What is better, seeking knowledge or mobilizing for jihad, and is the excuse of seeking knowledge and sitting out of jihad permissible?

The questioner : What is more obligatory and preferable, seeking knowledge or mobilizing for jihad, and is the excuse of seeking knowledge and sitting out of jihad permissible?

The Shaykh : Seeking knowledge is like jihad in the path of Allah, and it is undoubtedly a form of jihad in the path of Allah. It is also of two types: an individual obligation and a collective obligation. If the knowledge referred to in the question is what most students today study in the regular curriculum, whether in schools or in the circles known in the past, then it is a collective obligation. However, if the knowledge referred to is that which is individually obligatory, such as correcting the creed, where one takes a lesson or lessons in correcting the creed, or lessons in correcting ritual purity and prayer, or any other act of worship for which one is accountable, then in that case it is an individual obligation. Here, two matters, or two obligations, meet, each of which is an individual obligation. The first obligation is jihad in Afghanistan, as we have said. The second obligation is in the second scenario of seeking knowledge, which is individually obligatory knowledge. This scenario is closer to imagination than to reality. So here there is a conflict between two obligations. In this case, the one who is obligated is the one who must weigh the two matters: whichever he feels is more beneficial for him in refining his self and obeying his Lord, he should prioritize over the other. For example, this example is well-known among some jurists who derive their knowledge from the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). A young unmarried man has a certain amount of money with which he can fulfill one of two obligations: the first is performing Hajj to the House of Allah, and the second is protecting himself by getting married. What should he do? Should he get married before performing Hajj, or perform Hajj before getting married? The answer varies depending on the young man. For example, some young men are eager to marry, and they have a strong drive, intensity, and a strong desire and lust for marriage. It is said to such a person: this money you have, use it to get married, which is better than going to the House of Allah with the intention of fulfilling what Allah has obligated upon you, only to cause a problem there due to your sexual heat. So protect yourself first, then strive to gather the amount that enables you to fulfill the second obligation, which is Hajj.
And if the young man is not of this description, but rather he has a coolness regarding sex, then he is... praise be to Allah.

The questioner : May Allah have mercy on you.

The Shaykh : In this case, he performs Hajj, and then he also strives to gather the amount that enables him to fulfill the obligation of marriage. We firmly believe that marriage is obligatory for the unmarried young man, based on his saying (peace and blessings be upon him) We do not see the non-obligation of marriage except in a rare case, which may even be imaginary for most young men, and that is if he does not know or feel what is called sex today. He does not think about marriage at all, and he does not look at women. His look at the women he passes by and whose sight falls upon them is like his look at men, or even at inanimate objects. This is an imaginary thing. But if such a young man were to exist, it is not obligatory upon him because there is no fear for him. However, if he is as is expected of young men, and as is the nature of creation, as our Lord (Blessed and Exalted is He) indicated in His saying then he must strive to get married. And until he is able to get married, he should fast, for it is a restraint for him.
The summary, or the point of this example, is that the student of knowledge whom we described as one for whom acquiring it is an individual obligation is faced with this obligation of jihad, which is an individual obligation. Here, the student of knowledge is the one who judges and recommends one of the two obligations over the other, as we said regarding the young man who has money and can only fulfill one of the two obligations, either marriage or Hajj. The matter varies from one young man to another, as detailed previously.
Thus, the student of knowledge should... which knowledge is this? The individually obligatory knowledge that is an individual obligation. As for the collective obligation, there is no comparison, and the question is not valid. Its example, and I conclude the answer, is a man who performed Hajj to the House of Allah, fulfilled the obligation of Hajj, and has a certain amount of money with which he can perform Hajj, but he has not yet married. Should he be told to perform Hajj and then get married? We tell him to get married, because this second Hajj is a voluntary act, not an obligation.

The questioner : Yes.

The Shaykh : So the obligation must be prioritized. Here there are two obligations, both of equal weight. The one who decides is not the one who asked the question or the mufti, but rather the one who asked the question, because he knows himself better than others. And here comes his saying (peace and blessings be upon him), as it appears to me, or , others.

The questioner : Another question, Your Eminence.