Valuable Moral Messages in Imam Ali’s Poetry part 2
Learning is very important to realize the happiness of living in this world and the hereafter.
Without a proper of knowledge, humans cannot do anything. To make a living, for an example,
needs a proper knowledge, to do good worships needs a proper knowledge, even to eat and drink
needs a proper knowledge as well. Thus, learning is undeniable, because it is related to ones
obligations as a servant of Allah SWT. If a person does not know his obligation as a servant, he
couldn’t get any salvation in this world and the hereafter (Lubis, 2016:229).
Imam Alis message about the primacy of seeking knowledge is in line with the teachings of
Islam (the teachings that originate from al-Qur`an and Hadith of the Prophet Muhammad). There
are so many verses in the Quran and Hadith of the Prophet Muhammad that discusses about the
primacy of knowledge. Here is one of them:
"Allah will raise those who have believed among you and those who were given knowledge,
by degrees. And Allah is Acquainted with what you do" (58:11)
The verse implies that the position of people who believe and have knowledge have a higher
position before God Almighty. This shows that the role of knowledge in some ones life is very
large and important, because the degrees of one human being could be distinguished by their
knowledge and faith (Ulum, 2019:58). Furthermore, in verse (2-4) Imam Ali advised the young
people to really hold fast to knowledge and always enrich themselves with knowledge because
knowledge will bring wisdom to their owners. In addition, he also advised that to always maintain
and integrate science (al-`ilm) and religion (ad-din) as a form of pure devotion to Allah SWT.
In the last two verses (5-6), Imam Ali said that knowledge would give instructions to the
owner and could also cause the owner to become a better person. Because with knowledge, a
person can recognize and consider everything related to himself and to the surrounding
environment as well.
From the explanation above, it is not surprising that the Prophet Muhammad also obliged
everyone to study. He (Prophet Muhammad SAW) said:
طلب الػلم فسٍضت غلى كل مظلم
"Seeking knowledge is obligatory for every Muslim" (al-Albani, 1988: 727)
Thus, there is no reason for anyone not to seek of science or knowledge. All men and women,
young and old, rich and poor, etc., have the same obligation to seek knowledge, without exception.
