The Reality of Being a Student of Knowledge

Assalamualaikum...

What a long entry I think for today, but it is an excerpt and edited from an article

The Reality of Being a Student of Knowledge

Many people hear about the virtues of the student of knowledge and want to drop what they are doing to become one. However, it must be known, that not everyone is fit to be a student of knowledge.I hope I can be fitted one!!! Whoever intends to take this path, before leaving his home, work, and family, let him think about the lifestyle that awaits him.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself:

Do you know that you will be studying every day for at least six hours? Even the lightest study schedules, like those found in the Islamic universities, demand at least six hours a day of reading. More serious and active students would consider six hours a day to be quite a weak and empty schedule. But let us think about the easiest schedule - six hours a day. Are you studying at home at least six hours a day consistently? If not, why do you want to leave your country to do it somewhere else? -I must study at least 6 hours if I think I just the weakest student, so have to study MORE!!!

Start with the Qur'aan and whatever books you have about Islaam, and study them for at least six hours a day. Is this a schedule you want to live by? Can you keep this up for years?

What about your lifestyle? Are you doing things that you know you should have stopped a long time ago? Are there luxuries that you indulge in that you could not do without? Many students left their homelands and journeyed far only to find their addictions to television, movie theatres, music, and other things calling them back. Surely, you must wean yourself from the things that you know are wrong now, migrating from what Allaah prohibited within your own city, so that your migration to seek knowledge in another land will be successful.- Prevent myself from lagha things.

Do you have patience? Do you strive through deeds that are unappealing or do you abandon them once the difficulties come? Surely, seeking knowledge at times does not have the same appeal that it had before you began. I mean, for example, the student who is excited about studying the Sciences of Hadeeth will one day find himself memorizing the biographies of narrators - when and where they lived, who they met and studied from, who met and studied under them, when and where they died, what did the Imaams of Hadeeth say about them, etc. The student studying Fiqh will find himself memorizing information like the amount of zakaah due on 91 camels, 50 sheep, or $3000 worth of merchandise. Or he may memorize who gets one-sixth of a deceased's wealth, or who gets one-third, etc. Seeking knowledge is hard work that requires long hours of reading and memorization! It is often not as fun as it seemed in the beginning, nor will you always have the same zeal! Do you have the patience to stick with it over the years?-I need to memorise almost everything, not just for sake of EXAM!!!




If you are considering studying based on knowledge , then please consider this advice carefully. I hope that you find it beneficial, and Allaah knows best.

May Allaah Most High make the author from the firmest of the people upon this advice.

This article was taken from BAKKAHnet (www.bakkah.net)