Two Types of Knowledge

Here’s an important tradition that reminds us that Ahlul Bayt (as) know whatever that can possibly be known. It also points to the notion that there is a type of knowledge that neither the angels nor the messengers nor the Ahlul Bayt (peace be upon them all) can know. Only God is aware of all that is in the Mother Book and He is the only one that can carry out this hidden knowledge that everyone is blind to. 

            Here are a few interesting philosophical questions that are worth pondering upon:  There exists a type of knowledge that cannot be known by us. Can we consider this type of knowledge, knowledge to begin with? Knowledge by definition is something that can be known. How does this hidden type of knowledge fit in our definition and understanding of knowledge in general?  Perhaps knowledge shouldn’t be considered as something that is necessarily knowable?

The following tradition is authentic in its chain of narrators.

Arabic Text:

أَبُو عَلِيٍّ الْأَشْعَرِيُّ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عَبْدِ الْجَبَّارِ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ إِسْمَاعِيلَ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ النُّعْمَانِ عَنْ سُوَيْدٍ الْقَلَّاءِ عَنْ أَبِي أَيُّوبَ عَنْ أَبِي بَصِيرٍ عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ ع قَالَ:

إِنَّ لِلَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ عِلْمَيْنِ عِلْمٌ لَا يَعْلَمُهُ إِلَّا هُوَ وَ عِلْمٌ عَلَّمَهُ مَلَائِكَتَهُ وَ رُسُلَهُ فَمَا عَلَّمَهُ مَلَائِكَتَهُ وَ رُسُلَهُ ع فَنَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُ.

English Translation:

Abi Ja’far (peace be upon him) said:

 

Verily, for Allah, The Almighty, there are two [types of] knowledge: The knowledge that no one knows but He, and the knowledge that He has taught to the angels and messengers. So, what is taught to the angels and messengers (peace be upon them), we know, [too].

Source:

Al-Kafi, Volume 1, Page 256, Tradition #4

Here’s another similar tradition for which the chain of narrators is not evidently authentic. However, if we put this tradition side by side with two other almost identical traditions in the book بصائر الدرجات  (Basair Al-Darajat), and consider that its content is in harmony with the previous authentic tradition, we may come to view it as an acceptable tradition.

Arabic Text:

عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ صَالِحِ بْنِ السِّنْدِيِّ عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ بَشِيرٍ عَنْ ضُرَيْسٍ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا جَعْفَرٍ ع يَقُولُ:‏

إِنَّ لِلَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ عِلْمَيْنِ عِلْمٌ مَبْذُولٌ‏ وَ عِلْمٌ‏ مَكْفُوفٌ فَأَمَّا الْمَبْذُولُ فَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ مِنْ شَيْ‏ءٍ تَعْلَمُهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَ الرُّسُلُ إِلَّا نَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُ وَ أَمَّا الْمَكْفُوفُ فَهُوَ الَّذِي عِنْدَ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ فِي أُمِّ الْكِتَابِ إِذَا خَرَجَ نَفَذَ.

English Translation:

Aba Ja’far (peace be upon him) is heard to have said:

 

For Allah the Most Exalted there are two [kinds of] knowledge: Knowledge that is transferred and knowledge that is blind [or that we are blind to it]. The transferred knowledge is nothing from things known by angels and messengers except we know it. [All that the angels and messengers know, we know, too]. The knowledge that is blind [that we are blind to] is that which is with God, the Most Exalted, in the Mother Book, to be carried out.

Source:

Al-Kafi, Volume 1, Page 253, Tradition #3

In Basair Al-Darajat we can find the following:

حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ إِسْمَاعِيلَ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ الْحَكَمِ عَنْ ضُرَيْسٍ عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ ع قَالَ سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُول:‏

إِنَّ لِلَّهِ عِلْمَيْنِ‏ عِلْمٌ‏ مَبْذُولٌ‏ وَ عِلْمٌ مَكْفُوفٌ فَأَمَّا الْمَبْذُولُ فَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ مِنْ شَيْ‏ءٍ يَعْلَمُهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَ الرُّسُلُ إِلَّا وَ نَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُ وَ أَمَّا الْمَكْفُوفُ فَهُوَ الَّذِي عِنْدَهُ فِي أُمِّ الْكِتَابِ‏  إِذَا خَرَجَ نَفَذ.

Source:

Basair Al-Darajat, Volume 1, Page 109, Tradition #3

حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنِ الْبَرْقِيِّ عَنِ الرَّبِيعِ الْكَاتِبِ عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ بَشِيرٍ قَالَ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا جَعْفَرٍ ع يَقُول:‏

إِنَّ لِلَّهِ عِلْمَيْنِ‏ عِلْمٌ‏ مَبْذُولٌ‏ وَ عِلْمٌ مَكْنُونٌ فَأَمَّا الْمَبْذُولُ فَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ مِنْ شَيْ‏ءٍ تَعْلَمُهُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَ الرُّسُلُ إِلَّا نَحْنُ نَعْلَمُهُ وَ أَمَّا الْمَكْنُونُ فَهُوَ الَّذِي عِنْدَ اللَّهِ تَبَارَكَ وَ تَعَالَى فِي أُمِّ الْكِتَابِ إِذَا خَرَجَ نَفَذ

Source:

Basair Al-Darajat, Volume 1, Page 112, Tradition #18

The Good Tree

As we are busy purifying ourselves, in this Holy Month of Ramadhan, via our good deeds, prayers and supplications, knowing the similitude of the good tree may help us pursue our worship more enthusiastically. This tradition will hopefully accomplish two tasks. First, it will hopefully encourage us to devote more time to our religious studies and good deeds, in order to ensure that we, truly, are the followers of Ahlul Bayt (Peace be upon them). Second, it will hopefully provide us with a sense of tranquility and hope that if we do our part and adhere closely to the teachings of Ahlul Bayt (peace be upon them) and ensure that our deeds and lives are in line with their teachings, then we are attached to the good tree.  

Always keep in mind that our deeds speak much louder than our words. We exhibit our beliefs and faith, not through our words but through our actions. Anyone can memorize nice religious words to say when opportunity arrives, but not everyone has sufficient faith in their beliefs to exhibit them via actions. Thus, use this Holy Month to break old undesirable habits, and in turn, begin new desirable and religious habits. Remember, habits take time to break or to form. Do not give up, be patient and preserve through.

The following tradition is graded authentic.

Arabic Text:

عِدَّةٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ سَيْفٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ حُرَيْثٍ قَالَ:  
سَأَلْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع عَنْ قَوْلِ اللَّهِ - كَشَجَرَةٍ طَيِّبَةٍ أَصْلُها ثابِتٌ‏ وَ فَرْعُها فِي السَّماءِ(14:24)  قَالَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ص أَصْلُهَا وَ أَمِيرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ ع فَرْعُهَا وَ الْأَئِمَّةُ مِنْ ذُرِّيَّتِهِمَا أَغْصَانُهَا وَ عِلْمُ الْأَئِمَّةِ ثَمَرَتُهَا وَ شِيعَتُهُمُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَرَقُهَا هَلْ فِيهَا فَضْلٌ‏ قَالَ قُلْتُ لَا وَ اللَّهِ قَالَ وَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ الْمُؤْمِنَ لَيُولَدُ فَتُورَقُ وَرَقَةٌ فِيهَا وَ إِنَّ الْمُؤْمِنَ لَيَمُوتُ فَتَسْقُطُ وَرَقَةٌ مِنْهَا.

Farsi Translation:

عمرو بن حريث گويد: قول خداى تعالى را:  
«مانند درخت پاكى كه ريشه ‏اش برجا و شاخه‏اش سر به آسمان كشيده» (14:24) از امام صادق عليه السلام پرسيدم. حضرت فرمود: رسول خدا صلّى اللَّه عليه و آله اصل و ريشه آن درخت است و امير المؤمنين عليه السلام فرع (و تنه) آن و امامان از نسل آنها شاخه ‏هاى آن و علم امامان ميوه آن و شيعيان مؤمن ايشان برگهاى آنست، آيا در آن درخت چيز زياد ديگرى هست؟ عرضكردم: نه، بخدا. فرمود: بخدا كه چون مؤمنى متولد شود، برگى در آن درخت پيدا مى ‏شود و چون مؤمنى ميميرد، برگى از آن درخت مى‏ افتد.

English Translation:

Narrated by a number of our companions from Ahmed Ibn Mohamed from Ali Ibn Seif from his father from Amr Ibn Huraith who said: 
I asked Abu Abdullah (Peace be upon him) about the words of Allah the Most Exalted: “A goodly tree, whose root is firmly fixed, and its branches (reach) to the heavens.” (14:24).

He (peace be upon him) said: “The Messenger of Allah is its root, the Prince of the Faithfuls is its trunk. The Imams from their progeny are its branches, the knowledge of the imams is its fruits and their faithful Shia are its leaves. Is there anything else in that [tree]?”

I said, “No, by Allah.”

He (peace be upon him) said, “By Allah, when a faithful [Mu'min] is born a leaf blossoms upon it and when a faithful [Mu'min] dies, a leaf falls.”

Source:

Al-Kafi, Volume 1, Page 428, Tradition #80

"Those Who Have Knowledge"

Who are “those who have knowledge?”

The term “الْعُلَماء” [Ulama] can be interchangeably defined as “scholars” or “those who have knowledge.” when we check the translation for the following line, “إِنَّمَا يَخْشَى اللَّهَ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ الْعُلَمَاءُ” (35:28) we notice that the term “الْعُلَماء” [Ulama] is almost unanimously translated as “those who have knowledge” and not “scholars.”

Let us put these two possible translations side by side and try to understand why most translations have chosen the former and not the latter.

“only those who have knowledge among His slaves fear Allah.” (35:28) versus “only scholars among His slaves fear Allah.” (35:28)

Nowadays, those who we consider as official “scholars” are a minority group amongst believers, namely, those who have attended a hawzah for many years and have attained the official permission to teach and give lectures. Yet, many believers may have an immense amount of religious knowledge but not be such scholars, officially.

In other words, our contemporary use of the term “scholar” is very exclusive, whereas “those who have knowledge” is much more inclusive. It would be unreasonable to assume that this verse was revealed about a group of people who had formal, institutionalized education, especially since there was not any official religious institution when this verse was revealed.  Therefore, it is very reasonable to accept the more inclusive translation, “those who have knowledge” for the term “ulama” / “الْعُلَماء” .

The term “الْعُلَماء” [Ulama] is in its plural form, and its singular form is “عَالِم‏” [Alim].  Based on the aforementioned logic, the term “عَالِم‏” [Alim] must be defined as “a person who has knowledge,” according to the Holy Quran.

Therefore, an Alim / “عَالِم‏” could be any individual, whether he or she is a student, a carpenter, a doctor, an engineer or unemployed.  The term “عَالِم‏” [Alim] does not automatically entail an official hawzah-educated scholar. 

Therefore, my first point is that, based on this line from the Quran, we should disconnect the association between the term “عَالِم‏” [Alim] or “الْعُلَماء” [Ulama] with a very specific group of people.  In simple words, and I’m repeating myself, we should not automatically assume that an Alim / “عَالِم‏” must have officially studied in a specific institution and have a specific certificate of some sort. 

Following the aforementioned point, we can now return to the question that I asked at the beginning of this post.  Who are “those who have knowledge?”

In the following Authentic tradition, our Imam, peace be upon him, tells us about a necessary quality of an Alim [a person who has knowledge].  This quality is necessary because without it a person cannot be said to have knowledge.  

After stating this tradition, I would like to bring your attention to a few crucial points.

Arabic text:

عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عِيسَى عَنْ يُونُسَ عَنْ حَمَّادِ بْنِ عُثْمَانَ عَنِ الْحَارِثِ بْنِ الْمُغِيرَةِ النَّصْرِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع فِي قَوْلِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ إِنَّما يَخْشَى اللَّهَ مِنْ عِبادِهِ الْعُلَماءُ (فاطر: 28) قَالَ يَعْنِي بِالْعُلَمَاءِ مَنْ صَدَّقَ فِعْلُهُ قَوْلَهُ وَ مَنْ لَمْ يُصَدِّقْ فِعْلُهُ قَوْلَهُ فَلَيْسَ بِعَالِمٍ

Farsi Translation:

امام صادق (ع) در تفسير گفته خداى عز و جل (28 سوره 35): «همانا مى‏ ترسند از خدا بندگان عالمش» فرمود:

مقصود او از علماء كسانى است كه كردارشان گفتارشان را تصديق كند و هر كه كردارش مصدق گفته ‏اش نباشد عالم نيست .

English Translation:

Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from Muhammad ibn ‘Isa from Yunus from Hammad ibn ‘Uthman from al-Harith ibn Mughirah al-Nasri from abu ‘Abd Allah, peace be upon him, who about the words of Allah, the Most Majestic, the Most Gracious, has said the following:

“ ’only those who have knowledge among His slaves fear Allah’ (35:28) means that those who have knowledge [ulama] are those whose deeds testify to the truthfulness of their words; otherwise, whoever, whose deeds do not testify to the truthfulness of his words is not a person who has knowledge [alim].”

Source:

Al-Kafi, Volume 1, Page 36, Tradition #2

This tradition and this Quranic statement are much deeper than they may initially seem. 

Firstly, as it is clear, only those whose deeds testify to the truthfulness of their words are people who have knowledge. This is a necessary condition.  It implies that, whoever, regardless of how much information he has obtained via various means, is not a person of knowledge until his actions follow his words. For example, an individual may have read hundred books, yet his deeds do not reflect the information that he has read.  Based on this tradition, this person cannot be considered a knowledgeable person.  Islam, vividly, distinguishes between information and knowledge [ilm]. An individual’s Knowledge is visible and can be known only through his or her deeds and actions. 

Secondly, based on this tradition, fear of God is linked to one’s actions and not the information that one has read in books or heard in lectures.  I may have read much about God’s punishments and hell fire and etcetera, but I begin to fear Allah only when I begin to follow His ordained laws.  Until I follow His commands, fear of Allah will not enter my heart.

Thirdly, based on this tradition and two of my previous posts (1 & 2), fear of Allah is directly linked to our faith, and both are directly linked to our deeds and actions.   Those who have gained faith in their hearts, through their pious deeds, fear Allah. 

Lastly, this tradition teaches us that we should not be fooled by those who talk much but act little, because if they do not act according to their words, then they themselves do not really comprehend or understand what they are talking about.   We need to always be quite vigilant as to whom we learn from, especially when it comes to learning about the path to Allah.

The Sign of a Liar

In this post, I would like to point to an interesting tradition, which mentions one sign of a liar.  Once we know this sign, it will be much easier for us to distinguish liars from trustworthy individuals.

            Many of us may have perhaps encountered many knowledgeable people in different fields, who are more than willing to share their knowledge about various topics with us, and engage in deep discussions.  The breadth of their knowledge often mesmerizes the listeners and earns them much respect.  They accumulate fans via speaking powerfully and in-depth about topics that many if not most people find fascinating and intriguing.

            Many of these individuals may have one or more PhDs in various fields of knowledge, however, they remain quite oblivious of religious jurisprudence.  When you encounter such individuals know that they are liars.  They may lie to you and to themselves about what they know and about many other issues.

            Therefore, we must be cautious, and not let eloquent speech about fascinating topics soften our guards.  We must always be very careful from whom and from where we intake our knowledge about this world and the hereafter.

            A person, who cannot correctly tell you anything about the divine jurisprudence, cannot be fully truthful.  One very interesting question that we could ask ourselves at this point is, is there a link between knowing and following divine jurisprudence and the knowledge of other physical and metaphysical issues and topics? If so, what is this link?

            Now, without any further ado, here’s a related Authentic tradition.

           

Arabic Text:

مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَحْيَى عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عِيسَى عَنِ ابْنِ أَبِي نَجْرَانَ عَنْ مُعَاوِيَةَ بْنِ وَهْبٍ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع يَقُولُ إِنَّ آيَةَ الْكَذَّابِ بِأَنْ يُخْبِرَكَ خَبَرَ السَّمَاءِ وَ الْأَرْضِ وَ الْمَشْرِقِ وَ الْمَغْرِبِ فَإِذَا سَأَلْتَهُ عَنْ حَرَامِ اللَّهِ وَ حَلَالِهِ لَمْ يَكُنْ عِنْدَهُ شَيْ‏ءٌ

Farsi Translation:

معاويه بن وهب گويد: شنيدم از حضرت صادق عليه السّلام كه ميفرمود: نشانه دروغگو اينست كه از آسمان و زمين و مشرق و مغرب خبر ميدهد، ولى آنگاه كه از حرام و حلال خدا از او بپرسى چيزى نزد او نيست كه پاسخ دهد.

English Translation:

Narrated by Mohamed Ibn Yehya from Ahmed Ibn Mohamed Ibn Eissa from Ibn Abu Nagran from Mo’awiya Ibn Wahb who said:

I heard Abu Abdullah (pbuh) say: “The sign of a liar is that he tells about everything in the heaven and on the earth, east and west but should you ask about what Allah has permitted and forbidden, he has nothing [to say.]”

Source:

Al-Kafi, Volume 2, Page 340, Tradition #8