Many years ago in Uzbekistan, a baby boy was born blind. His Mother, the strong mu’minah that she was, did not lose sight of He who had the Power to cure him. She prayed and prayed for her son’s sight. And within a few years, the boy regained his eyes.
She was widowed, the boy orphaned. She traveled with him to Makkah so that he could receive an Islamic education. She arranged for him to attend the circles of the scholars, and in those circles, he excelled in the science of hadith. He traveled to distant villages in search of the most authentic sayings of Rasulullah (صلي الله عليه وسلم). He would pray two raka’at before accepting a hadith. His mother named him Muhammad ibn Isma’il. And many of us know him today by the book he compiled, the book that stands after the Qur’an in authenticity: Saheeh Al-Imam Al-Bukhari!
In another land, in another time, chilly Baghdad winds would wake up another boy. Much before Fajr, his mother would bundle him in warm shawls and escort him through the darkness, making sure he reached the Masjid safely. After Fajr, she would wait for him as he read hadith to the biggest scholars of the land. Then, long after the sun had come up, she would meet him outside, and together, they would walk home. She was a strong mother indeed, for her son grew up to become an Imam of the Muslim Ummah, an Imam by the name of Ahmad ibn Hanbal.
Dear brothers and sisters, why should we try to follow in the footsteps of these–and many other–stars of Islam? The information that we shall in sha’ Allah learn is not like anything else. This knowledge is the law of Allah and the inheritance of the prophets. It is our duty to preserve and protect the estate of Rasulullah (صلي الله عليه وسلم), something that cannot happen without there being serious and sincere brothers and sisters spending long days and nights reading, reflecting, and teaching others.
May Allah make us among those who are sincere, and whom protect the deen and inherit the inheritance of the prophets, ameen!