Introduction
From the dawn of Islam until today, there have been magnanimous men who shaped Islamic history. These scholars lived and passed, but their legacy lives on. This essay will examine some of the common traits of the great Muslim scholars in the Islamic tradition.
Early Commencement
An evident pattern in analyzing the lives of many great scholars is that they began learning at a young age, especially the memorization of the Quran. The absorbent mind of a child is well known, and for parents and teachers today, this time should be capitalized on before children grow up and memorization becomes difficult.
The companion Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (ra) accepted Islam at a young age, and he dedicated his life to serving the Prophet ﷺ. Greatly impacted by the presence, dua, and light of the Prophet ﷺ, he had the honor of becoming a master in tafsir, in addition to mastery of hadith and fiqh.
Al-Hasan al-Basri, a tabi’i (of the generation that followed the Companions), memorized the Quran in his youth and went on to learn the various Islamic disciplines. Imam ash-Shafi’i was a young boy when he moved to Mecca and acquired his religious knowledge. He memorized the Quran by the age of seven or nine, along with the Mu’ta of Imam Malik soon after. He continued learning and teaching until the end of his life.
Close proximity to Great Teachers
A well-known factor in achieving great goals is the company one keeps. In today’s world, there are many Muslims who do not have access to a qualified teacher. Being connected to a person who has the light of faith and can transmit that knowledge to the student is of the essence, and when we look at the lives of these scholars, we can see that this was a defining element in their quest.
A prime example of this close proximity starts with the companion of the Prophet ﷺ, Abdullah ibn al-’Abbas. A cousin of the Prophet ﷺ, he spent much of his youth in admiration of the Prophet ﷺ and inherited from him a wealth of piety and knowledge. He was able to narrate many hadiths. The Prophet ﷺ made dua for his understanding of the religion. After the passing of the Prophet ﷺ, he continued to seek out Companions and kept learning until he surpassed senior Companions of his time in knowledge.
Al-Hasan al-Basri nursed from Umm Salama (ra) and received wisdom and blessings through her milk. He also spent time listening to the Companions of Basra where he took in knowledge. Imam Abu Hanifa, who is considered one of the greatest men in history, didn’t simply receive his knowledge from a handful of books he read, or from one teacher he followed. Rather, he grew up in Kufa, a city rich in knowledge and scholars and studied under Hammad Ibn Sulaiman for 18 years. He was taught by almost 4000 teachers. Imam Ahmad learned and wrote hadiths from more than 280 scholars, including Qadi Abu Yusuf and Imam ash-Shafi’i.
Traveled for knowledge
Today some students will complain about having to go all the way to the mosque to attend a class, or turn on their cameras in an online class, or even about reading a long book. This attitude reveals how far off the sentiment towards seeking knowledge has come. When we look at the famous luminaries of Islam, we notice their high aspiration and motivation in traveling for years for sacred knowledge.
Imam al-Bukhari’s view toward knowledge is exemplified in his stance against teaching the children of the governor. “Knowledge must be sought; it does not seek anyone,” as he famously stated. Knowledge is not something to be given to the wealthy and powerful without them putting in the effort to seek it.
Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal traveled to Iraq, Syria, and Arabia in search of hadiths. He studied under Abu Yusuf and Muhammad ash-Shaybani, and wrote down about 300,000 hadiths.
Al-Kisai traveled to Basra and dedicated himself to studying grammar under Khalil al-Farhadi. He was inspired to immerse himself among the Bedouins of the Hijaz, writing down what he heard in his records with the fifteen bottles of ink he brought with him. For us, we must put in the physical effort to find a teacher, to review and retain the information, and to truly immerse ourselves into the knowledge if we want to truly transform.
Scholars of great Breadth
Knowledge has become a rare commodity today—it is hard to find a person who has gained mastery in one field, much less mastery of multiple disciplines. Being in an environment of people with low aspiration will lead to complacency and contentment with the bare minimum. Muslims today need to compare their accomplishments to those who came before. They must push their limits and make a wave in the ocean of knowledge and contribution to humanity.
One such individual, the revolutionary Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farhadi, had completely mastered the Arabic language in a way that simply cannot be compared to any master of knowledge today. He studied and molded the Arabic language and invented the categories of prosody, lexicon, diacritical marks, and phonetics.
In the fields of hadith and sira, Imam ibn Shihab al-Zuhri was the founder. He systematically compiled the hadith, following the order from Caliph ‘Umar ibn ‘Abd al-Aziz. His knowledge covered not only hadith, but also theology, fiqh, and history.
Ibn al-Qattan al-Fasi was a seventh century scholar who made major contributions to hadith, fiqh, Usul Al Fiqh, Ilm Al Rijal, Tafsir, and History. He authored a work called Bayan Al Wahm Wa Al Iyham al-Waqi’ayn fi Kitab Al Ahkam that identified errors and inconsistencies in hadith attributions and legal reasoning. These men took the path to perfection in their worship, and Allah opened multiple doors for them. If we would take the first step and attempt to reach mastery in one field, perhaps more doors will open for us as well.
Divided time for knowledge and worship, great acts of worship
The world we are living in today is filled with endless amounts of distraction. The devil wants us to be in heedlessness or complacency about doing the most with our time, but it doesn’t have to be that way. The great men of Islam all knew how to spend their time, in seeking Allah ﷻ and in helping others.
Sa’id ibn al-Musayyib was a great jurist and known for his piety and zuhd (asceticism); he fasted continuously. Khalil al-Farhadi preferred the akhira (the next life) over this world. Despite his immense knowledge and gifts, he remained unknown to the general public, avoided fame and preferred seclusion.
Imam an-Nawawi was a man who took full advantage of his time. He began with rigorous learning, and then began teaching. He was humble and dedicated, never allowing his nafs (ego/self) to be involved in his path. His works such as Al-Majmu’, Riyad As-Salihin and Arba’in An-Nawwawi are some of the most studied pieces among seekers of knowledge.
These men had mastery of their time because they understood the value of it. They took advantage of every minute they had on earth because they knew their akhira was dependent on every good deed they completed.
Not influenced or bribed by people.
One unfortunate reality today is that many Muslim states are funded and propped up by those who are in power. When it comes to speaking out against injustice, if it will cause them loss of power or wealth, they will not do it.
The example of Said ibn al-Musayib is striking. He was committed to the truth, without influence; he refused to accept money from the state treasury. Moreover, when the governor requested his daughter’s hand for his son, he refused. He married her to one of his students instead. Parents who are looking for a suitor for their daughters should look to his example. His priority was to leave his daughter in the hands of someone who had taqwa, and he knew this was better than social status or wealth.
Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas was not deterred in any way from going and seeking knowledge, even when an older Companion discouraged him from doing so. He went to the doorsteps of the Companions seeking knowledge until he became the most learned.
Abdullah ibn ‘Umar also embraced Islam at an early age and was constantly in the Prophet’s ﷺ gatherings. He distanced himself from political disputes, and this enabled him to focus on transmitting and practicing hadith.
Imam Abu Hanifa had a tense relationship with the ruling caliphs and refused to serve under Caliph al-Mansur. He was imprisoned and mistreated and passed away as a result.
Imam Ahmad went through imprisonment and torture for refusing to bow down to the authority, as they were stating lies about the Book of Allah.
Students would preserve and spread the scholar’s teachings and had many students themselves.
One last defining feature of these scholars is that they had students who preserved their knowledge. It is not enough to be a container of light; rather, one must impart the knowledge to the right students who understand the importance of the work. Without great students, we might not have the knowledge of Abu Hanifa recorded and spread in the way it has over the years.
Hafs ibn Sulayman dedicated his life to preserving and transmitting ‘Asim ibn Abi An-Najood’s recitation of the Quran. He then taught the knowledge to many, and his legacy lives on until today.
Nafi’ ibn Abu Nu’yam had many students such as Imam Malik; Imam Malik was the teacher of Imam ash-Shafi’i. Imam ash-Shafi’I harmonized the works of his teachers, Imam Malik and Abu Hanifa. Abu Hanifa had students who preserved his knowledge such as Muhammad ibn al-Hasan ash-Shaybani and Qadi Abu Yusuf, who spread his school of thought during the Caliphate of Harun ar-Rashid. Great teachers impact the people they are living with; great students bring that light to the future generations and help that knowledge live on.
Learning from Their Example
These are some of the traits that paved the way for the generations of knowledge in the Muslim Ummah. Scholars from the first century of Islam until today reformed, revolutionized, preserved, disseminated, corrected, updated, and compiled vast quantities of essential knowledge of the Quran, Hadith, and other sciences.Their lives are still remembered and reminisced about today; we are very much in need of an Imam al-Zuhri or ash-Shafi’i or al-Farhabi.
We should make an effort to apply these traits in our modern times. We should be meticulous in applying the sunnah, in doing things with ihsan (excellence); we should become authorities in what we know, and not settle for the bare minimum of knowledge and actions. We should be reliable people; we should be honest people; We should put a lot of effort into seeking knowledge and to take the time to understand it and soak it in; and we should teach it. We should have a network of companions around us; a community that we take from and give to.
Conclusion
Each of these men were selected to be household names not out of randomness but Allah ﷻ chose them for their sincerity and dedication. Starting from an early age, they gave their lives to learning and teaching, crossing rivers and climbing mountains to pass on the Muhammadan light and the guidance of the Quran. They are role models for us in how they lived ethically and dealt with politics, in how they worshiped, in how they took their knowledge seriously and put in great efforts.
None of these scholars simply popped up onto a platform and began preaching their truth. Rather, it took years of sitting with, listening to, and absorbing every part of the teacher’s way.The teachers they followed weren’t randomly selected, but rather they were scholars who were well known for their mastery of a particular field, such as hadith or Quran or language. They were not lazy and went to the greatest lengths and laid out the biggest sacrifices for the sake of the religion. They had high aspiration, acted sincerely for the sake of Allah ﷻ alone, were dedicated to truth over wealth or power, and had the right students to pass on their legacy. May we follow in their footsteps; and may God’s mercy be on each of their souls.
Student Serene Jabri, Ribaat Academic Institute, Written for Advanced Seminar: Muslim Men Scholars with Dr. Jumana ElSamna