Is It Permissible to Seek Knowledge from Non-Muslims?
Answered by Shaykh Dr. Muhammad Abu Bakr Badhib
Question
Is it permissible to seek knowledge from non-Muslims?
Answer
In the name of Allah, and all praise is due to Allah, and blessings and peace be upon our master Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, his Family, his Companions, and those who follow him.
Seeking knowledge has no boundaries. Allah (Most High) says in the Noble Quran:
“And pray, ‘My Lord! Increase me in knowledge.’” [Quran, 20:114]
The pursuit of knowledge is not confined to any particular religion, except for the knowledge of Islamic law (shari‘a), which should be learned from those who are well-versed in it and practice it.
As for worldly sciences—such as medicine, engineering, languages, programming, and other fields shared by all of humanity—there is no issue in studying them from those who excel in them, regardless of their religion or belief system. For instance, some of the Companions learned other languages from non-Muslims.
The Companion Zayd Ibn Thabit (Allah be pleased with him) learned Hebrew to translate for the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace), as reported by Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud, and others.
Thus, we should seek knowledge, continuously striving for more and not settling for little. In a hadith, it is mentioned:
“Two types of people are never satisfied: one who is greedy for knowledge, and one who is greedy for worldly wealth.” [Hakim]
We ask Allah to grant us a passion for knowledge and to increase us in it while maintaining consciousness of Allah, fearing Him, and hoping for His pleasure. Allah is the bestower of success and the guide to the straight path.
[Shaykh] Dr. Muhammad Abu Bakr Badhib
Shaykh Dr Muhammad Abu Bakr Badhib is a prominent Islamic scholar from Yemen born in Shibam, Hadhramaut, in 1976. He received his degree in Shari‘a from Al-Ahqaf University, a master’s degree from the Islamic University of Beirut, and a PhD in Usul al-Din from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).
He studied under great scholars such as Shaykh al-Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad, Shaykh Fadl Ba‘ fadl, Habib Salim al-Shatiri, Habib Ali Mashhur bin Hafeez, and others. He has served as the Director of Publications at Dar al-Fiqh, the former Deputy Director of Cultural Relations at Al-Ahqaf University, a former Assistant for Employee Affairs at Atiyah Iron Company, a researcher at the Sunna Center affiliated with the Dallah al-Baraka Foundation, and a researcher at Al-Furqan Foundation’s Makka al-Mukarrama and Madina al-Munawwara Encyclopedia branch.
Currently, he is a researcher at Al-Furqan Foundation’s Makka al-Mukarrama and Madina al-Munawwara Encyclopedia branch, teaches traditionally through the Ijaza system at Dar al-Fuqaha in Turkey, supervises the Arabic department at Nur al-Huda International Institute (SeekersGuidance), and is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Manuscript House in Istanbul.
His works include “The Efforts of Hadhramaut Jurists in Serving the Shafi‘i School,” “Contributions of Hadhramaut Scholars in Spreading Islam and its Sciences in India,” “Hada’iq al-Na‘im in Shafi‘i Fiqh,” in addition to verifying several books in Fiqh, history, the art of biographies, and Asanid (chains of narration).
