Minhaj ul Qasideen 2

Assalamalikum,

I'm back to blogging with another chapter of Minhaj ul Qasideen, Book of knowledge.The previous chapter was about knowledge,its benefits and related things.In this chapter, Imam Jawziyyah tries to analyse and conclude on what real/true knowledge is.Again,Dr.Farhat Hashmi does an amazing job in explaining the chapters.I truly thank her for her efforts mashallah and pray to Allah SWT to inspire us to become like her inshallah.

True Knowledge :

1)Real/true knowledge is the one through which we know our Lord and we learn to love Him and fear Him.

2)Our relation with Allah SWT is based on three things.
a)Aqeedah which means creed.It refers to our belief in Allah SWT and His oneness.It also means not to associate any partners with Him.Also, we must believe in our beloved Prophet Muhammad PBUH and all that Allah SWT has revealed through him.

b)Amal/Actions and ibadaat which should follow from the first one which is aqeedah.All our actions must confirm to our aqeedah.We must strive to follow Allah SWT's revelations in the form of the Holy Quran as well as the teachings of our beloved prophet Mohammed PBUH.

c)Avoiding all that has been forbidden such as alcohol,riba,disobedience of our parents,breaking relations with ones kins,backbiting,consuming haram or pork and so on.

3)It is mandatory on parents to teach their adolescent children about Allah SWT.
Who is our Lord?What do they know about Him?What do they think of Him?The presence of Allah SWT around us and the love and fear of Him should be instilled in children from a young age.

4)Once children are capable of understanding deen and their duties such as prayer/salah they should be taught about cleanliness/taharah and purity.They should be taught the right way to make wudho and ghusl.And other things such as what nullifies the wudhu/ablution and the ghusl/ritual bathing.

5)The chilren should be taught about salah and the proper way to do it.They should be taught to recite the Holy Quran with meaning and understand it.They should be encouraged to improve their recitation and to memorize the quran.

6)Most importantly, an aspect that many parents do not fully realize is the surrounding culture.As parents its our duty to educate our self as well as our families about the trials/fitnah surrounding us.For example, if you live in a society where alcohol/drugs is easily available and riba/interest is considered inevitable, then you must educate yourself on the evils associated with it and ways to prevent it.
If the society you live in practices bidah/shirk in any form, it is your duty to learn about it and educate your family.
Very important, if the society you live in practices false beliefs or ideologies or misinformation about islam, then you must refer to the mosques/institutes/scholars and get the relevant information and pass it on to your families.

8) We must also seek knowledge about life after death.The time the soul is taken away and the stages following that.We must also learn about heaven/jannah and hell/jahannum and about the last day, the day of judgement/yaum al qiyamah.

9)In every muslim society, there should be a group of people rightly educated about sharia law such as property distribution after death,rights of the women and men in case of divorce and so on.

7)Laziness/ignorance is not an excuse.Haram is haram and it is our duty as muslims to seek knowledge and clear away doubts and misconceptions.

May Allah SWT help us improve our knowledge about deen and grow in our faith and spirit.

Assalamalikum