What is the optimal method for a beginner in seeking the knowledge of hadith and rijal?
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The questioner : What is the optimal method for a beginner in seeking knowledge, specifically regarding the knowledge of hadith and the knowledge of rijal?
The Shaykh : By Allah, this answer is very difficult, because this requires establishing a methodology and a program for seeking this knowledge, which, unfortunately, has been neglected by the majority of scholars for a long time. I am not a programmer who can set a program for a student of knowledge on how to study this science. However, I believe that this knowledge can actually be acquired by studying it under scholars who specialize in it. If the student of knowledge lives in a country where there are few students or specialists in this knowledge, we advise him to read some of the books written on terminology (mustalah) that have easy wording and do not contain technical terms that the general public does not understand. I advise the student of knowledge, if he is studying it personally, to start with the book *Ikhtisar 'Ulum al-Hadith* by Ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi, along with the commentary that Ahmad Shakir (may Allah have mercy on him), the Egyptian, wrote on it. This man is one of the rare scholars of hadith in the present era who studied this knowledge theoretically and dealt with it practically. Then he should progress to study the sources and origins from which Ibn Kathir derived this book, such as the *Muqaddimah* of Ibn al-Salah, *'Ulum al-Hadith* by Abu 'Abd Allah al-Hakim, and *al-Kafiyah* by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, and so on. After that, meaning, if he has grasped the path, Allah the Exalted will guide him; Allah guides to the straight path. He must ask the scholars or students of knowledge around him if some of the terms are unclear to him. This is what can be said now in answer to this question.The Shaykh : Abu Malik: And may Allah reward you with good, our Shaykh, and bless you. I ask Allah the Great, Lord of the Throne, to prolong your life, to bless your efforts, and to strengthen your back.
Abu Malik: And may Allah reward you well, our Shaykh, and bless you. I ask Allah the Great, Lord of the Throne, to extend your life, to bless your efforts, and to strengthen your back.
Abu Malik: And may He make you always a prominent scholar, a sword of knowledge against the faces of the enemies of the Sunnah and the Book.
Abu Malik: And to make you always a prominent light, a sword of knowledge in the faces of the enemies of the Sunnah and the Book.
The Shaykh : By Allah, this answer is very difficult, because this requires establishing a methodology and a program for seeking this knowledge, which, unfortunately, has been neglected by the majority of scholars for a long time. I am not a programmer who can set a program for a student of knowledge on how to study this science. However, I believe that this knowledge can actually be acquired by studying it under scholars who specialize in it. If the student of knowledge lives in a country where there are few students or specialists in this knowledge, we advise him to read some of the books written on terminology (mustalah) that have easy wording and do not contain technical terms that the general public does not understand. I advise the student of knowledge, if he is studying it personally, to start with the book *Ikhtisar 'Ulum al-Hadith* by Ibn Kathir al-Dimashqi, along with the commentary that Ahmad Shakir (may Allah have mercy on him), the Egyptian, wrote on it. This man is one of the rare scholars of hadith in the present era who studied this knowledge theoretically and dealt with it practically. Then he should progress to study the sources and origins from which Ibn Kathir derived this book, such as the *Muqaddimah* of Ibn al-Salah, *'Ulum al-Hadith* by Abu 'Abd Allah al-Hakim, and *al-Kafiyah* by al-Khatib al-Baghdadi, and so on. After that, meaning, if he has grasped the path, Allah the Exalted will guide him; Allah guides to the straight path. He must ask the scholars or students of knowledge around him if some of the terms are unclear to him. This is what can be said now in answer to this question.The Shaykh : Abu Malik: And may Allah reward you with good, our Shaykh, and bless you. I ask Allah the Great, Lord of the Throne, to prolong your life, to bless your efforts, and to strengthen your back.
Abu Malik: And may Allah reward you well, our Shaykh, and bless you. I ask Allah the Great, Lord of the Throne, to extend your life, to bless your efforts, and to strengthen your back.
Abu Malik: And may He make you always a prominent scholar, a sword of knowledge against the faces of the enemies of the Sunnah and the Book.
Abu Malik: And to make you always a prominent light, a sword of knowledge in the faces of the enemies of the Sunnah and the Book.
Source
www.al-albany.com
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