Fake Scholars vs Scholars of the Hereafter

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

Proper knowledge of Islam is key to proper worshiping of Allah and ultimately loving Him. Having attained the state of true love for Allah, each stage that follows it is one of its fruits and a branch from its roots - such as longing, intimacy and contentment, and each stage that precedes it - such as repentance, perseverance and doing without. Allah is the One to Whom hearts turn in love, exhalation and glorification, humility, submission and worship. Such worship cannot be directed towards other than Him. It is the perfection of love accompanied by complete submission and humility. Allah is loved for His own sake in every respect. All except Him are loved for the love they give in return.

Imam Ghazali (may Allah's Ta'ala mercy be with him) said “We have to love Allah Subhanu wa Ta’ala but we also have to fear him and we are in the middle of this and we know if we disobey him we can do two things. Either turn further away in ignorance or ask for forgiveness and we will attain forgiveness.”

Today, so many things have changed with the creation of the internet. You can find Islamic knowledge at your fingertips. There is no excuse for anyone not to learn Islam.

They are also many teachers (called Shaykh, Shaykhah, Imam, Ustaz, Ustazah, da'e, etc), aka scholars, out there who can teach you Islam. There are local ones who give lessons and there are also those who come from various parts of the world to speak at local masjids, Islamic conventions, forums and retreats. Some are vibrant and some are mellow. Some are down to earth and some would not even respond to your salaams (maybe they are too busy with fans that they could not hear your salaams or maybe they don't need your salaams or maybe you are just a little nobody that they don't see you).

You may pick who you want to listen to and choose who you don't want to listen from. If you are confused about anything they said, then you have to recognize something. Like all humans, all scholars have faults. Some have more faults than others. So we take what is good and ignore what is bad from them. But we have to be very careful of the so-called scholars. They can be a huge distractions and time wasters, for all they are good at is riling up the audience. These people cause problems for the Muslim Ummah and they are more dangerous than anything else. Just because they have a title Shaykh, Ustaz, Ustazah, Imam, Doctors or the like before their names or just because they have 10s of thousands fans, that doesn't mean you can take from them.

Many people are driven away because of fake scholars. Who are the fake scholars? These are people who think they have knowledge but when we compare it with their character and behavior, especially at home and in private life, we will be shocked.

Knowledge is what benefits you and what is manifested in your person. Knowledge leads you to better your character and increases your understanding.

Imam Ghazali said knowledge is not to narrate a lot but to have piety, righteousness and fear of Allah.

Knowledge is a vehicle that leads you to a destination. The destination is meeting with Allah. Very few people know the purpose of knowledge.

A person who teaches others and spreads knowledge and does not manifest it in himself, his character is like a doctor who prescribed medicine for others and he himself is sick.

Until the purpose of knowledge is clear to the person, he will harm himself with his knowledge. He becomes of those who are lost and his destiny may be Hellfire. The scholar who doesn’t apply his knowledge will be punished before idol worshipers.

Allah Almighty says,

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لِمَ تَقُولُونَ مَا لَا تَفْعَلُونَ ﴿٢﴾ كَبُرَ مَقْتًا عِندَ اللَّـهِ أَن تَقُولُوا مَا لَا تَفْعَلُونَ ﴿٣﴾
O you who have believed, why do you say what you do not do? (2) Great is hatred in the sight of Allah that you say what you do not do. (3)

[Qur'an, As-Saff 61:2-3]

Abu Hurairah (radi Allahu anhu) narrated that Rasul Allah (sal Allahu alaihi wa sallam) said:

"The first of men (whose case) will be decided on the Day of Judgement will be a man who died as a martyr. He shall be brought forth. Allah will make him recount His blessings (i. e. the blessings which He had bestowed upon him) and he will recount them (and admit having enjoyed them in his life). (Then) will Allah say: ‘What did you do (to requite these blessings)?’ He will say: ‘I fought for You until I died as a martyr.’ Allah will say: ‘You have told a lie. You fought so that you may be called a brave warrior. And you were called so.’ (Then) orders will be passed against him and he will be dragged with his face downward and cast into Hell.

Then a man will be brought forward who acquired knowledge and imparted it (to others) and recited the Qur’an. He will be brought forth and Allah will make him recount His blessings and he will recount them (and admit having enjoyed them in his lifetime). Then Allah will ask: ‘What did you do (to requite these blessings)?’ He will say: ‘I acquired knowledge and disseminated it and recited the Qur’an seeking Your pleasure.’ Allah will say: ‘You have told a lie. You acquired knowledge so that you may be called a scholar, and you recited the Qur'an so that you may be called a Qari and such has been said.’ Then orders will be passed against him and he shall be dragged with his face downward and cast into the Fire.

Then a man will be brought whom Allah had made abundantly rich and had granted every kind of wealth. He will be brought forth and Allah will make him recount His blessings and he will recount them and (admit having enjoyed them in his lifetime). Allah will (then) ask: ‘What have you done (to requite these blessings)?’ He will say: ‘I spent money in every cause in which You wished that it should be spent.’ Allah will say: ‘You are lying. You did so, so that you may be called a generous person, and so it was said.’ Then Allah will pass orders and he will be dragged with his face downward and thrown into Hell.”

[Sahih Muslim]

A scholar of the Hereafter will receive salvation and gain nearness of Allah. There are many signs of the scholars of the Hereafter which includes:

1. He/she does not seek the world by his/her religious earning. He/she considers the world as insignificant and the hereafter as great and ever lasting. At the very least a scholar is someone aware of this world’s wretchedness, triviality, sordidness, and ephemerality; and the next world’s magnificence, permanence, blessings, and vastness – and that the two are opposites.

2. His words and actions are the same, rather he does not order an action to be done without first doing it himself.

3. The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Don't accompany every learned man. Be with the learned man who calls towards five matters: towards faith from doubt, sincerity from show, modesty from pride, love from enmity, and asceticism from worldliness.

4. He is devoted to knowledge that will be useful for the next world, that which increases desire for acts of worship, he will avoid those learning that are of little benefit, or mainly debate and gossip.

5. He is disinclined to luxury in food and drink, enjoyment of clothes, and embellishment of furnishings and housing, preferring less therein, emulating the early Muslims (Allah have mercy on them), and inclining towards the minimum in everything.

6. He is a man who fears of Allah and to avoid all manner of risk.

7. He keeps himself distant from the ruling authorities and avoids their company, because this world is sweet, ever new and its bridle is in their hands. He who get closer to them is not free from their pleasures and harms. They are mostly unjust and do not obey the advice of the learned men.

8. He is reluctant to give formal legal opinion (fatwa), refrains from verdicts about matters unclear, and avoids giving opinions whenever he can. When he is asked and if he knows he gives his opinion. When he has doubt, he says, "I don't know." He is careful not to commit himself but refer the matter to someone else who is more capable than him.

(The great Imam Malik, Allah be pleased with him, once was asked about 40 questions by someone who traveled from a far away land of Iraq to Madinah to present these questions from his people, and all Imam Malik could say was "I don't know" for all of them except a few.")

9. His main concern is the knowledge of the inward and keeping watch over his heart, knowing the path of the next world and traveling it, knowing the path of the next world and traveling it, sincerely hoping to be shown it by combating his ego (mujahada) and spiritual vigilance over himself (muraqaba), since subduing the ego leads to beholding the Divine (mushahada).

10. He is sincere and upright for making his faith firm and strong, as firm faith is the root of religion. He perpetually strives to deepen his inward certitude (yaqin), which is one’s capital in religion.

11. He is somber, subdued, bowed of head, and spare of words, the awe of the Divine being plain in his manner and dress, movements and rest, speech and silence. No one sees him without being reminded of Allah Most High, his mien bespeaking his works.

12. He mainly seeks knowledge of spiritual works and what vitiates them, what disturbs the heart, what raises baseless misgivings (waswasa), and what provokes evil, for preventing evil is the basis of religion.

13. A scholar refused to accept the judgement of a scholar who did not read 2 Juz of the Quran a day. The religion binds hearts to Allah Subhanu wa Ta’ala, If he doesn’t have the ilm that enlightens the heart, its not light.

14. He relies in his branches of learning upon genuine insight and what he knows from the bottom of his heart, not merely upon what he finds by reading treatises and books, or blindly repeating what he has heard another say. For the only one unconditionally followed is he who brought us the Sacred Law (Allah bless him and give him peace), in what he commanded and stated. The prophetic Companions are but followed because their deeds indicate what they heard from the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace).

14. He shuns spurious matters in religion newly begun [such as, for Ghazali, purely speculative scholastic theology], even if a scholarly majority adopt them, being undeceived by what was inaugurated after the Companions (Allah be well pleased with them); but rather dedicating himself to learning how they were, and what they did in their lives.”

15. Another sign of the learned man of the next world is that he becomes humble and adopts silence. The effect of the fear of Allah appears on his body, dress, character movements, speech and silence. His sight reminds one of Allah and his nature and character are proofs of his actions. His eye is a mirror of his mind. The signs of the learned man of the hereafter are recognized in his face, tranquility, modesty and freedom from pride and vanity. A sage said, "Allah has not given a man with a garment better than the garment of the fear of Allah. It is the garment of the Prophets, Siddiqs (the truthful) and the learned men".

Allah Almighty says,

يَا بَنِي آدَمَ قَدْ أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكُمْ لِبَاسًا يُوَارِي سَوْآتِكُمْ وَرِيشًا ۖ وَلِبَاسُ التَّقْوَىٰ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ آيَاتِ اللَّـهِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَذَّكَّرُونَ ﴿٢٦﴾
O children of Adam, We have bestowed upon you clothing to conceal your private parts and as adornment. But the clothing of righteousness - that is best. That is from the signs of Allah that perhaps they will remember.

[Al-Araf 7:26]

Where do you find true scholars? Once I asked one of my teachers..."Where do I find a good and righteous scholar?" He did not give me a direct answer but said, do lots of salawat upon the Prophet sallallahhu alayhi wassallam (sending blessings upon the Prophet). Looking back throughout my journey and after knowing some of the virtues of sending blessings upon Allah's beloved Messenger sallallahhu alayhi wassallam, that was indeed the best response to my question.

Allah, The Exalted, states:

إِنَّ اللَّـهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ ۚ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا ﴿٥٦

Verily, Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet: O you who believe, send blessings upon him and salute him with all due respect to him. (56)

[Qur'an Al-Ahzab 33:56]

The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wassallam said,

From those from among my community who send blessings upon me sincerely from his heart, Allah will shower His blessings upon him ten times, elevate his status by ten, and will have the angels record ten good deeds for him and will erase ten of his sins." [Nasa’i]

May Allah preserve all the scholars of the Hereafter for the Ummah and guide us to them enable us to follow in the footsteps of the greatest teacher humanity has ever known, Allah's Messenger sallallahu alayhi wassallam. Ameen.

لَّقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِي رَ‌سُولِ اللَّـهِ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْ‌جُو اللَّـهَ وَالْيَوْمَ الْآخِرَ‌ وَذَكَرَ‌ اللَّـهَ كَثِيرً‌ا ﴿٢١

There has certainly been for you in the Messenger of Allah an excellent pattern for anyone whose hope is in Allah and the Last Day and [who] remembers Allah often. (21) [Qur'an, Al-Ahzab 33:21]

And Allah knows best and He alone grant success.

Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wassallam

Wassalaam

Related Archives:
Sending Blessings Upon the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wassallam
Counsels on Reciting the Qur'an

Sources: Sea Without Shore and others