Sharh al-Arba'in al-Nawawiyya by Ibn Uthaymeen (شرح الأربعين النووية) — Page 164

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

شَرْحُ الْأَرْبَعِينَ النَّوَوِيَّةِ.

Explanation of the Forty Nawawi Hadiths.

أَنَّ كَثْرَةَ الْمَسَائِلِ سَبَبٌ لِلْهَلَاكِ وَلَا سِيَّمَا فِي الْأُمُورِ الَّتِي لَا يُمْكِنُ الْوُصُولُ إِلَيْهَا مِثْلِ مَسَائِلِ الْغَيْبِ كَأَسْمَاءِ اللَّهِ وَصِفَاتِهِ وَأَحْوَالِ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ، لَا تُكْثِرِ السُّؤَالَ فِيهَا فَتَهْلِكَ، وَتَكُونَ مُتَنَطِّعاً مُتَعَمِّقاً.

9- That an abundance of questioning is a cause for ruin, especially regarding matters that cannot be reached, such as matters of the Unseen, like the Names and Attributes of Allah and the conditions of the Day of Resurrection; do not ask too many questions about them, lest you perish and become one who is overly fastidious and pedantic.

وَأَمَّا مَا يَحْتَاجُ النَّاسُ إِلَيْهِ مِنَ الْمَسَائِلِ الْفِقْهِيَّةِ فَلَا حَرَجَ مِنَ السُّؤَالِ عَنْهَا مَعَ الْحَاجَةِ لِذَلِكَ، وَأَمَّا إِذَا لَمْ يَكُنْ هُنَاكَ حَاجَةٌ، فَإِنْ كَانَ طَالِبَ عِلْمٍ فَلْيَسْأَلْ وَلْيَبْحَثْ، لِأَنَّ طَالِبَ الْعِلْمِ مُسْتَعِدٌّ لِإِفْتَاءِ مَنْ يَسْتَفْتِيهِ، وَأَمَّا إِذَا كَانَ غَيْرَ طَالِبِ عِلْمٍ فَلَا يُكْثِرِ السُّؤَالَ.

As for the jurisprudential issues that people need, there is no harm in asking about them when there is a need for that; but if there is no need, then if one is a student of knowledge, let him ask and research, because the student of knowledge is prepared to issue fatwas to those who seek them from him, whereas if one is not a student of knowledge, he should not ask too many questions.

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Vocabulary · المفردات (21 verbs · 46 nouns)

• أَمْكَنَ — to be possible
• وَصَلَ — to arrive
• كَثُرَ — to be frequent
• شَرْحٌ — explanation
• أَرْبَعُونَ — forty
• نَوَوِيَّةٌ — Nawawi (feminine)