It was during that night in the cave of Hira when Prophet Muhammad was engaged in spiritual reflection and contemplation that the revelation took place, by first ordering him to “recite” connoting to read and fully grasp the heavy message and knowledge he’s about to receive and later propagate.   “Recite in the name of your Lord who created – Created man from a clinging substance. Recite, and your Lord is the most Generous- Who taught by the pen – Taught man that which he knew not.”—Quran 96:1-5 These noble verses mark the beginning of revelation unto Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and the commencement of his Prophethood and the noble mission he was assigned by God as humanity’s foremost teacher and concluding Prophet sent to enlighten people and turn them from the gloom of vanity and ignorance to the light of culture to later become a leading civilization after which sprouted many blossoms that brought myriads of inventions in all walks of life. Islam was taught to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) before he passed it on and taught it to the people. It was during that night in the cave of Hira when Prophet Muhammad was engaged in spiritual reflection and contemplation that the revelation took place, by first ordering him to “recite” connoting to read and fully grasp the heavy message and knowledge he’s about to receive and later propagate. The Angel came to him and said “Recite”. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: “I replied: I am not a reciter.” Then he (Prophet Muhammad) said: “So, he (the angel) seized me and pressed me until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said: “Recite!” “So I replied: “I am not a reciter”. So he pressed me a second time until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said: “Recite!” So I replied: “I am not a reciter!” “So he pressed me a third time until I could no longer bear it. Then he released me and said: “Recite in the Name of your lord…”” till the end of the five verses mentioned above. I seek to highlight two basic principles in Islam here. First is the pursuit of knowledge in general, and second is the pursuit of Islamic knowledge in particular. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has further enforced the first in one famous Hadith wherein he issued an outright command saying: “Seek after knowledge even as far as China”. I wish not get into the debate over the transmission of this Hadith. Even if we assumed that the Hadith is weak in transmission as per many scholars’ opinion, at least it is correct and carries a truthful meaning, the core message of which is an invitation to seek after knowledge no matter where this will take you. And this relates very much to humankind’s foremost duty on earth, being Allah’s vicegerents, assigned to carry His message to humanity, develop life on earth and most importantly; worship Him. All this requires knowledge, knowledge about all fields of life. And for us to uphold our role efficiently and sufficiently fulfill all tasks this entails we’ve got to know and learn both; secular and Islamic studies. As for the latter, it’s a clearly ordained command, otherwise we would have been exempted from Allah’s judgment, whether in this life or the day of Resurrection. And here I shall stop to elaborate on some crucial point, one that’s at the heart of some of the most widespread misconceptions about Islam, one tying Isam to a set of committing commands that are mistakenly perceived as bothersome and infuriating, whereas the truth of the matter such commands, which constitute God’s Shariah, seek to enjoin what’s good for humans and more protective to their well-being and dignity. Knowledge is imperative and cannot be compromised or ignored, otherwise we shall fall in the very same mistakes of people of the past, let that be sins that earned them Allah’s wrath, God forbids, or ignorance that hindered the development of their nations. In his immense Exegesis work, and particularly the part depicting these verses, Ibn Kathir says: “These Ayats inform of the beginning of man’s creation from a dangling clot, and that out of Allah’s generosity He taught man that which he did not know. Thus Allah exalted him and honored him by giving him knowledge, and it is the dignity that the Father of Humanity, Adam, was distinguished with over the angels. Knowledge sometimes is in the mind, sometimes on the tongue, and sometimes writing with the fingers. Thus, it may be intellectual, spoken or written. And while the last (written) necessitates the first two (intellectual and spoken), the reverse is not true. For this reason Allah says:” “Recite, and your Lord is the most Generous- Who taught by the pen – Taught man that which he knew not.”— Regardless of the fact that Islam wasn’t revealed just for the Arabs, sprouting from a place like Arabia, where the darkness of ignorance prevails, carried many folds connotations, foremost of which highlights the magnitude of the life-altering impact of Islam on humanity. Before the advent of Islam, Arabia was sunk in deep moral bewilderment and barbarism in all its forms; gambling, killing, marrying hundreds of wives and sometimes stepmothers, among others. Gibbon describes the Arabs before Islam and the coming of Prophet Muhammad in his “Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire”, saying: ‘The human brute almost without sense, is poorly is distinguished from the rest of the animal creation.’ After the illumination and knowledge brought forth through Prophet Muhammad and taking the form of the final of all God released scriptures, that is the Quran, a 180-degree shift of human perception of life took place. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), as described by Thomas Carlysle, elevated the stature of people, turning them into “torch-bearers of light and learning. To the Arab nation, it was as a birth from darkness into light. Arabia first came alive by means of it. A poor shepherd people, roaming unnoticed in its deserts since the creation of the world. See, the unnoticed becomes world notable. The small has grown world-great. Within one century afterwards Arabia was at Granada on one hand and at Delhi on the other. Gleaning in valor and splendor, and the light of the genius, Arabia shines over a great section of the world.” It was through such orderly and highly organized teaching of the Law of God at the Hands of Prophet Muhammad that Arabia resurrected from the rubbles of darkness and barbarism. Islam, which by far did not stop at the borders of the Arabian Peninsula but spread to illuminate the entire world, was revealed unto Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) taking the form of words and recited by Angel Gibrail. Subsequently, for us to best serve humanity,  revive our lost glory, and most importantly attain God’s satisfaction- we ought to read and learn, learn about life and about Islam, thereby acquainting ourselves with the basic knowledge required for a sufficient fulfillment of our role in life- otherwise I cannot see any other channel leading up to the same end. Hence, let’s reawaken the prime lesson and the first ever taught and commanded to Prophet Muhammad; to recite- to read. So read, read and read- learn and teach what you learn, whether it’s a secular science or Islamic knowledge. And do not forget, it was a command… May Allah enlighten our path and pave our way in pursuit of knowledge. Wassalaam, Maha Youssuf maha@muslimtribune.org Posted on July 5, 2011