What a student of knowledge must memorize and the recommended texts
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
And the Shaykh, is it obligatory for any of you to memorize the Book of Allah first? And what are the most important texts that one must memorize? And from every mosque, Abu Fahd only.
Answer:
There is no doubt that the first thing obligatory upon a student of knowledge is to memorize the Book of Allah. This is the foundation, and it is obligatory for a person to begin with the Book of Allah because it is the source of Islamic knowledge and the basis of knowledge. As for the texts (mutun), one chooses from each discipline a text that he finds easiest and most comprehensive. For example, in Hanbali jurisprudence, the text is *Al-Zad*; in grammar, for the beginner, it is *Al-Muqaddimah al-Ajrumiyyah*, followed by *Al-Qatr al-Nabawi* with *Al-Tuhfah* (or *Al-Ibnashim*), and this is in prose. As for poetry in grammar, it is *Al-Mulha* by al-Hariri, followed by *Al-Afaliyyah* by Ibn Malik, along with their commentaries. This is in grammar. In hadith terminology, for example, it is *Nukhbat al-Fikr* by Ibn Hajar, which is a brief, comprehensive, and all-encompassing summary of this discipline, and its memorization is easy. If he has energy for it, *Al-Afaliyyah* by al-Iraqi in hadith terminology. *Afaliyyah* means a thousand verses on hadith terminology. And in... for example, the texts for jurisprudence, grammar, and terminology. And in hadith, he memorizes *Al-Umdah* by al-Maqdisi, which is from the two Sahihs; all its hadiths are from the two Sahihs. Similarly, *Bulugh al-Maram* is close to it, and it is broader than *Al-Umdah*; *Bulugh* is broader than *Al-Umdah*. This is in the texts of hadith.
But it is not just a matter of memorization; memorization alone is not enough. A teacher is necessary. A teacher is necessary upon whom you memorize, with whom you read, from whom you listen, and who explains to you. This is what is important. As for memorization without a teacher, this is of no benefit; it is effort without reward. Memorization must be with a teacher who explains and clarifies these things to you and progresses with you step by step until you complete them with knowledge, and you do not pass over anything without understanding it until you finish. This is what is required. As for mere memorization without a teacher, this is not correct. Likewise, what the questioner mentioned—understanding without memorization—this is also not suitable and is of no benefit. You understand in the session, but if you do not memorize, you have nothing in your possession. You read to the street, or you go, or the day becomes two days or a month, and you forget this character. The understanding goes, it goes, it goes from the memory. But memorization is what
And the Shaykh, is it obligatory for any of you to memorize the Book of Allah first? And what are the most important texts that one must memorize? And from every mosque, Abu Fahd only.
Answer:
There is no doubt that the first thing obligatory upon a student of knowledge is to memorize the Book of Allah. This is the foundation, and it is obligatory for a person to begin with the Book of Allah because it is the source of Islamic knowledge and the basis of knowledge. As for the texts (mutun), one chooses from each discipline a text that he finds easiest and most comprehensive. For example, in Hanbali jurisprudence, the text is *Al-Zad*; in grammar, for the beginner, it is *Al-Muqaddimah al-Ajrumiyyah*, followed by *Al-Qatr al-Nabawi* with *Al-Tuhfah* (or *Al-Ibnashim*), and this is in prose. As for poetry in grammar, it is *Al-Mulha* by al-Hariri, followed by *Al-Afaliyyah* by Ibn Malik, along with their commentaries. This is in grammar. In hadith terminology, for example, it is *Nukhbat al-Fikr* by Ibn Hajar, which is a brief, comprehensive, and all-encompassing summary of this discipline, and its memorization is easy. If he has energy for it, *Al-Afaliyyah* by al-Iraqi in hadith terminology. *Afaliyyah* means a thousand verses on hadith terminology. And in... for example, the texts for jurisprudence, grammar, and terminology. And in hadith, he memorizes *Al-Umdah* by al-Maqdisi, which is from the two Sahihs; all its hadiths are from the two Sahihs. Similarly, *Bulugh al-Maram* is close to it, and it is broader than *Al-Umdah*; *Bulugh* is broader than *Al-Umdah*. This is in the texts of hadith.
But it is not just a matter of memorization; memorization alone is not enough. A teacher is necessary. A teacher is necessary upon whom you memorize, with whom you read, from whom you listen, and who explains to you. This is what is important. As for memorization without a teacher, this is of no benefit; it is effort without reward. Memorization must be with a teacher who explains and clarifies these things to you and progresses with you step by step until you complete them with knowledge, and you do not pass over anything without understanding it until you finish. This is what is required. As for mere memorization without a teacher, this is not correct. Likewise, what the questioner mentioned—understanding without memorization—this is also not suitable and is of no benefit. You understand in the session, but if you do not memorize, you have nothing in your possession. You read to the street, or you go, or the day becomes two days or a month, and you forget this character. The understanding goes, it goes, it goes from the memory. But memorization is what
Source
شرح بلوغ المرام من أدلة الأحكام [ صالح الفوزان ]، تابع باب نواقض الوضوء - 2 — islamhouse.com (1:09:22)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.