What is your opinion on the early writing of a student of knowledge?

The questioner : What is your opinion on the early writing?

The Shaykh : Regarding what?

The questioner : What is your opinion on the early writing of a student of knowledge, and is it true that it sharpens the student of knowledge's mind?

The Shaykh : No, it is not true. And naturally, I understand from your question that the writing you are asking about is the book that is printed and published. But I say that he should write for himself and collect it in his library until he feels academic maturity. At that time, he brings out what he has written to the people. And without a doubt, he will not be able to bring out what he has written as his first, second, or third work without reviewing it. Because he will feel that, as time passes, many of his opinions and ideas have changed. The example is before you. I have a book that is the first fruit of my work, and it is the one to which I refer in many of my books. It is known as *Al-Rawd al-Nazir* in the arrangement and tracing of *Al-Mu'jam al-Saghir* of al-Tabarani. I have two large volumes of it, but I do not agree to print it. Because whenever an occasion arises and I return to it, I say, "How did I say this?" There is nothing strange about it, for knowledge does not proceed except step by step. I give you an example. May Allah reward me for alerting the Muslim scholar today to it, after I had fallen into disagreement with it. You, as students of knowledge, know now that Ibn Hibban is an imam among the imams of hadith, and one of those who critique and vindicate narrators, and it is said of him that he is lenient in authentication. When I wrote this book, I relied on the authentication of Ibn Hibban, as I was like other students in this time and before. Ibn Hibban authenticated him, and the matter ended there. But with time, it became clear to me that the authentication of Ibn Hibban is not always relied upon. So I began in all my books to draw attention to this fact. Now, many of my students, especially at the Islamic University and in other places of knowledge, have what I did not have. I was ignorant of it, then I discovered myself, so I began to alert people that the authentication of Ibn Hibban should be taken with caution, because he authenticates unknown narrators. A considerable time passed, and then I discovered that if Ibn Hibban uniquely authenticates a man, he may still be trustworthy. And I recently wrote this in some books. How is that? If Ibn Hibban authenticates a man, and that man has many narrators, then by the narration of these many from that narrator who is unknown to others, he moves from specific ignorance to current ignorance. Then this current ignorance is filtered for the slightest occasion of authentication if the imam Ibn Hibban authenticates him. Likewise, it became clear to me, and the merit for this last point belongs to another, namelyThe Shaykh : 'Abd al-Rahman al-Mu'allimi (may Allah have mercy on him), that if the authenticated one is among the teachers of Ibn Hibban, he is trustworthy, because he authenticates him from knowledge. Whereas he authenticates people from the Tabi'un or those after them, saying of some of them explicitly, "I do not know him, and I do not know his father." How is he trustworthy with you when you do not know him and do not know his father? This is something he uniquely did without the people. The summary is that these are things I was unaware of for some years, ten years, and Allah is most knowing of that. But with time, I discovered the truth. And therefore, I do not advise students of knowledge to rush to publish their books and papers. Rather, they should write what is in them, because this writing may practice them, may preserve their information in a book or a paper, and they should put it on the shelf, as I did with *Al-Rawd al-Nazir*. And in my belief, this book will remain as it is until I die. Why? Because I do not find the time that would allow me to review it from beginning to end until it is suitable for publication among people. And therefore, beginners in knowledge are a great danger if they write and publish. But it is in their interest that they write and save and withhold their writings until after a time when they feel academic maturity, if Allah wills.