Islam has cleared the misconceptions of people regarding many aspects of life and regarding many activities and events. Therefore, the relation of islam and acquiring knowledge is one to one. One cannot claim to have knowledge in islam if he does not strives to get it. In Quran, ALLAH swt has said on several places to visit the earth and get the idea of the creation of the world and get the signs of the creator which are spread everywhere for the believers.
Islam has never restricted it followers to receive education, in fact, it is islam which first promoted the education of people and an educated society. Before islam, people were educated but they were very few, most of them even after getting high level of knowledge wasted their lives in vain activities and desires. It was islam which did not only promoted education but also required people to use their expertise to benefit society at large.
Scholars have divided education into two broad categories, one which benefits and one which does not benefit. The knowledge which does not benefit is the one which involves only human desires and world and which cannot contribute into the building of a healthy society. In islam, there is no place for such knowledge. The second type of knowledge is the knowledge which benefits the society at large and serves humanity.
Some people restrict education into a limited area i.e. to study Quran and sunnah only. Studying Quran and sunnah is major education which every muslim should receive and which every muslim must spread to serve islam in real sense. But to reject all other kinds of permissible education is also wrong. Today, when world has gone advance in technology and also its trends have changed, a man with no knowledge of the modern world will never be able to attract people towards islam.
Our beloved prophet s.a.w.w had the most modern knowledge about things when He was given prophet hood. At that time, people used to accuse Him of saying what nobody else had said before Him. So He was advance in knowledge from other people. The sahaba ikram also had some expertise and some specific area of education was their interest. Like hazrat ali r.a. was expert mathematician. Hazrat umar farooq r.a. made the newest system of governance in islam, he introduced police, intelligence, navy and changed the face of politics and caliphate ship through his understanding and ability. Similarly, hazrat usman ghani r.a. was the person who proved to be the best finance person ever because he used to find people to receive zakat and could not find any person poor enough to be entitled to receive zakat. Hazrat Ayesha r.a. was among the best faqeeh and she narrated more than 2000 authentic ahadith mubarika so she had her expertise in fiqah and hadith sciences.
Then came the muslim doctors and engineers who changed the world of science. They were the first to introduce many new theories and worked on them as well. Today when west claims the honor of every new invention they forget that we know our history and it was muslims who thought and who changed the concept of education otherwise churches were so rigid and backward that they even rejected the earth’s spinning.
Alkandi, alberoni, ibn-e al hesham are few of them who were expert scientists. But these muslims benefited islam which their knowledge and education, they made the name of muslims prominent as the modern people. Today, when people reject education calling it modern should be happy to admit that they are modern ummah. They have the newest and the final message. And they should be proud and grateful of their history. They should try to make present a proud history for future muslims rather than being narrow minded and misrepresenting and misinterpreting islam.