Mufti Ismail Moosa (may Allāh Ta’ālā preserve him)
انصب نهارا في طِلاب العلا واصبر على فقد لقاء الحبيب
حتى إذا الليل بدا مقبلا واكتحلت بالغمض عين الرقيب
فقابل الليل بما تشتهي فإنما الليل نهار الأريب
Dedicate the day in aiming to ascend
And bear with not meeting even your close friend
Until the time of nightfall enters
And people fall in the slumbers
Then use the night for the desires of your heart
For verily, the night is the day for those who are smart
A common quality in the lives of all of our previous scholars was that they had strict discipline on how they would manage their time and that they ensure that every second was productive.
Together with not wasting a single moment, they would even sacrifice basic necessities, just so that they could get more from their 24 hours.
It was in this way that they accomplished a lot, even in the early part of their lives.
Together with traveling, studying, teaching and writing, they had enough time for their ‘Ibādah (worship) and other chores.
This has been the secret to success all along, and it continues to remain the only way that one can excel in ‘Ilm.
If we really are serious in attaining knowledge, then at the very least, we need to utilize our time properly.
Ibrāhīm ibn Sayyār an-Niḍām said:
“العلم: شيء لا يعطيك بعضه حتى تعطيه كلك ” (الفقيه والمتفقه – 1 / 460)
“Knowledge is something that will not give you a portion of itself unless you give it all of yourself.”
The very basics for every student are:
1) To use our time wisely
2) To cut out distractions
3) To account for how we spend each day.