The Ruling on Withholding Knowledge
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
This questioner says: Is it permissible to withhold knowledge, O Shaykh?
Answer:
It is not permissible to withhold knowledge except for the sake of public benefit. If there is a benefit in withholding it, so that people do not understand it in a distorted way, or so that it is not conveyed to one who is not qualified to receive it, then the knowledge is withheld for the sake of public benefit. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, when he said to him: When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah 3:173 “I will teach you some words: Fear Allah, and He will protect you,” and so on. He said: “O Abu, should I not inform the people?”
And in the hadith, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “O Mu’adh, Allah said: O Mu’adh, O Mu’adh,Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2516Hasan (Darussalam) said: “Should I not inform the people?” He said: “Do not inform them, lest they become complacent.” Yes.
This questioner says: Is it permissible to withhold knowledge, O Shaykh?
Answer:
It is not permissible to withhold knowledge except for the sake of public benefit. If there is a benefit in withholding it, so that people do not understand it in a distorted way, or so that it is not conveyed to one who is not qualified to receive it, then the knowledge is withheld for the sake of public benefit. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, when he said to him:
Mu’adh, so should I not inform the people?
معاذ فلا أخبر الناسIndeed, Allah has forbidden the Fire for the one who says: “There is no god but Allah,” or said: “O Mu’adh”
إن الله حرم على النار من قال لا إله إلا الله أو قال يا معاذAnd in the hadith, the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “O Mu’adh, Allah said: O Mu’adh, O Mu’adh,
Be mindful of Allah and He will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you will find Him before you.
احفظ الله يحفظك احفظ الله تجده تجاهك(peace and blessings be upon him) Indeed, Allah has forbidden the Fire for the one who says: “There is no god but Allah,” seeking thereby the Face of Allah.
صلى الله عليه وسلم إن الله حرم على النار من قال لا إله إلا الله يريد بذلك وجه الله
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، [4747] حكم كتمان العلم - صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.