When seeking knowledge conflicts with honouring one’s parents
Question A seeker of knowledge wants to go with his bothers in Islam to seek knowledge. What is stopping him from going with them is his family, his father and mother. What is the ruling on this student traveling? Praise be to Allah. If there is a necessary reason why this student should stay (with…
Question
Praise be to Allah.
If there is a necessary reason why this
student should stay (with his parents), then it is better for him to
do so. However, he can stay with them whilst also seeking knowledge,
because honouring one’s parents takes precedence over jihad for the
sake of Allaah, and knowledge is part of jihad. Therefore honouring
his parents takes precedence over seeking knowledge if they need him.
But if they do not need him, and
he will be able to seek more knowledge by traveling, then there is nothing
wrong with him travelling to seek knowledge. But at the same time he
should not forget the rights of his parents, so he should come back
and explain to them when he comes back why he left. But if he knows
that his parents dislike the pursuit Islamic knowledge, then in this
case he should not obey them and he does not have to seek their permission
to travel, because what is making them refuse is their dislike of Islamic
knowledge.
