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Knowledge and
Faith
A
brief study by: Ali Ja’afary Stump
“In
the Name of ALLAH the Merciful, the Compassionate”
“The likeness of the two parties is as the blind and the deaf and the
seeing and the hearing: Are they equal in condition? Will you not then
mind?
(The
holy Qur’an 11-Hud-24)
The
Gift of Knowledge:
The
Messenger of ALLAH (saww) said: “To
acquire knowledge is obligatory to every Muslim. Lo! ALLAH (swt) loves
those who have longing for knowledge”.
(Al-Kafi, Shaykh Kulayni (r-a) vol. 1 – Pt.1 – Al-Usul, chpt. 1, Hadith
1)
True knowledge of any kind is a gift and a blessing from ALLAH Azz wa
Jall. Our beloved prophet Muhammad (saww) commanded us to seek
knowledge. Knowledge opens the mind and heart. Man’s knowledge is from
a characteristic of the faculty of rationality. This rational faculty
is one of the 3 faculties that make man different from other creations.
(The 3 faculties are: desire, anger and rational faculty, human
personality is composed of these 3) Knowledge is a branch
from the characteristic of wisdom, which is the good root characteristic
of the rational faculty. To be wise is to use wisdom and in order to
use wisdom, one must obtain knowledge. Knowledge can be a tool in order
to achieve understanding in any particular subject. For example: If I
need to understand a certain subject, I must seek books on the subject;
I must speak and question scholars and intellectuals of different
schools of thinking. I must try to obtain the most information on that
certain subject possible. Then I can make a conclusion on which school
of thought is correct. At this point I would have gained knowledge about
this subject which will provide me a certain wisdom Insha’ALLAH.
However, this is only knowledge thru information or experiment (in
other words science of experimental knowledge). This is not knowledge
of the heart (knowledge of the soul), a complete different process is
used in order to obtain knowledge of the heart (soul).
Imam Baqir (a-s) said: “Try to learn
knowledge, because learning is a good action and study is itself
worship”.
(Bihar-ul-Anwar, vol. 78, p. 189).
Imam Sadiq (a-s) said:
“The one, who learns
knowledge and acts accordingly and teaches it for ALLAH (swt), will be
called magnificently in heaven”.
(Al-Kafi, vol. 1, p. 35)
The holy prophet Muhammad (saww) said:
“The good of
this world and the world to come is knowledge”.
(Bihar-ul-Anwar, vol. 1 p. 204)
Imam Amir-ul-Mu’mineen Ali ibn Abi Talib
(a-s) said: “O
Kumail! Knowledge is better than wealth; for knowledge guards you while
you have to guard wealth; and wealth is diminished when spent, while
knowledge grows and increases when put in use”.
(Al-Amaali
Shaykh al-Mufid. 29th Assembly. 3rd Hadith)
Knowledge of the Heart (The Soul):
The prophet Muhammad (saww) said:
“True knowledge is of 3 kinds: The first is
the knowledge of the verses of ALLAH (swt) which are precise and
unequivocal. The second is the knowledge of the obligations of equity
and moderation. The third is the knowledge of as-Sunnah Islamic Code
(of musts and must nots), imperatives and prohibitions. The rest is to
excel or a surplus”.
(Al-Kafi, vol. 1, pt.2 – 46-1).
When we direct our minds and hearts toward
our Islamic duties and teachings and always take action on them, for the
pure intention of closeness to ALLAH Azz wa Jall, we achieve knowledge
of the soul. As our beloved Prophet Muhammad (saww) so clearly
mentioned in the above hadith, he (saww) explains to us exactly how to
achieve this knowledge. We quickly understand that knowledge is not
only consisting of experiment knowledge but rather as a whole, knowledge
has a much deeper meaning than just matter (material). It is not
necessary or essential that something that exists must be material.
Therefore, it is not essential that knowledge must be something that can
be observed in a laboratory. In fact true knowledge of the heart is
acquired by a deep belief and deep action in the way (path) of truth,
purity, precaution, piety, patience and devotion in hopes to gain
closeness to our LORD. Imam Sadiq (a-s) said in such a clear way:
“He who truly knows, is the one in whom sound
actions, pure supplications, truthfulness and precautions speak out; not
his tongue, his debates, his comparisons, assertions or claims. In
times other than these, those who sought knowledge were those who had
intellect, piety, wisdom, modesty and cautions, but nowadays we see that
those who seek it do not have any of these qualities. The man of
knowledge needs intellect, kindness, compassion, good counsel,
forbearance, patience, contentment and generosity; while anyone wishing
to learn needs a desire for knowledge, will, devotion (of his time and
energy), piety, caution, memory and resolution”.
(Masbah-Al-Sharia’t,
p. 7sect. 2 Knowledge).
We now understand that the method of
achieving knowledge of the heart is very different than the much more
limited experimental knowledge.
ALLAH (swt) says:
“ALLAH will exalt those of you who believe and
those who are given knowledge to high ranks”.
(The
holy Qur’an 58 – Al-Mujadilah-II)
Imam Sadiq (a-s) said: The
prophet Muhammad (saww) said:
“When ALLAH (swt) wishes
well of any person, he endows him with the true understanding of
religion”.
(Al-Kafi, vol.1-pt.1Al-Usul 48-3/Al-Amaali-Shaykh al-Mufid 19th
assembly, hadith #9).
Imam Amir-ul-Mu’mineen Ali (a-s) said:
“The one who seeks knowledge is like a warrior in the cause of religion
for the way of ALLAH”.
(Bihar-ul-Anwar, vol.1,p.179)
ALLAH (swt) says: “ALLAH bears witness
that there is no God but HE and (so do) the angels and those possessed
of knowledge maintaining HIS creation with justice; there is no God but
HE, the MIGHTY, the WISE”.
(The
holy Qur’an-3-Al-Imran-18)
Guidance in Knowledge:
Man, although able to seek much knowledge
needs guidance, he needs a sense of direction and a source, in order to
get knowledge beyond his own individual capabilities. And man’s
intellect and soul need new sources of knowledge, in order to advance
toward spiritual perfection. ALLAH (swt) sent to us the prophets (a-s)
to guide us with a higher source of knowledge. Our intellects are not
enough to guide us to salvation. This is the mission of the prophets
(a-s) to guide us to knowledge, to the straight path to Islam
which leads to ALLAH (swt). The superior knowledge and infallibility of
the prophets (a-s) comes from revelation. It is thru this revelation
that the prophets (a-s) can guide man to salvation and felicities. All
the prophets had infallible successors, either other prophets (a-s) or
holy Imams (a-s) from their progeny. Our Prophet Muhammad (saww) was the
last, the seal and the superior over all prophets (a-s). His successors
chosen by ALLAH (swt) are the 12 Holy Imams from his Ahlul-Bayt, they
are all infallible and the only true guides for all of mankind.
(Note: please read
“IMAMATE A DIVINE COMMAND”
for understanding of this very important issue). ALLAH (swt)
delivered to us the miracle of the Holy Qur’an that never ends until the
day of Judgement and the 14 infallible lights of wisdom from the Prophet
Muhammad (saww) and his Ahlul-Bayt (a-s) that will shine until the day
of Judgement. (May ALLAH (swt) hurry the
advent of our present Imam, Imam Muhammad Al-Mahdi (a-s))
ALLAH (swt) in the holy Qur’an makes the high position and superior
knowledge of our beloved Prophet (saww) very clear to us:
“All that is in the heavens
and the earth praise ALLAH, the KING, the ALL HOLY, the ALL-MIGHTY and
the ALL-WISE. It is HE Who has raised up from among the common people,
a Messenger of their own, to recite HIS verses to them and to purify
them and to teach them the Book and wisdom, though before that they were
in manifest error and others of them who have not yet joined them. And
HE is the ALL-MIGHTY, the ALL-WISE. That is the bounty of ALLAH, HE
gives it to whom HE wills and ALLAH is the LORD of great grace”.
(The
holy Qur’an 62-Al-Jumuah 1-4).
ALLAH (swt) the ALL-KNOWING, the ALL-WISE.
ALLAH Azz wa Jall is the ALL-KNOWING. HIS knowledge is not even in
man’s capacity to identify. Absolutely all existence (that which man
knows and which man knows not) is created by ALLAH (swt), therefore, HE
is the ONE and the ONLY ORIGINATOR and the CREATOR of everything and HE
is the ALL-KNOWING and the ALL-WISE. HE has no partners, no associates,
no wives, or no sons. HE is the UNIQUE above all, HIS MAGNIFICENCE is
too great to describe, and any attempt would be a sin and an action of
an unbeliever (kafir). For ALLAH Azz wa Jall is so GREAT, words and
thoughts can never describe HIS unimaginable GREATNESS which is way
above our limited knowledge.
“ALLAH surely nothing is hidden from HIM
on the earth or in the heaven”.
(Holy Qur’an-3-Al-Imran-5)
“Nothing is (incumbent) on the Apostle but to deliver (the Message) and
ALLAH knows what you do openly and what you hide”.
(Holy Qur’an 5-Al-Ma’Idah 99).
Do they not know that ALLAH knows their hidden thoughts and their secret
counsels and that ALLAH is the GREAT KNOWER of the unseen things”?
(The
holy Qur’an 9-At-Tawbah 78).
“Your LORD knows best what is in your minds; if you are good, then HE is
surely forgiving to those who turn to HIM frequently”.
(The
holy Qur’an 17-Al-Isra’ 25)
“The KNOWER
of the unseen! So HE does not reveal HIS secrets to any”.
(The
holy Qur’an 72-Al-Jinn 26).
Now
we understand more clearly that when man searches for knowledge and
seeks knowledge, when he opens his mind and heart to it, he begins to
transform within himself. ALLAH (swt) fills man’s opening of the heart
with the light of faith and faith in ALLAH (swt) the one God is the true
birth of man and his true opening to knowledge.
Faith the Divine Blessing:
“O you who believe! Believe in ALLAH and HIS Apostle and the Book which
HE has revealed to HIS Apostle and the Book which HE revealed before;
and whoever disbelieves in ALLAH and HIS angels and HIS apostles and the
last day, he indeed, strays off into a remote error”.
(The
holy Qur’an 4 An-Nisa 136).
Faith is much more than affirmation of something, or knowledge of
something, or belief in something, or loving of something, it is in
fact, the maximum concentration of all these attributes and so much
more. When the divine blessing of faith enters man’s heart, it
transforms that man into a complete new
"being".
When a man becomes a true faithful believer, his worship is his life and
his life is his worship. His reason and vision becomes extremely
precise, he then lives only by the divine commands and his heart is full
of hope and wanting to be close to his most beloved creator ALLAH
(swt). His daily actions, reflections and words are only directed to be
near ALLAH (swt), the true believer has a higher knowledge (knowledge of
the heart (soul)) of creation, existence, morality, ethics, piety, etc.
Although he is full of knowledge of the reasons why he must perform
certain duties (obligations), he performs them in faith with zeal and
love with the only intention of pleasing ALLAH (swt) and not because he
seeks the benefits or rewards for them. For the true believers, faith is
a complete religious attitude. And they are the living examples of this
attitude.
ALLAH (swt) says about the faithful:
“They fulfill vows and fear a day the evil of which shall be spreading
far and wide”.
(Holy Qur’an-76 Al-Insan 7).
“Who knows that they
shall meet their Lord and that they shall return to HIM”.
(Holy Qur’an-2-Al-Baqarah-36)
“And among men is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of ALLAH;
and ALLAH is affectionate to the servants”.
(Holy
Qur’an-2 Al-Baqarah-207).
“Successful indeed are the believers who are humble in their prayers”.
(Holy Qur’an-23-Al-Mu’minume 1-2).
Imam Sajjad (a-s) said:
“He who acts according to
what ALLAH (swt) has enjoined for him, is of the best people”.
(Al-Kafi, vol.2, p.81).
An
Insight on the Faithful (The best people):
The
faithful (Mu’min) is the man who lives by his natural instinct to have
contact and closeness to his Creator. His actions and thoughts all
become part of his worship of ALLAH (swt) and the higher his level of
faith, the closer he comes to the light of the truth, the deeper his
knowledge of the heart (soul) grows and the stronger of a human being he
becomes. We know that faith is not a product of class conflicts or a
weapon of tyrants, or an invented cure by the weak and helpless, but is
in fact a deeply implanted part of man’s being and existence, for in
history, the true believers were always the upmost examples of strength
far above any oppressor’s wrath and their hearts did not fear anything
except ALLAH (swt). In fact, since the creation of man, the best of men
were always those who strived in the path of ALLAH (swt) despite any
obstacles. Deep faith in ALLAH (swt) gives man the responsibility of
being the vicegerent of ALLAH (swt) on earth.
Imam Baqir (a-s) said:
“Whoever relies on ALLAH
(swt) will never be defeated and whoever takes refuge in ALLAH (swt)
will never fail”.
(Mishkat
Ul-Anwar Fi Ghurar il-Akhbar, hadith 45).
Many good effects, both practical and moral enter the life of the
faithful. The faithful have a guarantee of reward for following the
good and staying away from evil; they fulfill their need of closeness to
ALLAH (swt) in acts of worship, which they base all other activities
around their love and worship of ALLAH (swt), which pushes them to be
pious, God fearing and good mannered. This makes them steadfast of the
straight path that leads to true happiness; they collect the most of
felicities possible, they then become a true example of morality and
piety and they no longer strives for any of the temporal benefits of
this life, but are in constant Jihad to obtain a lofty place in
paradise. They see their destination and they seek it.
Imam Ali (a-s) said:
“ALLAH (swt) has established
faith on four pillars: perseverance, certitude, justice and Jihad”.
(Mishkat
ul-Anwar Fi Ghuraril-Akhbar 162).
The prophet Muhammad (saww) said:
“Faith is a
determination in the heart, saying with the tongue and performance of
the pillars of the religion (Islam)”.
(Tuhaf-Al-Uquul
#166 Prophet Muhammad (saww)).
ALLAH (swt) says: “And of those whom we
have created are a people who guide with truth and thereby they do
justice”.
(Holy Qur’an 7-Al-A’raf 181).
Imam Sadiq (a-s) said: “The one who
loves for ALLAH, hates for ALLAH and donates (things) for ALLAH, thus
the one is of those whose faith is complete”.
(Al-Kafi, vol. 2, p. 124)
The
Levels of Faith:
As
we explained earlier, when the heart opens to knowledge and our soul
gets touched by the light of ALLAH (swt), then faith begins to develop
in us. But there are different levels of faith, here is a short briefing
of them according to the teachings of the Ahlul-Bayt (a-s).
The
First Level of Faith:
is belief in the one God (ALLAH AZZ WA JALL) and that the prophet
Muhammad (saww) is the messenger of ALLAH. To accept the commands of
ALLAH (swt), to understand the laws of Islam and to sincerely follow
these laws. At this stage, it is crucial to expand one’s knowledge, to
reflect deeply on creation and to push forward to the next level.
The
Second Level of Faith:
At this stage, one must fully comprehend, believe and live by all the
details and realities of Islam. At this stage, man’s faith will begin
to guide him to even higher levels; he now begins to enter the essence
of Islam and begins to search the deeper meanings of Islam.
The
Third Level of Faith:
At this level, every single action and thought is submission to ALLAH
(swt). His soul becomes clean of wants and desires of this world. His
spiritual instincts are of the highest levels, his piety is shinning and
his worship is constant. He is never annoyed of any decree or measure
of ALLAH (swt) and is hopeful to receive the highest spiritual blessing
from his LORD.
The
Fourth Level of Faith:
This stage is a divine gift. Man, in this stage wants nothing else but
to please his Lord ALLAH (swt), he sees paradise clearly as if he has
been there and sees without any doubt that all in reality belongs to the
ONE and the ONLY ALLAH (swt). This stage is a true great divine
blessing that very few people ever experienced and is only attainable
thru the divine powers of ALLAH (swt) it is as we said a true divine
gift. No human being can reach this level on his own capacities, no
matter how developed they are. This level is the greatest of divine
gifts from ALLAH (swt) that man can obtain in this life.
ALLAH (swt) says: “Now surely the friends
of ALLAH they have no fear, nor do they grieve; those who believed and
were pious”.
(The
Holy Qur’an 10 – Yūnus
62-63)
In
Conclusion:
The true faithful are certainly the most knowledgeable and pious amongst
men. They care deeply about their future in the hereafter and act
according to their deep love for ALLAH (swt) above all. They are
trustworthy and truthful; they love their brothers and sisters as they
love themselves. They are always ready to help and assist those around
them. Their code of morality and conduct is of the highest standard.
They are pure and generous; they turn away from evil, open their hearts
completely to ALLAH (swt) and fight against any oppression directed
towards them of any fellow human being. Far from this corrupted
material world, they are the seekers of the pleasure of ALLAH (swt) and
are not self seekers. Insha’ALLAH I pray to be among such great people
one day, to be one of the true ones whose complete being is in complete
submission to ALLAH (swt) no matter what the conditions may be. May
ALLAH (swt) forgive us, bless us, guide us and protect us. Insha’ALLAH
may ALLAH AZZ WA JALL be contented with this brief article on knowledge
and faith, all praises to ALLAH (swt) and all thanks to HIM the
ALL-MIGHTY, the ALL-WISE.
“I advise you to fear ALLAH, O my child! To abide by HIS commands, to
fill your heart with remembrance of HIM and to cling to hope in HIM. No
connection is more reliable than the connection between you and ALLAH
(swt) provided you take hold of it”.
(Imam Amir-ul-Mu’mineen Ali Ibn Abi Talib (a-s)) (Nahj-ul-Balaghah,
letter 31).
Brother Ali Ja’afary Stump |