1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,500 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 2 00:00:03,500 --> 00:00:10,000 “Is he who payeth adoration in the watches of the night, prostrate and standing, bewaring of the Hereafter and hoping for the mercy of his Lord, (to be accounted equal with a disbeliever)? Say (unto them, O Muhammad): Are those who know equal with those who know not? But only men of understanding will pay heed.” (39:9) 3 00:00:10,699 --> 00:00:16,699 The Splendor of Knowledge according to the Sages. 4 00:00:16,699 --> 00:00:21,699 By Dr. Hamzah Ibn Fayi' Al Fathi. 5 00:00:21,699 --> 00:00:25,820 May Allah preserve him. 6 00:00:25,820 --> 00:00:28,820 A Summary of the Nobility of Knowledge. 7 00:00:28,820 --> 00:00:35,179 The scholar Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, said: 8 00:00:35,179 --> 00:00:40,179 He who passed away in the year 751 AH. 9 00:00:40,179 --> 00:00:42,429 If there were no other merit to knowledge 10 00:00:42,429 --> 00:00:45,429 save for drawing near to the Lord of the Worlds, 11 00:00:45,429 --> 00:00:48,429 joining the realm of the angels, 12 00:00:48,429 --> 00:00:50,429 and keeping company with the Highest Assembly, 13 00:00:50,429 --> 00:00:53,429 that would be sufficient honor and virtue. 14 00:00:53,429 --> 00:00:57,429 How much more so, when the glory of this world and the Hereafter is contingent upon it, 15 00:00:57,429 --> 00:00:59,429 and conditional upon its attainment. 16 00:00:59,429 --> 00:01:03,869 If we were to summarize the nobility of knowledge, 17 00:01:03,869 --> 00:01:06,870 it would be as Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, stated: 18 00:01:06,870 --> 00:01:08,870 It is nearness to Allah, 19 00:01:08,870 --> 00:01:11,870 joining the realm of the angels, 20 00:01:11,870 --> 00:01:13,870 and keeping company with the Highest Assembly, 21 00:01:13,870 --> 00:01:15,870 where there is beautiful praise, 22 00:01:15,870 --> 00:01:17,870 a good reputation, 23 00:01:17,870 --> 00:01:19,939 and a great reward. 24 00:01:19,939 --> 00:01:22,939 For this reason, the scholars are the allies of Allah, 25 00:01:22,939 --> 00:01:24,939 and the inheritors of the prophets, 26 00:01:24,939 --> 00:01:30,450 who understand His law and convey His message. 27 00:01:30,450 --> 00:01:32,450 As for their nearness to Allah, 28 00:01:32,450 --> 00:01:34,450 it is caused by their vast knowledge, 29 00:01:34,450 --> 00:01:36,450 and their profound fiqh, 30 00:01:36,450 --> 00:01:39,450 which brings them close to their Creator, 31 00:01:39,450 --> 00:01:41,450 and makes them aware of the path to Him. 32 00:01:41,450 --> 00:01:46,450 They recognize truths of faith and wonders of certainty 33 00:01:46,450 --> 00:01:48,450 that others do not know. 34 00:01:48,450 --> 00:01:53,450 This has made them the people who fear Allah the Exalted most. 35 00:01:53,450 --> 00:01:56,799 Likewise, their companionship with the angels, 36 00:01:56,799 --> 00:01:59,799 in that they watch over them and attend their gatherings, 37 00:01:59,799 --> 00:02:01,799 for teaching and conveying, 38 00:02:01,799 --> 00:02:04,799 protecting them by the help and preservation of Allah, 39 00:02:04,799 --> 00:02:07,799 and praising them in the Highest Assembly. 40 00:02:07,799 --> 00:02:09,800 This motivates the wise 41 00:02:09,800 --> 00:02:12,800 to seize it and hasten toward it, 42 00:02:12,800 --> 00:02:14,800 so that opportunities do not pass them by, 43 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:16,800 or windows of opportunity vanish. 44 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:19,310 It is a motivating honor, 45 00:02:19,310 --> 00:02:21,310 and a dazzling glory, 46 00:02:21,310 --> 00:02:24,310 that calls upon everyone with intellect and ambition. 47 00:02:24,310 --> 00:02:25,310 Furthermore, 48 00:02:25,310 --> 00:02:29,310 the honor of this world and the Hereafter is contingent upon it. 49 00:02:29,310 --> 00:02:31,310 For Allah has raised its status, 50 00:02:31,310 --> 00:02:33,310 exalted the word of its people, 51 00:02:33,310 --> 00:02:35,310 preserved their standing, 52 00:02:35,310 --> 00:02:38,310 and caused the great to look toward them. 53 00:02:38,310 --> 00:02:40,310 The wealthy have vied with them, 54 00:02:40,310 --> 00:02:42,310 and have felt constrained by them, 55 00:02:42,310 --> 00:02:46,310 because they observe in them a glory that cannot be bought, 56 00:02:46,310 --> 00:02:48,310 an acceptance that cannot be matched, 57 00:02:48,310 --> 00:02:51,310 and a strength that can hardly be breached, 58 00:02:51,310 --> 00:02:53,310 in those among them who are sincere. 59 00:02:53,310 --> 00:02:55,310 For whoever lives for knowledge with sincerity, 60 00:02:55,310 --> 00:02:57,310 and remains detached from the world, 61 00:02:57,310 --> 00:02:59,310 Allah will raise him, 62 00:02:59,310 --> 00:03:00,310 just as he said: 63 00:03:00,310 --> 00:03:03,310 “O ye who believe! when it is said unto you, Make room! in assemblies, then make room; Allah will make way for you (hereafter). And when it is said, Come up higher! go up higher; Allah will exalt those who believe among you, and those who have knowledge, to high ranks. Allah is Informed of what ye do.” (58:11) 64 00:03:03,310 --> 00:03:06,310 “O ye who believe! when it is said unto you, Make room! in assemblies, then make room; Allah will make way for you (hereafter). And when it is said, Come up higher! go up higher; Allah will exalt those who believe among you, and those who have knowledge, to high ranks. Allah is Informed of what ye do.” (58:11)