Seeking Knowledge From Books Alone Is Not Sufficient by Shaykh Sālih bin Fawzān Al Fawzān

The questioner asked: Does it suffice in seeking knowledge to read books and the explained text of the people of knowledge without attending the (actual) gatherings of the scholars? Please benefit us may you be of those rewarded. Al-Allaamah Saalih al-Fawzaan (may Allaah preserve him) said: “This is misguidance. The one who limits (learning) to books (only) this is a misguided path. It is a must (to learn) from the scholars. It is a must to take knowledge from the scholars (directly)… As for books, they are only a means, just as a weapon which if in your possession, how do/would you use it without learning how to. It is a must to learn how to use the weapon from those who know how to and they will train you in that. The scholars are those who train (the people) how to use the books. They know the books which are beneficial and correct from those which are not. Because many books are books of misguidance and evil and no one is able to examine them and explain them except the people of knowledge. Maybe you understand with an erroneous understanding. For example an individual says he has read in Saheeh al Bukhaari the Hadeeth: “Black seed is a cure from every ailment or a healing” So he reads it and he erroneously read it as: ‘The Black Snake*’ is a cure from every ailment, so he went and ate a black snake and died as a result. For he didn’t ask the people of knowledge. He is known as the scholar of the dot as they say. *[Translators note] The words seed حبة and snake حية in Arabic have the same form (spelling) except for an extra dot that exists in the latter. The scholars are those who know what correct from what’s not. They are the ones who know the correct meanings from those which are evil/corrupted. They are experts in this. Rather take a book from the books of medicine, read it and perform surgery on the people, open their stomaches and say I’m a doctor! This is not correct! If this is the case in the study of medicine then how about knowledge?! How about in relation to the Book of Allaah and the sunnah of His messenger?! There is a must for the scholars. Yes! http://www.sahab.net/forums/?showtopi… Translator: Abu Anas Atif Hasan