I entered upon the students of hadith and I passed by the circle of Qaasim al-Joo’ee. I found a group sitting around him and he was speaking. Their appearence amazed me and I herad him saying:
“Seize the benefit of five things from the people of your time: When you are present you are not known; When you are absent you are not missed; When you are seen your advice is not saught; When you say something your saying is not accepted and When you have some knowledge you are not given anything for it. I also advised you with five things: When you are treated unjustly then do not behave unjustly; When you are praised then do not become happy; When you are criticized do not be upset; When your are not believed do not become angry; And if people act deceitfully towards you do not act deceitfully towards them.”
Ibn Abee Haatim said: “So I took that as my benefit from Damascus.”
I wanted to write this article to remind myself and by brothers and sisters about manners that one should observe during an Islamic lesson. This is something that is very easy to forget at times as most of us have been raised up in the west and many of us have not travelled abroad and sat amongst the scholars and students of knowledge to observe and imitate their manners in classes. This is especially important for those brothers and sisters who are looking to seek in-depth knowledge of the Deen to become callers of Islam, serious students of knowledge, scholars or to become leaders. Having good manners opens many doors of goodness for a person; in fact it is reported in an authentic hadith that good manners will be something that will be very heavy on the Scales. Good manner is to deal with people as you like to be dealt with. Our discussion here will only deal with in-class manners.
Firstly; coming to the class early and not strolling in late.
This shows ones zeal, determination and enthusiasm for seeking knowledge. The Salaf always practiced this in their quest for knowledge.
‘Abdullah bin Ahmad bin Hanbal narrated that he heard his father say: “Sometimes, I would want to go out early to hear hadith. So, my mother would grab my clothes, saying: “At least wait for the prayer to be called and the people to wake up.” I would go out early to the classes of Abu Bakr bin ‘Ayyash and others.”
However, if one cannot come on time or cannot attend the lesson then one should inform the teacher and apologise beforehand.
Secondly; greet everyone with the salam and one should greet the Sheikh or the teacher with extra attention and honor. One should come to class with best clothes and the best perfumes on. Also one should attend the classes fully equipped with a note pad and a luscious pen to write down the knowledge. The person should come to class in a state of wudu’ and be well groomed – all this will physiologically prepare for the intake of the knowledge. One must feel like a seeker of knowledge to become a student of knowledge.
Thirdly; sitting down properly.
How is this achieved? One should try to sit on the edge of the circles, avoid sitting too close or at the middle of the circle.
Imam az-Zarnooji said: “It further behooves the student not to sit too close to the teacher during a lecture except under necessity. In fact, it is important that the pupils sit in a semi-circle at a certain distance from the teacher; this is more appropriate [in showing] due respect.”
Al-Khatib (may Allah have Mercy on him) that Sufyan bin ‘Uyaynah said: “Ka’b was with ‘Umar bin al-Khattab, and he sat far from the circle. ‘Umar reprimanded him for this, and Ka’b said: “O Commander of the Believers! From the wisdoms of Luqman and his advices to his son are: “O son! If you sit next to the ruler, allow enough space for one man between you and him, as someone might come along who is more important to him than you, and would then have to get up and move, and this would be a form of degradation for you.”””
Muhammad Raslaan further clarifies this issue by saying, “He should not lean against a wall or pillow in the presence of his shaykh, or place his hands on them. He should not give his shaykh his side or back, and should not lean on his hand to the back or side...He should sit with humility and character in the manner of a student, not a teacher. He shouldn’t raise his voice often without a reason. Rather, he should sit in front of his teacher fully attentive and listening, and shouldn’t precede him in explaining or answering a question. And he shouldn’t make anyone get up from his spot, and if anyone takes his spot, he shouldn’t take it back unless there is some benefit in doing so. He shouldn’t sit in the middle of the circle unless there is a need for this, and he shouldn’t sit between two companions except with their permission...”
In addition to all these points, one should not sit whilst stretching his legs towards his teacher or his fellow students; this is not from good manners. Secondly, one should not sit or occupy the teacher’s seat which then forces the teacher to move elsewhere! If one is new to a circle, and the person does not know where the teacher normally sits – the person should ask his fellow students who have been attending before him to clarify this.
Fourthly; during the lesson itself.
Imam az-Zarnooji said: “And do not begin speaking in his presence without his permission, and do not speak to any great extent before him without his permission.”
Bakr Abu Zayd added: “Do not precede him in speech or in your steps, or talk excessively in his presence, and do not continually interrupt him while he is speaking or during his lecture. Do not continually pester him for an answer to your question and avoid extensive questioning especially in the presence of an audience, for indeed this attracts self-delusion [on your behalf] and [causes the sheikh] to become bored.”
The students should have the best manners in dealing with his fellow students and this itself is a manifestation of respect for the teacher and the class itself. The person should avoid getting angry, showing annoyance towards a fellow student, making jokes in the class and laughing loud and excessively. In the west, we are so costumed to these things in our everyday lives and thus we forget when we fall in to these things. All these things mar the relationship between that student and the teacher, and one is deprived of much good in his seeking knowledge.
Al-Khatib (may Allah have Mercy on him) reported that Ahmad bin Sinan al-Qattan said:“Nobody in the class of Abd ar-Rahman bin Mahdi would even speak, sharpen a pen, or smile. If he saw that someone spoke or sharpened a pen, he would get up, put on his shoes, and go home.”
‘Abd ar-Rahman bin ‘Umar said that a man laughed in the class of ‘Abd ar-Rahman bin Mahdi, and he asked: “Who laughed?” Everyone pointed to the man, and he scolded him: “You seek knowledge and laugh? I will not teach any of you for a month!”
Also, Waki’ and his students were as if they were in prayer during their classes, and if something happened in the class that annoyed him, he would put on his shoes and go home and Ibn Numayr would get angry and leave, and his face would change colour if he saw someone sharpening a pencil.
Imam az-Zarnooji further said: “In seeking knowledge, it is essential to listen to [words of] knowledge and wisdom with reverence and veneration, even if one hears the same question and same words a thousand times. It is said that when one’s respect [for knowledge] after [hearing it] a thousand times is not equal to his respect the first time [he heard it], he is not worthy of knowledge.”
Muhammad Raslaan wrote: “He should not precede the shaykh in explaining an issue, answering a question, or showing his knowledge of a matter before his shaykh. He should not cut him off in speech and then talk, and he shouldn’t speak with someone else while the shaykh is speaking to him or the class.”
So what we learn from all these statements is that one should take the seeking knowledge seriously; it is a serious matter – it is worship, some scholars said, “Knowledge is a secretive prayer and the worship of the heart.” One should constantly strive to shun the bad manners that have accumulated over the years. In doing so, it will help the person excel in knowledge, Insha-Allah.
Fifthly; asking questions in the class.
We have already touch upon this issue, asking questions and having dialogues is a great way to learn but there are times and place for it. During the class itself, one should avoid asking questions. The questions should be asked in its correct place, in doing so one should be soft and gentle in asking the correct questions. If one has a question, it should be just noted on the side to be asked after the class if the teacher permits it. One should also avoid asking questions when the teacher is tired or when is in a hurry. The teacher may not refuse to answer a question or a request even though the teacher may be tired or busy, but this will certainly cause annoyance to the teacher – which one should definitely avoid! One should generally avoid asking for things or requests during the class from the teachers as this may put the teacher in inconvenience.
If the teacher asks, ‘Did you understand this issue?’ – The person should not say, ‘Yes!’ unless he has actually understood the issue at hand. The person should not be shy from saying, ‘I don’t know.’ or ‘I don’t understand.’ if he did not understand it. This is the time when a person should speak because the teacher has asked him a question. The fellow students should be patients if they have understood the issue.
Mujahid (may Allah have Mercy on him) said: “Nobody who is either too shy or too arrogant will learn this knowledge.”
‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) said: “How excellent are the women of the Ansar! They did not let their shyness prevent them from learning the Religion.”
Al-Khalil bin Ahmad (may Allah have Mercy on him) said: “The station of ignorance is between shyness and arrogance.”
Finally; departing from the class.
One should leave the class after the teacher has permitted this. If he needs to leave before the class ends, he should inform the teacher beforehand. If he needs to leave during lesson, he should apologise and seek the teacher permission before departing, i.e. ‘I seek your permission to leave Sheikh.’Before leaving, one should greet the teacher and make a du’a for him, i.e. ‘Jazakumullah Khair...’ and make his way after greeting the fellow students.
We will end with a comprehensive statement from Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) which summarises what has come before.
‘Ali (may Allah be Pleased with him) said: “From the rights of the scholar are that you greet the gathering and then greet the shaykh specifically; you should sit in front of him; you should not point here and there, wink, etc. in front of him; do not come out and tell him that fulan differs with him in a given matter; do not backbite anybody in his presence; and do not ask him intricate and complicated questions. If he makes a mistake, make an excuse for him, and it is upon you to honor him for the Sake of Allah, the Exalted. If he needs something, you should be the first to tend to his need; do not attract attention in his circle; do not grab his clothing; do not insist on something if he is too tired; do not think that you can have enough of his friendship, as he is like the palm tree from which you wait for something to fall on you.”
