What is the purpose of scholarly writing in particular, and of knowledge in general?

Abu Malik: So the first question, our Shaykh, may Allah bless you: Do we want to clarify the purpose of scholarly writing? We want you to clarify for us the purpose of writing in particular, and of knowledge in general, and may Allah reward you with good. Is this the question, or is this what we want first?

The Shaykh: All praise is due to Allah; we praise Him, seek His help, and seek His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil of our own souls and from the badness of our deeds. Whoever Allah guides is not to be led astray, and whoever He leaves to stray is not to be guided. And I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, alone, with no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and His Messenger. As for what follows:
Indeed, the best of speech is the speech of Allah, and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), and the worst of matters are their innovations, and every innovation is a religious innovation, and every religious innovation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire.
There is no doubt that what you pointed out is a very terrifying phenomenon in our present age, which is what you mentioned regarding the hadith of the Messenger (peace be upon him) that he said: ; in fact, the proliferation of the pen today can be expressed in the language of the present age as the eradication of illiteracy, and this is a very strange phenomenon in the present age, indicating that this age is walking the path of conformity, love of showing off, and the failure to reform souls; for the eradication of the illiteracy that had previously spread with great care in the lands of the disbelievers, and then reached us as an imitation of them, was not intended for what is usually intended by learning knowledge and the means that leads to this knowledge, namely writing.
There is no doubt that acquiring knowledge, although it was among the characteristics of the first Arab nation in whom our illiterate Arab Prophet was sent, was that it was an illiterate nation that did not write, as he (may Allah’s prayers and blessings be upon him) said in the authentic hadith narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), who said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: ; meaning that the month may be thirty days, or it may be twenty-nine.
The point is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us of the reality of the Arab nation that illiteracy prevailed among them, and this does not negate that there were very few individuals among them who were skilled in reading and writing, among them ‘Adi ibn Hatim al-Tai, whose knowledge of writing helped him read the Torah and the Gospel, and he found in them knowledge that the Arabs knew in their pre-Islamic age of ignorance; for it was a nation with no law and no culture; therefore, his knowledge of reading and writing was the reason he adopted Christianity, and his story regarding his Islam and faith in the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is well known.
The point is: although it was among the miracles of the Messenger (peace be upon him) that he was illiterate, and the completion of this miracle was that his people among whom he was sent were an illiterate nation, this does not mean that Islam does not encourage writing, which is one of the means of seeking knowledge; how so, when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) reached the point of caring that his nation learn writing as a means of learning, that he said one day to “al-Shifa,” one of the noble female Companions, he said to her one day (may Allah’s prayers and blessings be upon him), pointing to his wife Hafsa:
...
And in a sermon that came in “Sahih al-Bukhari” from the hadith of Ibn ‘Abbas, as I think now, that he (peace be upon him) delivered a sermon concerning the months of Hajj, and among the people was one who was named or known by the kunya Abu Shah, so he (peace be upon him) asked him to have this sermon written down for him, and he (peace be upon him) said: .
And so it was among the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) that some scribes sat around the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) receiving knowledge from him by writing and memorization, while the majority of the Companions received knowledge by memorization, while some of them received knowledge from him (peace be upon him) by memorization and writing, and among these was ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘As (may Allah be pleased with them both), who is known for having a written document that some of his sons and grandchildren narrate from him; it is what is known among the hadith scholars as the document of ‘Amr ibn Shu‘ayb from his father from his grandfather, and the grandfather intended here is ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Amr ibn al-‘As, he had a document that they inherited from him, and it is written; for he was among those Companions who were skilled in reading and writing, he said: While we were sitting with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), a questioner asked him, and we were writing, sitting with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and we were writing.
Abu Malik: Here is the point.

The Shaykh: Yes, indeed, here is the point.
When a questioner asked him, he said: O Messenger of Allah, will we conquer Constantinople first or Rome? He said: . This hadith was received by Ibn ‘Amr (may Allah be pleased with him) from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) while he was writing the hadith from him.
The intention is that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), in addition to encouraging his nation to knowledge, besides the noble verses known as the Book of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), he also encouraged learning the means by which knowledge is acquired, namely writing. And perhaps it is appropriate to mention in this context that we remind those present of a hadith regarding whose authenticity there is disagreement among the hadith scholars, but it has been established for me by the sum of its chains, and it has a connection and reliability with what I am currently addressing; namely his saying (may Allah’s prayers and blessings be upon him): , the source of the book is writing, one thing, ; for the memory, however strong it may be, one may forget, and the memory may weaken, while writing remains as long as Allah wills, and this is a matter that does not need explanation and clarification.

Another questioner: Writing...

The Shaykh : Yes?
Abu Malik: Writing...

The Shaykh : Yes.

Another questioner: Is it established with you... our Shaykh?

The Shaykh : Yes?

Another questioner: Is this hadith established with you?

The Shaykh: This is what I said, and this is what I referred to in my simplification mentioned earlier.
The intention is that if the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) encouraged learning writing, he encouraged women as we mentioned earlier, besides men, and that is only because it is a means to acquire knowledge.
But it is obligatory that we mention on such an occasion that if writing is a means to knowledge, then knowledge is also a means like writing, and it is not always intended for its own sake, but rather for acting upon it, and if this is a known fact among all Muslim scholars that knowledge is a means and not an end; for it is agreed upon among Muslim scholars that knowledge whose owner does not act upon it becomes a burden upon him on the Day of Resurrection, and the ignorant person who is not a scholar may be better than him or safer in belief than him; this is a scholar who did not act upon his knowledge, and this is not a scholar; therefore, it came in some athar (reports from a Companion or successor) – I say in some athar – that are mawquf (stopping at a Companion): , and hadiths bear witness to this, besides the verses, .
And among the serious hadiths in this field is what Imam Muslim narrated in his “Sahih” from the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that he was in a gathering of Mu‘awiyah during his caliphate (may Allah be pleased with him), so Mu‘awiyah or one of those present asked him to narrate to them the hadith of the three: the scholar, the mujahid, and the rich, so Abu Hurayrah prepared to narrate this hadith.

Another questioner : Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings.

The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.
We return to the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him); he was in the gathering of Mu‘awiyah (may Allah be pleased with him), and he or someone else asked Abu Hurayrah to narrate to them the hadith of the first people with whom the Fire will be kindled on the Day of Resurrection, so Abu Hurayrah prepared to narrate this hadith to them, but he could not control himself, so he wept severely when he recalled the horror and fear of the hadith, then he came to, then he fainted, and so three times, then he made an effort to narrate and said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . Abu Hurayrah said: These are the first people with whom the Fire will be kindled on the Day of Resurrection.
The point of this hadith is the scholar, upon whom it was supposed that His saying (Blessed and Exalted is He): “He raises” should be realized, so this scholar was...
Yes?
Abu Malik: Perhaps it is with the definite form .

The Shaykh : ؟
Abu Malik: .

The Shaykh: What made it definite?
Abu Malik: ... .

The Shaykh: Yes, it is the answer to a condition.
Abu Malik: It is the answer to a condition, yes.

The Shaykh: Yes, , the expectation is that this person should be in the highest ranks, yet he is in the Fire; what is the reason? It is that he did not act upon his knowledge. What does the knowledge say to him? He said - Exalted is He - : , and there is no doubt that we have known from what preceded that knowledge is part of the religion, but it is part of the religion only if one is sincere to Allah in it. So when he sought with it the face of other than Allah, he was punished for it, and he was not in the upper ranks of the Gardens.
And thus came many, and very many, hadiths confirming the obligation of the Muslim being sincere to Allah in all matters of obedience and worship. So he said - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - in the hadith of Ubayy ibn Ka‘b - may Allah be pleased with him - he said: The Messenger of Allah - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - said: .
Therefore, if it is known that writing is a means to knowledge, and that knowledge is a means to action, then knowledge and the writing that leads to it are a blessing and a prescribed means. Otherwise, if what follows from writing and knowledge is turning away from what beneficial knowledge requires of righteous action, then this knowledge becomes a burden upon its owner. If we know this reality, then it becomes clear to us that what came in the previously mentioned hadith in the question and in the answer as well; which is that among the signs of the Hour is the spread of knowledge and the spread of the pen, does not mean that the pen and the writing referred to by the pen are an absolute blessing, but rather it is a conditional blessing, in that it leads the owner of the pen to beneficial knowledge and is accompanied by this knowledge with righteous action; then it is a blessing, otherwise it is a calamity; as evidenced by the verses and hadiths we mentioned.
And a hadith that should be mentioned along with the hadith of the spread of the pen has confirmed this, which is that in some narrations and in "Sahih al-Bukhari" as I recall - also - that the Hour will not stand until ignorance spreads; so the spread of the pen does not mean the spread of knowledge and beneficial knowledge; it may be accompanied by ignorance, and this is - unfortunately - what we observe today. And this statement obligates me to draw attention to this knowledge we are discussing. What is this knowledge? There is no doubt that knowledge, as that Salafi scholar, namely Imam Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah - may Allah have mercy on him - said in his well-known poetry:
Knowledge is what Allah said, and His Messenger said, *** And the Companions said; it is not deception.
To the end of what he said. So beneficial knowledge is what is derived from the Book of Allah and from the hadith of the Messenger of Allah - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - , and in accordance with what our righteous predecessors were upon. So if the student learns writing, and becomes skilled in writing, and intends thereby to reach this beneficial knowledge, then he is undoubtedly rewarded with a great reward for that, and the impact of his knowledge, his reward, will continue to reach him as long as people continue to benefit from his knowledge, as is known from the hadith of Abu Hurayrah as well - may Allah be pleased with him - in "Sahih Muslim" he said: The Messenger of Allah - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - said: And in a narration: , so if writing is used in the path of this beneficial knowledge, and it will not be beneficial, as previously explained, unless its writer is sincere to Allah - Mighty and Majestic - in it.
And what was referred to in the question regarding the proliferation of letters, writings, and publications in this present age is - with great regret - a sign of the scientific miracles that the Messenger - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - speaks of, and especially the hadith of the spread of the pen; because these letters clearly show that most of those who produce them are, first, not scholars who should write on these topics they address in their writing, but rather most of them are merely transmitting from others, whether predecessors or successors, wanting thereby to have their names included among the authors, while they are not qualified for authorship; indeed, in reality, when we see their writings and their research, we recall the saying of the Messenger of Allah - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - which al-Bukhari and Muslim narrated in their "Sahih" from the hadith of Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As - may Allah be pleased with them both - he said: The Messenger of Allah - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - said: .
And it is not appropriate on this occasion to stop at the literal wording of this hadith in which he - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - says: ; because if we observe the intended purpose of this hadith, which is that the mufti issues a ruling without knowledge, and knowledge is that which is derived from the Book and the Sunnah, then there is no difference at that point between one who issues a ruling without knowledge or one who writes without knowledge; they are equal in the result. Indeed, I believe that these who write without knowledge, their misguidance in themselves and their misguidance reaching others is more impactful than the ruling of the mufti; because the mufti, in many cases, his ruling may not extend beyond the person asking, and if it does extend, it is to a few individuals. But writing proceeds and remains after the death of the writer for as many years as Allah wills; if it is good, then good, or if it is evil, then evil.
Therefore, we in reality advise everyone who wants to speak not to speak except with knowledge; reminding and being reminded that this knowledge in which he should speak is if he has relied upon the Book of Allah or the hadith of the Messenger of Allah - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - . And if he is not truly one of these scholars, then here we remind students of knowledge, whether they write, preach, or teach, not to forbid and not to permit with words from which the listener understands that this ruling is issued by him, while the truth is that he read it in a book or heard it from the understanding of one of the scholars; so these writers or these scholars must not speak on an issue except in one of two states: that they are mujtahids, and this is far from most writers today, or that they are transmitters, and in this case, whether they issue a ruling or write, they must attribute the statement to its saye so that the responsibility is lifted from the mufti or the writer first, and then so that he does not attribute to himself what is not his, thus entering into the generality of his saying - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - : , meaning: displaying what is not his, but rather belongs to another .
Abu Malik: This hadith - our Shaykh - if you permit me why was it not "one wearing a garment of falsehood"? Because this question is asked.

The Shaykh: I do not know if you are intending something I understood, but it is known among the Arabs that an izar and a rida' is an exaggeration that the falsehood covers him from the top of his head to the soles of his feet; this is the intended meaning.
So the point is that the Messenger says: ; therefore the scholars say: "Among the blessings of knowledge is attributing every statement to its saye," and this is in reality part of the affliction that contemporary youth have suffered today; and especially the writers among them; because they rely in what they write on the efforts and statements of others, then they do not disclose this truth, but rather they delude people that this is from their own toil and effort and labor.
The conclusion of this explanation is to say: that if writing is widespread today, it is a miracle of the miracles of the Messenger - may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him - which he informed about in his saying: , and secondly: that this writing which has spread in the world today compared to what the world was before; where illiteracy predominated; now this illiteracy is almost erased from the face of the earth, and some countries boast - and this is part of the affliction of this widespread culture - ; they boast that the rate of illiteracy has dropped to fifteen, twenty percent, and so on. There is nothing in this that a person should boast about; because we see today - with great regret, and we all know this - that many of the graduates from universities do not know how to read the Book of Allah - Mighty and Majestic - , so what is the benefit of this illiteracy that was erased and they reached the rank of doctorate while they do not know how to read the Book of Allah - Mighty and Majestic - ?!
So, the spread of the pen in itself is not praise, but in reality it is a blame; because, as we explained earlier, it is a means to acquire knowledge and beneficial Islamic knowledge, whereas the reality today is that this eradication of illiteracy has been adopted as a means for modern material sciences that benefit the world in this worldly life, but do not benefit him with knowledge of the Shari'ah. And among its effects is the diversion of these students from studying the Shari'ah in most of the well-known universities today to studying other sciences; that is because studying the Shari'ah generally does not offer them immediate material benefit, unlike their study of other sciences!
So, writing is a means...
...
...to beneficial knowledge, so it reached beneficial knowledge, but this beneficial knowledge did not result in righteous action; there is no doubt that this writing becomes a burden on its owner, just as was the case with that scholar whose end was that he was thrown into the Fire; that is because, despite being a scholar, he was not sincere to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) in it, so he was thrown into the Fire, and what an evil resting place.
This is what comes to my mind as an answer to this question.