رَفِيعَةٍ لِذَلِكَ قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى اللّٰه عليه و آله طَلَبُ الْعِلْمِ فَرِيضَةٌ عَلَى كُلِّ مُسْلِمٍ وَ مُسْلِمَةٍ أَيْ عِلْمِ التَّقْوَى وَ الْيَقِينِ.

and loftiness. For this reason the Noble Messenger — may God bless him and his family — said: Seeking and acquiring knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim man and woman. What is meant is the sciences bearing on God-fearing and the attainment of certitude.

«21»- وَ قَالَ عَلِيٌّ عليه السلام اطْلُبُوا الْعِلْمَ وَ لَوْ بِالصِّينِ وَ هُوَ عِلْمُ مَعْرِفَةِ النَّفْسِ وَ فِيهِ مَعْرِفَةُ الرَّبِّ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ.

Imam 'Ali, peace be upon him, said: Seek knowledge even in China — and what is meant is the sciences bearing on knowledge of the soul; and knowing the soul brings about knowledge of the exalted Lord.

«22»- قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى اللّٰه عليه و آله مَنْ عَرَفَ نَفْسَهُ فَقَدْ عَرَفَ رَبَّهُ ثُمَّ عَلَيْكَ مِنَ الْعِلْمِ بِمَا لَا يَصِحُّ الْعَمَلُ إِلَّا بِهِ وَ هُوَ الْإِخْلَاصُ.

The Noble Messenger — may God bless him and his family — said: Whoever knows his own soul has indeed known his Lord. Then it is incumbent upon you to learn those sciences that bear upon setting your deeds right and correcting your duties; and those are the sciences bearing on sincerity, without which no deed is sound or accepted.

«23»- قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى اللّٰه عليه و آله نَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ لَا يَنْفَعُ وَ هُوَ الْعِلْمُ الَّذِي يُضَادُّ الْعَمَلَ بِالْإِخْلَاصِ وَ اعْلَمْ أَنَّ قَلِيلَ الْعِلْمِ يَحْتَاجُ إِلَى كَثِيرِ الْعَمَلِ لِأَنَّ عِلْمَ سَاعَةٍ يُلْزِمُ صَاحِبَهُ اسْتِعْمَالَهُ طُولَ عُمُرِهِ.

The Messenger of God — may God bless him and his family — said: I take refuge in God from knowledge that does not profit — and that is knowledge which is contrary to sincere action. And note that a little knowledge requires much action; for once a man has gained knowledge in some matter, he must act according to it constantly and to the end of his life.

«24»- قَالَ عِيسَى عليه السلام رَأَيْتُ حَجَراً مَكْتُوباً عَلَيْهِ قَلِّبْنِي فَقَلَّبْتُهُ فَإِذَا عَلَى بَاطِنِهِ مَنْ لَا يَعْمَلُ بِمَا يَعْلَمُ مَشُومٌ عَلَيْهِ طَلَبُ مَا لَا يَعْلَمُ وَ مَرْدُودٌ عَلَيْهِ مَا عَلِمَ.

Jesus, peace be upon him, said: I saw a stone on which was written: Turn me over. So I turned it over, and on its other side was written: Whoever does not act upon what he knows — seeking what he does not know is ill-omened for him, and what he knows turns back against him.

«25»- أَوْحَى اللَّهُ تَبَارَكَ وَ تَعَالَى إِلَى دَاوُدَ عليه السلام أَنَّ أَهْوَنَ مَا أَنَا صَانِعٌ بِعَالِمٍ غَيْرِ عَامِلٍ بِعِلْمِهِ أَشَدُّ مِنْ سَبْعِينَ عُقُوبَةً أَنْ أُخْرِجَ مِنْ قَلْبِهِ حَلَاوَةَ ذِكْرِي وَ لَيْسَ إِلَی اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ طَرِيقٌ يَسْلُكُ إِلَّا بِعِلْمٍ وَ الْعِلْمُ زَيْنُ الْمَرْءِ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَ سَائِقُهُ إِلَی الْجَنَّةِ وَ بِهِ يَصِلُ إِلَى رِضْوَانِ اللَّهِ تَعَالَى وَ الْعَالِمُ حَقّاً هُوَ الَّذِي يَنْطِقُ عَنْهُ أَعْمَالُهُ الصَّالِحَةُ وَ أَوْرَادُهُ الزَّاكِيَةُ وَ صِدْقُهُ وَ تَقْوَاهُ لَا لِسَانُهُ وَ تَصَاوُلُهُ وَ دَعْوَاهُ وَ لَقَدْ كَانَ يَطْلُبُ هَذَا الْعِلْمَ فِي غَيْرِ هَذَا الزَّمَانِ مَنْ كَانَ فِيهِ عَقْلٌ وَ نُسُكٌ وَ حِكْمَةٌ وَ حَيَاءٌ وَ خَشْيَةٌ وَ أَنَا أَرَى طَالِبَهُ الْيَوْمَ مَنْ لَيْسَ فِيهِ مِنْ ذَلِكَ شَيْ ءٌ وَ الْعَالِمُ يَحْتَاجُ إِلَى عَقْلٍ وَ رِفْقٍ وَ شَفَقَةٍ وَ نُصْحٍ وَ حِلْمٍ وَ صَبْرٍ وَ بَذْلٍ وَ قَنَاعَةٍ وَ الْمُتَعَلِّمُ يَحْتَاجُ إِلَى رَغْبَةٍ وَ إِرَادَةٍ وَ فَرَاغٍ وَ نُسُكٍ وَ خَشْيَةٍ وَ حِفْظٍ وَ حَزْمٍ.

God, exalted, revealed to David: The lightest thing with which I punish a scholar who does not act upon his knowledge is harder than seventy chastisements: I take the sweetness of My remembrance out of his heart. And there is no road leading to God but knowledge; and knowledge is a man's adornment in this world and that which draws him to the Garden. The true scholar, from whom it is fitting to benefit, is one whose righteous and pure deeds, his truthfulness and his God-fearing bear witness from within to his station — not his tongue, his disputing and wrangling, his contending and attacking and claiming, for these things will never show his true rank and standing. In former times, one who sought knowledge and acquired it was marked by intellect, worship, modesty and reverent fear; but in our time there are those who seek knowledge in whom none of these qualities is found. The scholar needs intellect, gentleness and mildness, kindness, purity and sincerity in conduct and deed, forbearance, patience and endurance, the giving of knowledge, open-handedness, and contentment. And the student too must have the qualities of eagerness and desire, resolve, freedom of mind, worship and servanthood, reverent fear, carefulness over his duties, retention of what he learns, and caution in his affairs — so that he may be granted success in acquiring knowledge and stand firm and steadfast upon this road.

بيان: علم التقوى هو العلم بالأوامر و النواهي و التكاليف التي يتقى بها من عذاب اللّٰه و علم اليقين علم ما يتعلق من المعارف بأصول الدين و يحتمل أن يكون علم التقوى أعم منهما و يكون اليقين معطوفا على العلم و تفسيرا له أي العلم المأمور به هو اليقين قوله عليه السلام و فيه معرفة الرب أي معرفة الشئون التي جعلها اللّٰه تعالى للنفس و معرفة معايبها و ما يوجب رفعتها و كمالاتها يوجب اكتساب ما يوجب كمال معرفته تعالى

"The knowledge of God-fearing" is knowledge of the commands, prohibitions and obligations by which one guards against God's punishment. "The knowledge of certitude" is the recognition and knowledge of the principles of religion — though it may be that the knowledge of God-fearing comprehends both, and that "certitude", being conjoined to "knowledge", is an explanation of it: an explicative conjunction, that is, the knowledge we are commanded to seek, which is certitude. "Knowledge of the matters pertaining to the soul" — such as knowledge of its faults and perfections —