Is a person considered sinful for seeking worldly knowledge without religious knowledge, and is a seeker of worldly knowledge rewarded like a seeker of religious knowledge?
A person is blameworthy if they neglect a duty they are capable of performing, or commit a forbidden act without necessity. Sacred knowledge (Islamic sciences) is of different types: some is an individual obligation (fard ayn), some is a communal obligation (fard kifayah), and some is recommended (mustahabb). It is obligatory to learn what is an individual obligation, and it is impermissible to prioritize worldly sciences over it. This obligation is emphasized when one intends to act upon it. As for what is not an individual obligation, there is no harm in prioritizing worldly knowledge over it. Indeed, seeking beneficial worldly knowledge is among the communal obligations, and a Muslim is rewarded for it with the intention of benefiting Islam and Muslims.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
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