The Right of Student (18th): Commentary on Imam Al-Sajjad’s (AS) Treaties of Right by Mohammad Sobhanie.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
وأمَّا حَقُّ رَعِيَّتِكَ بالعِلْمِ فَأَنْ تَعْلَــمَ أَنَّ اللهَ قَدْ جَعَلَكَ لَهُمْ فِيمَـــــــا آتاكَ مِنَ الْعِلْمِ وَولاّكَ مِنْ خَزَانةِ الْحِكْمَةِ، فَــــــــــإنْ أَحْسَنْتَ فِيمَــــــا ولاّكَ اللهُ مِنْ ذلِكَ وَقُمْتَ بهِ لَهُمْ مَقَامَ الخَـــــازِنِ الشَّفِيقِ النَّـــــــاصِحِ لِمَـــولاهُ فِي عَبيدِهِ، الصَّــــــابرِ الْمُحْتَسِب الَّذِي إذَا رأَى ذا حَـــــاجَةٍ أَخرَجَ لَهُ مِنَ الأَمْوَالِ الَّتِي فِي يَدَيهِ كُنْتَ رَاشِدًا، وَكُنْتَ لـــــــــــــِذَلِكَ آمِلاً مُعْتَقِدًا وَإلاّ كُنْتَ لَهُ خَائِنًا وَلِخَلقِهِ ظَالِمًا وَلِسَلْبهِ وَعِزِّهِ مُتَعَرِّضًا.
The Right of Student (18th)
The right of students is that their teachers should know that God has entrusted teachers to educate students under their care using the knowledge and wisdom that God bestowed upon them.
They aspire to be a righteous educator and hope for divine rewards if they teach wholeheartedly with dedication and affection, like the affection of a treasurer who gives generously to those in need under the benefactor’s direction. Otherwise, they have betrayed God, wronged God’s creatures, and missed God’s blessings and honor.
Commentary:
Children’s personalities are heavily influenced by their parents and teachers. Children tend to observe and imitate their parent’s behavior at home during their early childhood, leading them to shape their character accordingly.
Once children enter school, they spend most of their days there. Teachers’ morals, ethics, and behavior significantly impact students’ personalities.
A teacher’s influence can sometimes alter a student’s life. Umar bin Abdul Aziz, from an Umayyad family hostile to Imam Ali (AS), received an education from a teacher who was a descendant of Abdullah bin Masoud, a great companion of the Prophet (PBUH). One day, the teacher heard Umar bin Abdulaziz insult Imam Ali (AS) while playing.
When Umar bin Abdulaziz came to the teacher for a lesson, he asked: “Why do you curse the Mujahideen in the path of God who were present in the battles of Badr and Uhud?” This statement had a significant impact on the boy’s mind. Later, as the caliph, Umar bin Abdulaziz prohibited the tradition of cursing Imam Ali (AS) on the pulpit and instructed to recite verse 16:90 (An-Nahl) instead, which reads:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَأْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالْإِحْسَانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي الْقُرْبَىٰ وَيَنْهَىٰ عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنكَرِ وَالْبَغْيِ ۚ يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ ﴿٩٠﴾
23:90 Indeed, Allah (SWT) orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you, that perhaps you will be reminded.
The Imam (AS) said that scholars are gifted with knowledge and wisdom and must generously share it with those who seek it without hindrance. They should act like a treasurer who gives generously to those in need under the benefactor’s direction.
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