Imām ash-Shafi’ī & His Shaykh

 

Often times as students of knowledge we set our goals in terms of Ayāt and Abyāt, or how many verses and lines of text to memorize. It is easier to gauge our progress by taking measure of how much we have memorized. In times of distress or confusion regarding what to do in our lives, it is natural to seek out the counsel of trusted scholars and supplicating to Allah to remove the distress from us.

However is there anything else that we can focus on in our daily lives that can limit what we are caused to forget of the Qur’ān or Ahādīth? Is there anything we can do every day that will open our heart and intellect and make them better receptacles for knowledge?

Imām ash-Shafi’ī undoubtedly had a powerful memory. It is reported that he memorized al-Muwata from Imām Mālik in a single day. However he began to sense a deficiency in his ability to memorize and retain information, so he asked his Shaykh, the famous Wakī’ bin al-Jarrāh about that. So this situation was turned into prose:

I complained to Wakī’ of a deficiency in my ability to memorize ** So he instructed me to abandon sin

And he said to me that knowledge is a light ** And the light of Allah is not granted to a sinner. [1]

Sin as a cause of forgetfulness was recognized by Abd Allah bin Mas’ūd, may Allah be pleased with him. [2] Many scholars who have compiled books about Hifdh, or memorization of Qur’ān and Hadīth, have made lists of the causes for forgetfulness, and have consistently included ‘Sin’ as one of the causes. So in order to preserve the power of memory and retain that which we have learned, it is important to avoid sin.

A relatively unknown way to increase memory and improve the ability to comprehend and grasp difficult concepts is to seek forgiveness from Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. It is also a way for a person to open themselves up to the mercy and blessings of Allah in general, among which are memory and comprehension.

Shaykh Ibn al-Uthaymīn mentioned something relevant to this:

“Some of our Mashā’ikh have mentioned to me that it is sufficient for whoever has a question about an issue to increase himself in seeking forgiveness from Allah, as extracted from the verse: {Indeed We have revealed to you the Book in truth in order that you judge between people with what Allah has shown you and not to argue on behalf of the traitors. And seek forgiveness from Allah; indeed Allah is Forgiving, Merciful}[an-Nisā’: 105,106]. Indeed to seek forgiveness a great deal leads to the removal of sins which are the reason for forgetting knowledge and [the state of] ignorance just as indicated in the verse: {Thus by their breach of their agreement We have cursed them and made their hearts hard; they change the words from their places and forget in error that which they were reminded}[al-Mā’idah: 13]. [3]

And the advice of Dr. Muhammad bin Khalīfah, a teacher at al-Madīnah University:

"So it is essential that the seeker of knowledge purify his heart of any cheating, tarnish, rancor, jealousy, or evil in regards to beliefs or character in order to be a suitable receptacle for knowledge, its preservation, and in order to capture the subtleties of its meanings and realities of its enigmas. Thus knowledge is as some of them say: '[It] is the secret prayer, the worship of the heart, and inner piety; and just as the prayer- which is worship of the outer limbs- is not acceptable without outer purification from impurity and filth, thus knowledge- which is worship of the heart- is of no use without purifying it from filthy attributes and the impurity of evil character and [impurity of the] garment [of the heart, i.e. character]'.” [4]

Some of the lessons that we can take from all of this is that:

• The seeker of knowledge should see memory and preservation of learned knowledge as a blessing from Allah which must be protected and guarded from remembering or learning evil or unbeneficial things.
• The seeker of knowledge must maintain a heart that is free of impurities and its garment, al-Akhlāq, free from those qualities unbefitting a Believer.
• The seeker of knowledge must be constant in Istighfār or seeking forgiveness from Allah in order to be relieved of not only those sins which can be recalled or perceived but also those that we may be unaware of as well.

We ask Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, to convey our greetings and blessings to the Prophet Muhammad, to be pleased with the Companions and Imām al-A’immah ash-Shāfi’ī, to have mercy on Shaykh Ibn al-Uthaymīn, to preserve Dr. Muhammad bin Khalīfah and the teachers and volunteers at the Cordoba Academy. Ameen.

References

[1] From a collection of poems attributed but not all authentically established on his authority called: Dīwān al-Imām ash-Shāfi’ī p. 18

شَكَوْتُ إِلَى وَكِيعٍ سُوءَ حِفْظِي... فَأَرْشَنِي إِلَى تَرْكِ الْمَعَاصِي

وَقَالَ بِأَنَّ الْعِلْمَ نُورٌ ... وَنُورُ اللهِ لَا يُؤتَاهُ عَاصِي

[2] al-Jāmī’ li-Akhlāq ir-Rāwī wa Ādāb is-Sāmi’ by al-Khatīb 2/258

[3] al-Ilm 1/202

[4] Seeking Knowledge: Between Faithfulness in Its Undertaking and Responsibility for Its Execution 1/18, by Dr. Muhammad bin Khalīfah bin Alī at-Tamīmī