Is it better to continue seeking religious knowledge and devote oneself to it, with the financial support of benefactors, or to abandon that and search for work, contenting oneself with a small amount of knowledge?
We advise you to continue seeking knowledge and to be patient in acquiring it. Do not be bothered by the salary given to you, for supporting a student of knowledge is among the most important expenditures, because one who engages in the study of Sacred Knowledge fulfills a communal obligation (fard kifaya) on behalf of the Ummah. Ibn Abidin mentioned in "Tanqih al-Fatawa al-Hamidiyya" that Muslims are obliged to provide sufficiently for the student of knowledge, and that Al-Qasri al-Maliki issued a stating that students of knowledge are entitled to a financial sum from Muslims. However, it is better to combine learning with earning and to be self-sufficient, as stated in the in Bukhari: "No one has ever eaten food better than that which he has eaten from the work of his own hand. And indeed, the Prophet of Allah, David, peace be upon him, used to eat from the work of his own hand."
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.
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