بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ

This post includes āyāt, aḥādīth, āthār, and statements of the scholars warning against not acting on one’s knowledge.

I will continuously update the post with new quotes as I come across them – in shāʾa Allāh.

Why Don’t You Practice What You Preach?!

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لِمَ تَقُولُونَ مَا لَا تَفْعَلُونَ ۝٢ كَبُرَ مَقْتًا عِنْدَ ٱللَّهِ أَنْ تَقُولُوا۟ مَا لَا تَفْعَلُونَ ۝٣

[الصف (٦١) : ٢-٣]

{O you who believe, why do you say what you do not do? Greatly hateful in the sight of Allāh is that you say what you do not do}

[al-Ṣaff (61): 2-3]

Donkeys Carrying Books

مَثَلُ ٱلَّذِينَ حُمِّلُوا۟ ٱلتَّوْرَىٰةَ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَحْمِلُوهَا كَمَثَلِ ٱلْحِمَارِ يَحْمِلُ أَسْفَارًۢا ۚ بِئْسَ مَثَلُ ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِى ٱلْقَوْمَ ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ ۝٥

[الجمعة (٦٢) : ٥]

{The example of those who were entrusted with observing the Tawrāh but then failed to do so, is that of a donkey carrying books. How evil is the example of those who reject Allāh’s signs! And Allāh does not guide the wrongdoing people}

[al-Jumuʿah (62): 5]

Deviation From Not Acting on Knowledge

وَٱتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ٱلَّذِىٓ ءَاتَيْنَـٰهُ ءَايَـٰتِنَا فَٱنسَلَخَ مِنْهَا فَأَتْبَعَهُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ فَكَانَ مِنَ ٱلْغَاوِينَ ۝١٧٥ وَلَوْ شِئْنَا لَرَفَعْنَـٰهُ بِهَا وَلَـٰكِنَّهُۥٓ أَخْلَدَ إِلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَٱتَّبَعَ هَوَىٰهُ ۚ فَمَثَلُهُۥ كَمَثَلِ ٱلْكَلْبِ إِن تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْهِ يَلْهَثْ أَوْ تَتْرُكْهُ يَلْهَث ۚ ذَّٰلِكَ مَثَلُ ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا ۚ فَٱقْصُصِ ٱلْقَصَصَ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ ۝١٧٦

[الأعراف (٧) : ١٧٥-١٧٦]

{And recite to them, [O Muḥammad], the news of him to whom We gave [knowledge of] Our signs, but he detached himself from them; so Satan pursued him, and he became of the deviators.

And if We had willed, We could have elevated him thereby, but he adhered [instead] to the earth and followed his own desire. So his example is like that of the dog: if you chase him, he pants, or if you leave him, he [still] pants. That is the example of the people who denied Our signs. So, relate the stories that perhaps they will give thought}.

[al-Aʿrāf (7): 175-176]

Forgetting What You Used to Know

فَبِمَا نَقْضِهِم مِّيثَـٰقَهُمْ لَعَنَّـٰهُمْ وَجَعَلْنَا قُلُوبَهُمْ قَـٰسِيَةًۭ ۖ يُحَرِّفُونَ ٱلْكَلِمَ عَن مَّوَاضِعِهِۦ ۙ وَنَسُوا۟ حَظًّۭا مِّمَّا ذُكِّرُوا۟ بِهِۦ ۚ وَلَا تَزَالُ تَطَّلِعُ عَلَىٰ خَآئِنَةٍۢ مِّنْهُمْ إِلَّا قَلِيلًۭا مِّنْهُمْ ۖ فَٱعْفُ عَنْهُمْ وَٱصْفَحْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُحْسِنِينَ  ۝١٣

[المائدة (٥) : ١٣]

{So for their breaking of the covenant We cursed them and made their hearts hardened. They distort words from their [proper] places [i.e., usages] and have forgotten a portion of that of which they were reminded. And you will still observe deceit among them, except a few of them. But pardon them and overlook [their misdeeds]. Indeed, Allāh loves the doers of good}.

[al-Māʾidah (5): 13]

What Did You Do with Your Knowledge?

عَنِ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ : عَنِ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ قَالَ : (( لَا تَزُولُ قَدَمَا ابْنِ آدَمَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ مِنْ عِنْدِ رَبِّهِ حَتَّىٰ يُسْأَلَ عَنْ خَمْسٍ : عَنْ عُمْرِهِ فِيْمَ أَفْنَاهُ، وَعَنْ شَبَابِهِ فِيْمَ أَبْلَاهُ، وَعَنْ مَالِهِ مِنْ أَيْنَ اكْتَسَبَهُ، وَفِيْمَ أَنْفَقَهُ، وَمَاذَا عَمِلَ فِيْمَا عَلِمَ )) . رَوَاهُ التِّرْمِذِيُّ.

حسن : الترمذي (٢٤١٦) وفي ط. دار التأصيل (٢٥٩٧). أبو يعلى (٥٢٧١). الطبراني في «الكبير» (٩٧٧٢)، وفي «الصغير» (٧٦٠). عن عمره : عن مدة أجله. فيما أفناه : صرفه. عن شبابه : عن قوته في وسط عمره. فيما أبلاه : ضيعه. عن ماله من أين اكتسبه : أمن حرام أو حلال؟ وفيما أنفقه : طاعة أو معصية؟

On the authority of Ibn Masʿūd who narrated from the Prophet ﷺ, who said:

“The two feet of the son of Ādam will not move on the Day of Judgement from the presence of his Lord until he is asked about five things: about his life and how he spent it, about his youth and how he wore it out, about his wealth wherefrom he acquired it, and how he spent it, and what he did with what he knew.”

Reported by al-Tirmidhī.

Ḥasan: al-Tirmidhī (2416) and in the Dār al-Taʾṣīl edition (2597).

Punishment for Not Practising What One Preaches

عَنْ أُسَامَةَ بْنِ زَيْدٍ قَالَ : سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللهِ ﷺ يَقُولُ : (( يُؤْتَىٰ بِالرَّجُلِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، فَيُلْقَىٰ فِي النَّارِ، فَتَنْدَلِقُ أَقْتَابُ بَطْنِهِ فَيَدُورُ بِهَا كَمَا يَدُورُ الْحِمَارُ بِالرَّحَىٰ ، فَيَجْتَمِعُ إِلَيْهِ أَهْلُ النَّارِ فَيَقُولُونَ : يَا فُلَانُ! مَا لَكَ؟ أَلَمْ تَكُنْ تَأْمُرُ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَىٰ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ؟ فَيَقُولُ : بَلَىٰ، قَدْ كُنْتُ آمُرُ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَلَا آتِيْهِ، وَأَنْهَىٰ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ وَآتِيْهِ )) . مُتَّفَقٌ عَلَيْهِ، وَاللَّفْظُ لِمُسْلِمٍ.

صحيح : البخاري (٣٢٦٧). مسلم (٢٩٨٩)

On the authority of Usāmah b. Zayd who said: “I heard Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ say:

“A man will be brought on the Day of Resurrection and thrown into the Fire; his intestines will spill forth, and he will go around them as a donkey goes around the millstone. The people of the fire will gather around him and say: ‘O so-and-so, what is the matter with you? Did you not used to enjoin good and forbid evil?’ He will say: ‘Yes, but I used to enjoin good and not do it, and I used to forbid evil and do it.’”

Agreed upon, and the wording is that of Muslim.

Not Knowledgeable Until One Acts on His ʿIlm

قَالَ الْخَطِيْبُ الْبَغْدَادِيُّ فِي «اقْتِضَاءُ الْعِلْمِ الْعَمَل» (ﺻ. ١٤) :

ثُمَّ إِنِّي مُوصِيْكَ يَا طَالِبَ الْعِلْمِ بِإِخْلَاصِ النِّيَّةِ فِي طَلَبِهِ وَإِجْهَادِ النَّفْسِ عَلَىٰ الْعَمَلِ بِمُوجِبِهِ، فَإِنَّ الْعِلْمَ شَجَرَةٌ، وَالْعَمَلُ ثَمَرَةٌ، وَلَيْسَ يُعَدُّ عَالِمًا مَنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ بِعِلْمِهِ عَامِلاً

al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī said in page 14 of his book “Iqtiḍāʾ al-ʿIlm al-ʿAmal” (Knowledge Mandates Action): “[To proceed] then, I advise you O student of knowledge, to have sincerity in intention in seeking it [i.e., knowledge], and exerting the soul in acting in accordance with it, for indeed knowledge is a tree, and action is a fruit, and the one who does not act on his knowledge is not considered knowledgeable.”

Loss of Credibility

قَالَ الْخَطِيْبُ الْبَغْدَادِيُّ فِي «اقْتِضَاءُ الْعِلْمِ الْعَمَل» (ﺻ. ١٤) :

(( وَمَا شَيْءٌ أَضْعَفَ مِنْ عَالِمٍ تَرَكَ النَّاسُ عِلْمَهُ لِفَسَادِ طَرِيْقَتِهِ وَجَاهِلٍ أَخَذَ النَّاسُ بِجَهْلِهِ لِنَظَرِهِمْ إِلَىٰ عِبَادَتِهِمْ )) .

al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī said in page 14 of his book “Iqtiḍāʾ al-ʿIlm al-ʿAmal” (Knowledge Mandates Action):

“There is nothing feebler than a scholar whose knowledge people abandon due to his corrupt ways, and an ignoramus whose ignorance people adopt due to them looking at his worship.”

قَالَ الزُّهْرِيُّ

(( لَا يُوَثَّقُ لِلنَّاسِ عَمَلُ عَامِلٍ لَا يَعْلَمُ، وَلَا يُرْضَىٰ بِقَوْلِ عَالِمٍ لَا يَعْمَلُ ))

أَخْرَجَهُ الْخَطِيْبُ الْبَغْدَادِيُّ فِي «اقْتِضَاءُ الْعِلْمِ الْعَمَل» (١٣)

al-Zuhrī (d. 124) said:

“People do not trust the action of a doer who has no knowledge, nor are they pleased with the statement of one who knows but does not act.”

Reported by al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī in Iqtiḍāʾ al-ʿIlm al-ʿAmal (no. 13).

Unspent Treasure

قَالَ أَبُو هُرَيْرَةَ

(( مَثَلُ عِلْمٍ لَا يُعْمَلُ بِهِ كَمَثَلِ كَنْزٍ لَا يُنْفَقُ مِنْهُ فِي سَبِيْلِ اللهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ ))

أَخْرَجَهُ الْخَطِيْبُ الْبَغْدَادِيُّ فِي «اقْتِضَاءُ الْعِلْمِ الْعَمَل» (١٢)

Abū Hurayrah (d. 59) said:

“The example of knowledge which is not implemented is like that of a treasure which is not spent from in the path of Allāh the Almighty and Majestic.”

Reported by al-Khaṭīb al-Baghdādī in Iqtiḍāʾ al-ʿIlm al-ʿAmal (no. 12).