hands from the table while he is still a bit hungry. This strengthens the body and wards off disease, and this is because such a person does not reach for food unless he is hungry for it, and raises his hands back while he is still hungry for it. However, eating too little can also weaken you, and some people were so deficient in what they ate that this caused them to be lax in their obligations. Out of their ignorance, they thought this to be something good while this was not the case, since those who praised and encouraged hunger were referring to moderate hunger that we have described above.”63

All of this revolves around being cautious in all affairs, and cautiousness (wara’) is from the stations of the journey to Allah, the Exalted, as Ibn al-Qayyim said: “And the Prophet (peace be upon him) combined everything related to cautiousness in one phrase: “From the perfection of a man’s Islam is that he leaves that which does not concern him.”64 So, this includes not talking about, looking at, listening to, touching, walking towards, or thinking about that which doesn’t concern him, as well as involving any other outer or inner movements that are of no concern to one. So, this statement is more than enough to illustrate how to be cautious, and Ibrahim bin Adham said: “Cautiousness is to abandon anything doubtful, and to leave what does not concern you is to leave anything you don’t need.””65

And the essence of cautiousness is to leave what is doubtful, and the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) encouraged this in the narration of an-Nu’man bin Bashir: “The permissible is clear and the forbidden is clear, and between them are doubtful matters. So, whoever leaves what he suspects is sin will be farther from what actually is sin, and whoever is bold enough to fall into what he suspects is sin will fall into what actually is sin. Sins are the boundary that Allah has placed, and whoever hovers around a boundary will cross it.”66

al-Baghawi said:

“This hadith is an essential one when it comes to cautiousness. It says that if someone is confused as to the permissibility or prohibition of a matter and has nothing to refer to, the cautious one is he who abandons it, because if he doesn’t abandon it, proceeds with it, and makes it a habit, it will drag him into what is prohibited.

Most doubtful matters can be divided into two types. The first type is that which has no reference for which one reach a ruling of halal or haram, and such a case warrants that the person leave off that action. As for the second type, this is where there is a reference and clear basis for declaring that matter either halal or haram. In this case, one should stick to what is established, and should not digress from the basic ruling except with certain knowledge. For example, if a man purifies himself for the prayer and then has doubt as to whether or not he nullified his ablution, he is to pray so long as he isn’t certain that he nullified his ablution. Also, if one finds some water in the desert that he is not sure is pure, he should stick to the basic principle of water being pure, hold firm to this, and not fall for the devilish whisperings.”67

Ibn Hajar (may Allah have Mercy on him) said:

“”The permissible is clear, and the forbidden is clear” shows that the rulings are divided into three categories, because each matter either has a clear text showing its virtue and a warning from abandoning it, a clear text showing its harm and a warning from falling into it, or no clear text indicating either of the two. So, the first is what is clearly halal, and the second is what is clearly haram. When he (peace be upon him) said that “the permissible is clear,” he meant that it does not need any additional clarification, and that it is something known to all. As for the third, it is what is ambiguous and unclear to the one who fears it, such that he doesn’t know if it is halal or haram. In this case, the person should avoid this action, because if it actually is haram, he has taken the safe route, and it is actually halal, he is rewarded for abandoning it with this intention.”68

“So, the seeker of knowledge should be cautious in all aspects of his life, and should be particular about his food, drink, clothing, and housing being permissible in all aspects. He should apply this concept to everything that he and his family need in life, so that he can fill his heart with light and condition himself for soaking up the light of knowledge and benefiting from it.

He should not automatically lean towards something being permissible so long as he can exercise caution and does not need that thing. He should also not indulge in the permissible things. Rather, he should always seek to be at a higher level and follow in the footsteps of the righteous scholars of the past, who used to exercise great caution even in those things they judged to be permissible. The one he should most strive to imitate and follow is our Prophet Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), who would not even eat a date that he found on the road out of fear that it was from charity, even though it was quite improbable that it was. The people of knowledge should be followed and imitated, and if they don’t exercise caution, who will?”69

Anas (may Allah be Pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) came across a date that had fallen from a tree, and said: “Were it not for the fact that it could be charity, I would’ve eaten it,”70 and Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be Pleased with him)

narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “Verily, I turn to my family and find a date fallen on my bed. I raise it to my mouth to eat it, and then fear that it might be charity. So, I put it down.”71 Ibn Hajar said: “Here, the Prophet (peace be upon him) specifically mentioned that he found it on his bed. With this, he refused to eat it out of caution,”72 and an-Nawawi said: “This hadith contains an example of caution, as this date was not forbidden by mere suspicion that it was from the charity. Rather, it was left out of caution.”73

- Remembrance of Allah - And the most important thing that the student of knowledge should be particular about is to remember Allah in all situations, as remembrance of Him is the greatest door and best path to what one seeks. Whoever turns from it has indeed been prevented from all good, and has deviated from the correct path. Whoever is guided to it has been truly been guided, and has been led by the best leader and guide.

Ibn al-Qayyim said:

“Rushing towards Allah and depending on Him, being pleased with Him, filling the heart with love of Him, constantly remembering Him, feeling happiness and joy with knowing Him – all of these are instantaneous rewards, a paradise of this world, and a life that the lives of kings cannot even compare to. I heard Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have Mercy on him) say: “Indeed, there is a paradise in this world. Whoever doesn’t enter it will not enter the Paradise of the Hereafter.” And he once said to me: “What can my enemies do to me? My paradise and garden are in my chest, and they are with me wherever I go. My imprisonment is my privacy with Allah, my killing is martyrdom, and my expulsion from my homeland is tourism.” And Allah Knows that I never saw anyone with a purer life than him despite what he was experiencing of hardship and lack of relaxation and rest, and despite his imprisonment and fear of being killed. With all of this, he lived the purest life, had the strongest and most open heart, was happiest in spirit, and had a face that emanated the brightness of delight.

When we were frightened, had desperate thoughts, and felt as if the world was choking us, we would rush to him. Simply by seeing him and hearing his words, this would all turn into relaxation, certainty, and assurance. So, glory to the One who allowed His slaves to witness His Paradise before meeting Him and opened for them its doors in this life, giving them from its taste and sweet breeze that they have been dedicating their strength to seeking and competing for.

And some of the people of knowledge would say: “If the kings and their sons knew what we were experiencing, they would have fought us with swords over it.” Another said: “The people of this world are deprived. They left this world without tasting the sweetest thing in it!” It was asked of him: “And what is that?” He said: “Love of Allah, knowing Him, and remembering Him.” So, love, knowledge, and constant remembrance (dhikr) of Allah, leaning to Him, feeling tranquil with Him, singling Him out for love, fear, hope, dependence, and attention – such that He alone is the main concern and preoccupation of the slave and his goals – is the paradise and delight of this world that no other delight can compare to, and it is the coolness of the eyes of those who love Allah, and true life for those who know Him.”74

Ibn al-Qayyim continued:

“And I was with Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah once when he prayed Fajr. He sat afterwards remembering Allah until midday, and turned to me, saying: “This is my nourishment. If I do not receive this nourishment, I will have no energy,” or something to this effect. And he said to me once: “I never leave off making dhikr except with the intention of saving up my energy to rest myself in order to prepare for more dhikr,” or something close to this in meaning.”75

“And there is no doubt that the heart becomes rusted just like copper, silver, etc. do, and it is polished with dhikr, as dhikr will clean it until it is left as shiny as a mirror. If it is left, it once again becomes rusty, and if you remember Allah, it is once again polished.

And the heart becomes rusted because of two things: heedlessness and sin, and it becomes polished with two things: repentance and dhikr. So, whoever is heedless more often will have more rust on his heart, and the amount of rust will be in accordance with how heedless he is.

If the heart becomes rusted, its owner will not be able to see things for what they are. So, he will see falsehood as truth and truth as falsehood, because when the rust builds up, it causes a fog that prevents him from seeing things as they are. So, if the rust builds up and blackens the heart, his understanding and comprehension become ruined, he will not accept the truth as truth, and will not reject falsehood as falsehood. This is the greatest form of punishment that can afflict the heart.

This all stems from heedlessness and the following of one’s desires, as they put out the light of the heart and blind it:

{“…and do not obey he whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance and who follows his own lusts, and whose affair has been lost.”}76

So, if the servant of Allah wants to imitate someone, let him see: is he from those who remember Allah, or is he from the heedless? Is he led by his desires, or by the Revelation?

So, if he is led by his desires and is from the heedless, his affair is lost. The word has been explained to mean lost, in that what he should be doing, and what will lead to his guidance and success, is lost. It has also been explained to mean wasted, in that he has wasted what he has. It has also been explained to mean destruction, and has been explained to mean opposition to the truth. All of these are similar in meaning, and the point is that Allah forbade us from obeying those who have these traits. So, a man should look to his teacher and example and leader - if he finds these traits in him, he should avoid him. If he finds one who is usually remembering Allah, following the Sunnah, and his affair is not lost – rather, he is doing his job – he should hold tightly to that person. The only difference between the living and the dead is in regards to the remembrance of Allah, because the difference between the one who remembers his Lord and the one who doesn’t is like the difference between the living and the dead.”77

And Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah have Mercy on him) said:

“Sometimes, I would come across a hundred different explanations for a single verse, and I would ask Allah to allow me to understand them. I would say: ‘O Teacher of Adam and Ibrahim, teach me!’ I would go to an abandoned mosque, rub my face in the dirt, and ask Allah, saying: ‘O Teacher of Ibrahim, teach me.’”78

Abu Musa al-Ash’ari (may Allah be Pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “The likeness of the one who remembers his Lord and the one who doesn’t is like that of the living and the dead,”79 and this is al-Bukhari’s version. Muslim’s wording is: “The likeness of the house in which Allah is remembered and that in which He is not remembered is like that of the living and the dead.”80

ash-Shawkani (may Allah have Mercy on him) said:

“And this parable shows the lofty beauty and noble virtue of the one who remembers Allah, and it shows the life that is granted to him and his soul as the result of the light he is surrounded with and the reward that he is granted. Likewise, it shows that the one who abandons the remembrance of Allah – even if he is literally alive – is not considered to be alive. Rather, he is likened to the dead, who do not contain any of what the living who are busy obeying Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, contain. And what is in this hadith is also in the verse: {“Is he who was dead, and We gave him life…”}81

This means that the disbeliever is likened to the dead, and guidance to Islam is likened to life.”82

And al-Bukhari titled one of his chapters ‘Chapter: the Virtue of Remembering Allah.’ In it, he included the aforementioned hadith of Abu Musa, as well as this hadith of Abu Hurayrah, in which the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said:

“Allah has Angels who roam the roads, seeking out those who remember Him. So, if they find those who remember Allah, they call out: ‘Come see what you’re looking for!’ and the Angels encircle them with their wings up to the sky.

Then, their Lord asks them - though He Knows better than them – ‘What do My slaves say?' The Angels reply: ‘They say: subhan Allah, Allahu Akbar, and al-hamdu lil-Lah.’ Allah then Says: ‘Did they see Me?' ’ The Angels reply: ‘No! By Allah, they didn't see You.’ Allah Says: ‘How it would have been if they saw Me?’ The Angels reply: ‘If they saw You, they would worship You more devoutly and praise You more, and declare Your freedom from any resemblance to anything more often.’ Allah will Say: ‘What do they ask Me for?’ The Angels reply: ‘They ask You for Paradise.’ Allah Says: ‘Did they see it?’ The Angels say: ‘No! By Allah, O Lord! They did not see it.’ Allah Says: ‘How it would have been if they saw it?’ The Angels say: ‘If they saw it, they would have greater desire for it, and would seek it with greater zeal.’ Allah Says: ‘From what do they seek refuge?’ The Angels reply: 'They seek refuge from the Fire.’ Allah Says: ‘Did they see it?’ The Angels say: ‘No, by Allah, O Lord! They did not see it.’ Allah Says: ‘How it would have been if they saw it?’ The Angels say: ‘If they saw it, they would flee from it swiftly, and would have extreme fear of it.’ Then, Allah says: ‘I make you witnesses that I have Forgiven them.’ One of the Angels would then say: ‘There was such and such a person amongst them, and he was not one of them. Rather, he had just come for some need of his.’ Allah would then Say: ‘These are people whose companions will not be saddened.’”83

al-Hafidh Ibn Hajar (may Allah have Mercy on him) said:

“What is meant by remembrance here is that one pronounces the words that are encouraged to be said, and does this constantly, such as saying subhan Allah (glory be to Allah), al-hamdu lil-Lah (praise be to Allah), la ilah illa Allah (there is none worthy of worship except Allah), Allahu Akbar (Allah is the Greatest), la hawla wa la quwwata illa bil-Lah (there is no might nor power except with Allah), bismil-Lah (in the Name of Allah), hasbuna Allah wa ni’m al-Wakil (Allah is sufficient for us, and He is the best Disposer of our affairs), as well as seeking Allah’s Forgiveness, and supplicating for the good of this world and the next.

The remembrance of Allah also includes doing that which Allah has obligated or encouraged, such as recitation of the Qur’an, reading Hadith, studying knowledge, praying optional prayers, etc. And dhikr sometimes occurs with the tongue, and the person gets rewarded for it without even having to know the meaning of what he is saying. Rather, he must not mean other than what it means, and if he adds to this pronouncement the presence of his heart, this is better. If he then adds to this the understanding of what this dhikr means - what it contains of the glorification of Allah and denying any shortcomings in Him - this is even better. If he does this during any righteous action – whether it is prayer, Jihad, etc. – it only increases in virtue. If he turns completely towards Allah and is sincere to Him in doing this, this is best and most complete.”84

In regards to the hadith reported by Muslim: “The likeness of the house in which Allah is remembered and that in which He is not remembered is like that of the living and the dead,” Ibn Hajar said: “What is described as being truly alive or dead is the inhabitant, not the house, and what is intended by describing the house as alive or dead is that its inhabitant is alive or dead. So, he (peace be upon him) likened the person who remembers Allah – who is outwardly beautified with the light of life, and inwardly beautified with the light of knowledge – with one who is alive, and he likened the one who doesn’t remember Allah with the house that is outwardly and inwardly ruined. It was also said that the likeness to the living and dead was because of how the living person can help his allies and harm his enemies, while the dead cannot.”85

So, those who should hold firmest to the handhold of dhikr are the people of knowledge and those who seek it. They are the ones who traverse swiftly and are rightly guided by it to the destination they seek, and with anything else, their feet would become sluggish, their hearts would become rusted, and they would become lost, as it was said:

If we become sick, we treat ourselves with Your remembrance * And when we leave this remembrance for a bit, we become depressed…