Seeking Knowledge for Its Own Sake

Sometimes a student of religion will say: “I seek knowledge for its own sake, not for some ulterior motive.” What the student intends by this statement is certainly correct: that he or she is sincere to learn about the religion, not after a diploma or a degree or something else of that sort. Nevertheless, the statement itself is wrong.

One of the pitfalls that a student of Islam can fall into is to seek religious knowledge for its own sake. Knowledge is a desire like any other human desire. It can be sought for the pure pleasure of acquiring it and not for Allah’s sake. This is true even for religious knowledge.

People love to discover new things. It is a natural human inclination. When a person strives long and hard to find something out, then comes upon the answer, it can be quite exhilarating. This encourages that person to study further.

Islam, however, does not call upon us to seek Islamic knowledge for its own sake, but rather to seek it in order to put it to use. The scholars of old used to say: “Knowledge calls out to us with actions. It is either answered by actions or it goes away.”

Allah describes the people of knowledge in the following way: “Those who were given knowledge beforehand, when it is recited to them, fall on their faces in prostration. And they say: ‘Glory be to our Lord. Truly the promise of our Lord is fulfilled. They fall on their faces crying and it increases them in humility.” [Sūrah al-Isrā’: 107-109]

Here we see how knowledge gives them humility and makes them fall in prostration to Allah.

Allah says: “Only those who have knowledge truly fear Allah.” [Sūrah Fātir: 28]

This verse is often cited as evidence that the scholars are the “best of Creation” referred to in Allah’s words: “Those who have faith and do righteous deeds, they are the best of Creation. There reward is with Allah; gardens beneath which rivers flow. They will dwell therein forever. Allah will be well pleased with them and they with Him. This is for those who fear their Lord.” [Sūrah al-Bayyinah: 7-8]

They argue that since the “best of Creation” are “those who fear their Lord” and since the only people who truly fear their Lord are the scholars, it follows then that the scholars are the best of Creation.

How could it be otherwise when Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) proclaimed that the scholars are the inheritors of the Prophets? What he meant by this is that scholars are those who convey the knowledge of religion to the people and carry it from one generation to the next, making them the best of people after the prophets if they are true and sincere scholars.

People today have become confused about the meaning of the word “scholar” in this context. Some assume it refers to any person with specialized knowledge in any field, like medicine, engineering, or chemistry. The true scholar in the context of our discussion is a person who has knowledge about Allah, His religion, and His Law. Knowledge, in an abstract, theoretical sense, is not enough. It must also affect the heart.

Our pious predecessors did not recognize anyone as a scholar merely for amassing a lot of facts and opinions. The scholar’s knowledge had to visibly affect his or her behavior. The true scholar had to be humble, ascetic, and reserved. Some of the pious predecessors said: “Scholars are those who fear Allah so much that it affects their character, their conduct – and their knowledge itself.”