Comparing the Learning of Sacred Knowledge, Medicine, and General Sciences
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
He asks: Which is better, learning sacred knowledge to serve oneself and one's community, or learning medicine to serve people and benefit them, especially since it has a benefit that extends to others, or learning general sciences from which sacred knowledge is derived?
Answer:
First, every Muslim must learn from the sacred sciences what is necessary for the soundness of his religion: his creed, his prayer, his zakah, his fasting, and his Hajj. Learning this is an individual obligation (fard 'ayn) for every Muslim. I am a male and I deny that a male learns what is necessary for the soundness of his religion. As for what goes beyond that, it is a collective obligation (fard kifayah). If a sufficient number of people fulfill it, the obligation is lifted from the rest, and it remains a recommended practice (mustahabb) for the remainder. People differ in their talents thereafter. One person has a talent for learning medicine, so he learns medicine after learning the matters of his religion, to benefit himself and benefit the Muslims. Another has a talent for learning military service and joining the army, so he learns military service and benefits the army, because it benefits the Muslims. This is according to talents and inclinations. Each person takes what Allah has given him to benefit himself and benefit others. One person has a talent for learning engineering and mechanics, so he learns industry, because people need this. People have talents, but after learning the matters of their religion. This is a common requirement among Muslims. It is obligatory for both male and female to learn what is necessary for the soundness of their religion. Yes.
He asks: Which is better, learning sacred knowledge to serve oneself and one's community, or learning medicine to serve people and benefit them, especially since it has a benefit that extends to others, or learning general sciences from which sacred knowledge is derived?
Answer:
First, every Muslim must learn from the sacred sciences what is necessary for the soundness of his religion: his creed, his prayer, his zakah, his fasting, and his Hajj. Learning this is an individual obligation (fard 'ayn) for every Muslim. I am a male and I deny that a male learns what is necessary for the soundness of his religion. As for what goes beyond that, it is a collective obligation (fard kifayah). If a sufficient number of people fulfill it, the obligation is lifted from the rest, and it remains a recommended practice (mustahabb) for the remainder. People differ in their talents thereafter. One person has a talent for learning medicine, so he learns medicine after learning the matters of his religion, to benefit himself and benefit the Muslims. Another has a talent for learning military service and joining the army, so he learns military service and benefits the army, because it benefits the Muslims. This is according to talents and inclinations. Each person takes what Allah has given him to benefit himself and benefit others. One person has a talent for learning engineering and mechanics, so he learns industry, because people need this. People have talents, but after learning the matters of their religion. This is a common requirement among Muslims. It is obligatory for both male and female to learn what is necessary for the soundness of their religion. Yes.
Source
لقاء مفتوح [الزلفي] — alfawzan.live (56:15)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.