Importance of Sitting with Scholars

As for sitting with scholars, there is no doubt that it is

entirely good. Therefore, in the authentic hadith,

Allah, Glorious and Exalted, says, “They are the people whose companion

will not suffer misery.” That alone is enough for you.

It is enough. If we limited ourselves to this, it would suffice. They are the people whose companion will not suffer

misery. The story—or rather, the hadith—is well known:

the hadith about the angels who travel around, those

who seek out gatherings of remembrance and lessons in religious knowledge.

When they mentioned to Allah, Glorious and Exalted, a servant who had not come at all

for knowledge, but had come for something worldly, He said, “They are

the people whose companion will not suffer misery.”

They are the people whose companion will not suffer misery. Therefore,

sitting with scholars is entirely good. People

seek honor through a number of things.

Some seek honor through social standing,

some seek honor through office, and some seek

honor through wealth, while others seek honor

by affiliating themselves with a tribe, for example, and so on.

But when you reflect on these things, you find that they are destined to fade.

Yet there is no nobler or better

form of honor than the honor of knowledge. It endures

as long as the heavens and the earth endure. Therefore, even now

we remember scholars from hundreds and thousands

The years have passed, their people are gone, yet

their names and knowledge remain, and so do

the fruits

of their calling, even after hundreds or thousands of years. This shows you

what? That they truly were, as the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: prayer

and peace be upon him, scholars are the heirs of the prophets,

and the prophets did not leave behind a dinar or a dirham,

but rather, they left knowledge.

Whoever takes it has gained a great share.

The least a person gains

is this good reputation. When asked where he got it, he says,

“By God, from such-and-such a sheikh.” His reputation rises among people,

and people look at him with awe and reverence,

because a person follows the one closest to him by comparison,

and people are judged by their companions. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him,

said, “A person follows the religion of his close friend, so let

each of you consider whom he befriends.”

People judge you by the companion you choose,

so keep the company of the righteous, rise and gain a reputation

that is good

and gain a good reputation. As the Arabs say about a companion,

“A companion pulls along his companion,” and character

is contagious. That is why you find some common people who

associate with scholars adopting their dress.

I remember a man who, I mean, had no

great share even in understanding, even in understanding,

But he used to associate with scholars, so I took a photo of him at

a gathering. May God have mercy on him, he passed away recently.

The prince said, within his hearing, “Who is

this judge?” He was a man who even had

a slight stammer, some simplicity, and weakness in

understanding. But from associating so much with

scholars, he began to adorn himself in their attire.

Therefore, gatherings of scholars today are gatherings of goodness, gardens

from the gardens of Paradise. You never leave them

without a benefit, without a benefit, ever. Sometimes even

one single benefit comes from gatherings of scholars.

Therefore, a person should make an effort to sit with

scholars.