Learning the Arabic Language and Mastering Its Rules

Question : Honorable Shaykh, may Allah’s peace, mercy, and blessings be upon you. We have noticed that most of the young students of knowledge are neglecting the mastery of Arabic grammar. Do you not consider that mastering it is a fundamental matter that helps in understanding many issues?

Answer : And upon you be Allah’s peace, mercy, and blessings. Yes, understanding the Arabic language is important, whether in the rules of inflection or in the rules of rhetoric; all of it is important. However, based on the fact that we are Arabs, praise be to Allah, we can learn without knowing the rules of the Arabic language. But it is part of perfection for a person to learn the rules of the Arabic language. In fact, some people are so fond of the Arabic language that if they hear from some scholars or some preachers a sermon that is poorly delivered, even if it is just a slight error in pronunciation that does not affect the meaning, they reject it, their souls dislike it, and they do not benefit from it. For this reason, I encourage learning the Arabic language, whether in the rules of grammar or in the rules of rhetoric. Even in the rules of rhetoric, the eloquence of the Qur’an and the eloquence of the hadiths of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) become clear to one who knows the science of rhetoric.