Doing the bare bones consistently, can lead to Jannah?
The Prophet ﷺ said:
وَمَنْ سَلَكَ طَرِيقًا يَلْتَمِسُ فِيهِ عِلْمًا سَهَّلَ اللَّهُ لَهُ بِهِ طَرِيقًا إِلَى الْجَنَّةِ
Whoever travels a path in search of knowledge, Allah will make easy for him a path to Paradise.
This translation doesn’t do justice to the word that is used for “seeking,” which is “iltimas.”
I’m no Arabic scholar, but I was watching a Righteous and Rich episode, and Br. Imran explained the word “iltimas.” It is commonly translated as “seeking,” but it actually means someone who does less than that.
How much less? It is one of the lowest levels of seeking knowledge, where someone might spend once a week, or even once every two weeks, trying to seek just a little tiny bit of knowledge.
No rigorous studying, but very passive knowledge.
Even for THIS person, the one who isn’t trying hard at all to seek knowledge, but if he is consistent, Allah will make a path to Paradise easy for him.
Allah hu Akbar!
After hearing this, there really isn’t any excuse for us not to seek knowledge. Even if it means reading a post on social media (that is authentic), or watching a few short videos (dare I say reels or shorts!), this could be your ticket to Jannah.
Consistency is key though!
Of course we should always strive higher than the bare minimum, and the benefit you will get from seeking knowledge will literally change your life.
Not only your life, but the lives of those you are responsible for.
Your children, and your spouse.
Imagine spending just 5 minutes a day teaching your children about something you learned. It doesn’t even have to be directly related to Islamic knowledge, but maybe something happened in your day, and you can relate it to your kids by showing them how such and such a situation was a blessing, how that incident was a trial, how this situation reminded me of the Prophet ﷺ during this phase, etc.
These 5 minutes will add up over time, and they will organically lengthen the conversations you have with your children. They will ask you questions, and the conversation will keep going while you bond with them.
The knowledge discussions will be something they will actually look forward to, and before you know it, these discussions will become longer without seeming like a drag.
And best of yet by Allah’s will, your path to Paradise will be easy!
Check out the video clip here.