The Most Beneficial Method for Seeking Knowledge and the Books Suitable for the Beginner

Question:
Many questions have been received, including this one: Honorable Shaykh, peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings. To proceed: Books have multiplied in the Islamic sphere, and this is all from the grace of Allah the Exalted. However, the beginner student of knowledge is perplexed when he sees the abundance of books and does not know with which one to begin or what to read. The question is: What is the most beneficial method for seeking knowledge? And what are the books you recommend for the beginner student of knowledge, including the matn (texts) and the abridgments? May Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
Yes, the books are numerous, and praise be to Allah. But the books are not all on the same level; some are abridged, some are detailed, and some are intermediate. Also, from another perspective, some books are beneficial and some are harmful. That is, there are harmful books, there are books that carry sects and dangerous ideas and misguided articles. So not all books are suitable for reading. The beginner student of knowledge should only consult the people of knowledge regarding what is suitable for him to read from these books.
First, regarding the students who are enrolled in regular studies, they must focus on the curricula: the curricula for tawhid (the oneness of Allah), fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), tafsir (Qur'anic exegesis), hadith, grammar, and language. There is much good in these if they are mastered from the first stage to the last stage; there is much good in them. But on the condition that they study them correctly: memorize them, ask about their meanings, and master them. One should not move on from one curriculum to another until he has mastered it, then he moves to the next curriculum.
Likewise, if he is studying in one of the teaching circles in the mosques, he must start with the abridgments first: an abridgment of the matn in tawhid, an abridgment of the matn in fiqh, an abridgment of the matn in grammar, an abridgment of the matn in usul al-fiqh (the principles of jurisprudence), and so on. These abridgments contain abundant knowledge. If a person memorizes them, reads them to the shaykhs (scholars), and they explain them to him, he will establish a new foundation of knowledge. Then, after he masters these abridgments, he moves to the intermediate books. Then, after he finishes the intermediate books, he moves to the large books, because he is then qualified. Knowledge is not taken all at once; rather, knowledge is taken bit by bit, in stages. It is necessary at the beginning to take a little, then take more than that, then take more than that, and so on. He must progress gradually. As for the one who takes knowledge all at once and reads in the detailed books while he does not know the abridgments, he will not benefit from anything. Some people go and read in Fath al-Bari, the commentary on Sahih al-Bukhari, or in al-Mughni, or in al-Muhallal by Ibn Hazm, or in the large, bulky books, while he is still a beginner student of knowledge. He has nothing of the foundation, he has no scientific rules, and he has no basis. This is never suitable, and he will not benefit from anything. He may even misunderstand. He must progress in knowledge bit by bit. And as I told you, he must taste the effort in learning and the hardship in knowledge. He must taste staying up at night, he must taste being away from his homeland, he must taste the journey if he wants to learn correctly. As for the person who is lazy, nothing will be achieved. Yes.