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20 of  40 Hadith On The Superiority Of Knowledge, Learning, And Teaching
Selected and Rendered into English by Ssad Nimer Assad Nimer Busool, PH.D.

HADITH 1
Seeking ‘Ilm (Knowledge)

The Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Seeking ‘Ilm (knowledge) is incumbant on every Muslim.”

(Ibn Hahar Al-‘Asqalani, Al-Matalib al ‘Aliyah)


Ibn Majah reported this Hadith as follows: Anas Ibn Maalik reported, the
Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Seeking knowledge is incumbent on every Muslim; he who offers knowledge to
those who do not appreciate it, is like the one who decorates pigs with
precious stones, pearls and gold”

HADITH 2
The Best People

Jabir Ibn ‘Abd Allah narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“People are of different substances, the best of them in the Jahiliyah (A
state of ignorance), are the best in Islam, if they gain ‘ilm (knowledge).”

(Ahmad Ibn Hanbal)

Ibn Hibban reported on the authority of Abu Hurairah:

“People are of different substances in good and in evil, the best of them in
the Jahiliyah are the best in Islam, if they gain knowledge.”

Muslim reported it on the authority of Abu Hurairah, as follows:

“People are of substances like the substance of gold and silver: the best
among them in the Jahiliyah , are the the best in Islam, if they gain
knowledge, and the souls are hosts which are sent around, the similar ones
get acquainted, and from the different ones depart from each other.”

(Muslim; An-Nawawi, Riyah As-Salihin)

Al-Bukhari reported on the authority of Ayesha (RA) a part of this hadeeth
which begins with: “The souls…” only.

HADITH 3
The Virtue of ‘Ilm

Hudhaifah Ibn al-Yaman (RA) narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“The excess of ‘Ilm is better than the excess of ‘Ibadah (worship), and the
best of your religion is the wara’ (piety, self restrain).”

(At-Tabarani, Al-Awsat; Al-Bazzar)

HADITH 4
The Meadows of Paradise

Ibn ‘Abbas reported, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said [to a group of
companions]:

“When you pass by the meadows of Paradise indulge freely in it! They said: O Messenger of Allah! What are the meadows of Paradise? He said: The circles
of ‘Ilm.”

(At-Tabarani, Al-Mu’jam Al-Kabir)

HADITH 5
Seeking ‘Ilm

Abu Bakrah reported, I heard the Prophet (SAAW) saying:

“You should be a scholar, or a student, or a listener, or a lover of ‘Ilm
and scholars, and you should not be the fifth which makes you perish.
‘Ata’ said, Mis’ar said to me: You added a fifth point which we do not have.
The fifth point is: To hate ‘Ilm and its people.”

(At-Tabarani; Al-Bazzar)

HADITH 6
The Defenders of Hadith

Abu Hurairah narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“The most honest men of future generations will carry this ‘Ilm (i.e.
Hadith), they will purify it from the falsification of the extremists, and
the assumptions of the liars, and the misinterpretation of the fools.”

(Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi, Sharaf As/hab Al-Hadith; At-Tabrizi, Mishkat
Al-Masabih)

HADITH 7
Education

Ibn ‘Abbas narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Teach! Make things easy! And do not make things complicated!
He (SAAW) repeated this three times and then he added:
And if you get angry, keep quiet!”

(Ibn Hajar Al-‘Asqalani, Al-Matalib Al-‘Aliyah; At-Tayalisi; Ibn Hanbal; Ibn
Abi Shaibah)

Al-Bukhari narrated it on the authority of Anas, as follows:

“Make things easy! And do not make them complicated! Be cheerful! And do not
be repulsive.”

Ahmad Ibn Hanbal narrated it as follows:

“Teach and give good tidings! Make things easy, and do not make them hard!”

HADITH 8
Reporting Hadith

‘Abd Allah Ibn Mas’ud narrated, the Messanger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“May Allah brighten [the face of] a person who hears a hadith from us, and
reports it as he heard it, because many people which the hadith is reported
to, perceive it better than the one who reported it to them.”

(Ibn Hibban, Sahih)

HADITH 9
Envy

‘Abd Allah Ibn Mas’ud (SAAW) said, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Let there be no envy, except in two things:
1-    A man whom Allah gave a wealth and guided him to spend it in righteous  way.
2-  Or a man to whom Allah gave wisdom and he acts wisely and teaches it to others.”

(Al-Bukhari and Muslim; See An-Nawawi, Riyad As-Salihin)

HADITH 10
The Purpose of Acquiring Knowledge

Jabir Ibn ‘Abd Allah narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Do not acquire knowledge in order to vie with scholars, and to wrangle with the foolish, and to sit in the best seats: whoever does that his abode will be the Fire, the Fire.”

(Ibn Hibban, Sahih)

HADITH 11
Beneficial Knowledge

Jabir Ibn ‘Abd Allah narrated, I heard the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) saying:

“My Lord! I ask You for beneficial knowledge, and I seek refuge with You
from non-beneficial knowledge.”

(Ibn Hibban, Sahih)

HADITH 12
Learning Quran and Religion

Abu Dharr narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said to me:

“O Abu Dharr! If you learn one verse from The Book of Allah (The Quran), it
is better for you than to voluntarily pray one hundred rak’as (units of
prayer), and if you learn a category of knowledge (religion), regardless if
it is applied or not, it is better for you than to voluntarily pray one
thousand rak’as.”

(Ibn Majah, Sunan; Ibn Hajar Al-‘Asqalani, Mukhtasar At-Targhib wa-t-Tarhib;
Al-Ghazali, Ihya’ ‘Ulum Ad-Deen)

HADITH 13
Allah’s Path

Anas (RA) said: the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“He who leaves his home in order to seek knowledge, he is in Allah’s path
until he returns [to his home].”

(At-Tirmidhi, Sunan, An-Nawawi, Riyad As-Salahin)

Hadith 14
A Path to Paradise

Ibn ‘Abbas narrated, the Messanger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Any person who goes along a course seeking knowledge, Allah will make for him the path to Paradise easy because of it. And he who is slow-paced in doing good deeds, his noble lineage will not give him priority [into
Paradise].”

(Muslim, Sahih; Ad-Darimi, Sunan; An-Nawawi, Riyad As-Salihin)

Hadith 15
Mujahid

Abu Hurairah said: I heard the Messanger of Allah (SAAW) saying:

“Anyone who comes to this mosque of ours in order to learn a good thing, or to teach it, is equal to the Mujahid in the path of Allah, and whoever comes for anything else, he is like a man who looks at other people’s belongings.”

(Ibn Majah, Sunan; Ibn Hajar Al-Haithami, Mawarid Az-Zam’an)

Hadith 16
The Angels Love For Knowledge Seekers

Safwan Ibn ‘Assal said: I came to the Prophet (SAAW) while he was reclining
on a red coat [in the mosque] and I said to him:

“O’ Messenger of Allah! I came to seek knowledge.
He said: Welcome knowledge seeker!
Indeed, the angles surround the knowledge seeker with their wings, then they pile on top of each other until they reach the lower heaven out of their love of what he is seeking.”

(Ahmad Ibn Hanbal; At-Tabarani; Ibn Hajar Al-‘Asqalani, Mukhtasar
At-Targhib; Ibn Hajar Al-‘Asqalani, Al-Isabah fi Tamyziz As-Sahabah, article
“Safwan Ibn ‘Assal”)

Hadith 17
The Prophet’s Care for Students

Whenever Abu d-Darda’ saw the students, he used to say:

“Greetings to the seekers of knowledge.”

And he said: “The Messenger of Alalh (SAAW) urged people to take good care
of you” (Ad-Darimi, Sunan) It has been narrated, that Abu Harun Al-‘Abdi and
Shahr Ibn Hawshab said: Whenever we visited Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri, he used to
say to us:

“Greetings to the recommedation of the Messenger of Allah!”

The Messanger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“You will conquer land, and some people”

Or he said:

“Young men will come to you seeking knowledge, and comprehending religion, and learning from you: if they come to you teach them, and be kind to them, and make space for them in your circles, an explain Hadith to them.”

Therefore, Abu Sa’id used to say to us: “Greetings to the Messenger of
Allah’s recommendation, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) ordered us to make a space for you in our circles, and explain Hadith to you.”
(Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr, Jami’)

Hadith 18
Honoring Scholars

‘Abadah Ibn As-Samit narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“He who does not respect our elders, and does not have mercy on our children, and does not honor our scholars, is not of my Ummah.”

(Ahmad Ibn Hanbal; At-Tabarani; Al-Hakim; Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani, Mukhtasar
At-Targhib; Ibn ‘Abd Al-Barr, Jami’ Bayan Al-‘Ilm)

Hadith 19
The Reward for Calling for Guidance

Abu Hurairah (RA) narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Anyone who calls [people] to a right guidance, he will be rewarded like the
reward of all those who followed him, without depriving them anything from their reward.* And anyone who calls [people] to an error, he will get of the sin, like the sins of those who followed him without decreasing anything of their sins.”

(Ibn Hibban, Sahih)

* Up to this point is the version which Muslim reported in his Sahih.

Hadith 20
Learning

Abu Hurairah (RA) narrated, the Messenger of Allah (SAAW) said:

“Indeed! Acquiring knowledge is done through learning.
Indeed! Acquiring knowledge is done through learning.
And anyone who cares about good, it will be to him, and anyone who protects himself from evil, he will be saved from it.”

(Ad-Daraqutni, in Al-Ifrad; Al-Khatib)

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