In the Name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. May Allah bless our master Muhammad and his family.

Book of the Compendium

The sum of all goodness is to fear Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and to keep clear of people’s evils. Part of a person’s excellence in Islam is to leave alone whatever does not concern him. Whoever seeks knowledge for Allah’s sake finds that a little of it suffices, whereas whoever pursues it for the sake of people will discover that people’s demands are endless. The finest ornament a scholar can wear is piety.

Anyone who sits with a scholar ought to look upon him with reverence, listen attentively when he speaks, and, when reviewing his words, do so to understand, not to dispute. In proportion to the student’s veneration for the scholar is the benefit he receives from the scholar’s knowledge.

In our Book Bayān al-ʿIlm we have gathered the virtues of knowledge, its etiquettes, and what both scholar and learner must embody, adhere to, and put into practice—material that heals the scholar, gladdens his eye, suffices the seeker of guidance, and grants him insight. All praise belongs abundantly to Allah, as He deserves.

Among the qualities of an intelligent, learned person are to know the temper of his time, to devote himself to his own affairs, and to guard his tongue—out of caution even with his brethren. In former times, people were harmed only by those who knew them well, and the one who is deluded is the person who