Selecting a science.
A student should learn the best of all sciences and at that time it should be most required in Islamic matters. Then he should learn
that which is next most important; therefore a student should give preference to ‘Ilm-ut-Tawḥīd and Ma’rifaĥ of Allah(Azawajalla) .One should recognize Allah(azawajalla) with evidence, as although the believer’s faith is honourable to us, yet it is necessary for him to recognize Allah(azawajalla)with evidences, or else he will be a sinner. A person should adopt old traditions and refrain from new ones as the scholars have stated:
which there is a difference of opinion and which arose after the demise
of the great scholars, as this will lead the person to be far from Fiqĥ(jurisprudence). This will lead to him wasting his entire life along
with creating hatred and enmity which is from the signs of the Judgement Day. Because of this type of dispute, knowledge and jurisprudence (‘Ilm and Fiqĥ) will be raised as has been narrated in the Ḥadīš.1
Selecting a teacher
A student should choose the most pious and elderly person to be his teacher as Imām-e-A’ẓam Abū Ḥanīfaĥ selectedۡ Hammad Bin Sulaymān after a lot of contemplation. Sayyidunā Imām-e-A’ẓam Abū Ḥanīfaĥ (Rahmatulahi ala) stated in regard to his teacher:
heard a physician of Samarqand saying, “A student who intended to go to Bukhārā so that he could acquire knowledge sought my advice
in this regard.”
O beloved student! Just as that student sought advice, in the same
manner, it is important for all students to seek advice on all matters.
Allah ordained our Beloved Prophet(p.b.u.h)to take advice on all matters. Even though no one is more intelligent than
the Holy Prophet(p.b.u.h), yet he was ordained to take advice.
The Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h)would take advice of the companions on all matters even on domestic matters.
Sayyidunā ‘Alī said, “No person was destroyed as a result of seeking advice.”
It is said that there are three types of humans – complete, half and incomplete. The complete human is he who is opinionated and seeks
advice from others. The half human is he who is opinionated but does not seek advice. And the incomplete human is he who is not
opinionated nor does he seek advice.
Imām Ja’far Ṣādiq once said to Sayyidunā Sufyān Šauri that one should seek advice on matters from such people
who fear Allah(azawajalla) .
O beloved student! Seeking knowledge is more virtuous and greater than any other task; therefore, seeking advice in this regard is
extremely important. The intelligent physician whilst advising the same student said, “When you go to Bukhara, do not hasten in going
to and coming from Imāms, but you should rather spend approximately two months assessing the situation and then choose your teacher because if you begin to learn from a teacher without assessing the situation beforehand, then it is possible that after a while you no longer admire his manner of teaching and due to that, you leave
him and go to another teacher which will lead to the deprivation of blessings in your knowledge. Therefore ensure that you contemplate for two months in regard to the selection of a teacher and seek advice
from someone in this regard so that you do not have to turn away from the teacher who you choose. Thus there will be blessings in your
knowledge and you will ensure that blessings reach others as well.”
Perseverance
O beloved student! You should be aware that perseverance is the root
of all tasks but this is very difficult as a poet says:
Someone said that being patient for even one moment is very
courageous; therefore, it is important for a student to learn from one teacher with patience and persistence. He should also learn all his books with perseverance and should not leave any book incomplete.
Whichever science he chooses, he should have perseverance in learning that science and he should not turn to any other science until he
masters the science that he first chose. When a student lives in a particular city in order to gain knowledge, then he should not leave
that city without a reason, as these things hinder the progress of acquiring knowledge. These types of actions will lead to a student
becoming busy in unnecessary things and not only will they waste their time but they will also cause troubles to his teacher. A student
should, therefore, be patient in regard to the desires of his inner self (Nafs) instead of acting upon them as a poet has stated:
In the same way, a student should be patient upon the tribulations and calamities that he faces on his path of seeking knowledge. Someone said, “The treasures of favours and forgiveness are attainable after
passing the bridges of tests.” A poet said:
Choosing class fellows
A student should choose such a person as his class fellow who is pious, works hard, and has a perfect character. A student should stay away from a lazy and useless person and especially he should refrain
from the company of troublesome people who speak too much. A
poet once said:
The Holy Prophet(p.b.u.h) said:-
‘Every child is born on the Fiṭrat (nature) of Islam but his parents
make him a Jewish, a Christian or a fire worshipper.’
Someone wrote the following verses which are full of wisdom:
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