and he brings no benefit to anyone else. His likeness is that of soil that drinks in the water yet yields nothing.

This ḥadīth shows that the highest tier belongs to the one who gains deep understanding of Allah’s religion and learns as much as he can from the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He couples knowledge with insight, so he profits himself and benefits others. Next in merit is the person who possesses knowledge but lacks comprehension—that is, he merely relates the ḥadīth and carries it, without grasping any of its meaning. His contribution is narration alone, and therefore he stands in the second rank among the people of knowledge and faith.

The third category contains no good at all: a man upon whom some portion of the knowledge and guidance brought by the Prophet ﷺ has fallen, yet he pays it no mind, gains no advantage from it, and never teaches it to others. Such a man—may Allah protect us—is like a saline, barren tract of land that absorbs the water but produces nothing for the people, nor does the water remain on its surface so that anyone might benefit from it.

This ḥadīth also attests to the excellence of the Prophet’s ﷺ method of teaching, namely his use of concrete parables. A tangible example brings intellectual concepts—those grasped by the mind—closer by tying them to what is perceived by the senses. This is plainly observed: many people do not understand until a physical illustration is presented, after which they comprehend and profit. For this reason Allah the Exalted says, “Such are the parables We set forth for mankind, but none will understand them except those of knowledge” ⦗al-ʿAnkabūt 29:43⦘, and He says, “Indeed We have set forth for mankind in this Quran every kind of parable” ⦗al-Rūm 30:58⦘. Striking parables is therefore one of the finest avenues of instruction and means of acquiring knowledge. Allah alone grants success.