English Column: Not sure? Just say ‘I don’t know’

Just say ‘I don’t know’

Picture by kenokel.com

Once upon a time there was a man who traveled thousands of miles from Morocco to Madinah. The hell of the journey was only to accomplish one mission that is to meet Imam Malik and to ask and discuss some questions.

These unanswered questions were imposed by the people of Morocco to the great, renowned Imam of al-Madinah that is Imam Malik. This man was just a representative and the journey to Madinah took him several months.

As soon as he reached Madinah, the first station he went was a program Imam Malik conducted. In the gathering, this man asked Imam Malik all the questions he had come for, in front of many others. But sad to report that Imam Malik’s reply was “I don’t know. That problem has never occurred so far at our place. Our elders have never taught us about that. Please go home tomorrow.”

The next day, before he went back to Morocco, that same man rode his donkey to meet Imam Malik.  He asked Imam Malik again: “O Imam, do you now have the answers to my questions?”

Imam Malik answered: “I still do not know the answer.”

That man did not want to go back empty handed, he insisted: “O Abu Abdillah, these are issues raised by my people in Morocco. They say that there’s no other person wiser and more intelligent in the world than Imam Malik. What am I supposed to report to them?”

Once again Imam Malik answered: “When you have returned to your hometown, tell them that Imam Malik does not know the answers to the questions.”

Be careful

                Ustaz Muhtad narrated this story during my school days in MATRI. I think it is a famous story. In this story, we can see how careful Imam Malik was in answering questions. If he knew the answers he would share them with the others. But if he didn’t know, he would say he didn’t know. To Imam Malik, there was no embarrassment in saying “I don’t know.”

The first time I heard this story, I said “Huh? I don’t believe it!” A great scholar such as Imam Malik claims he does not know? Imam Malik’s qualification is more than a PHD. He is a renowned scholar. He is known for his strong memory. He is a distinctive Mujtahid who is feared by both friends and foes. Imam Malik has been a figure for reference in Madinah for years and has a mass number of students from all around the world. Even Imam Syafie is one of his students. Imam Syafie once said, “When it comes to Hadeeth, Malik is its star.”

Does saying “I don’t know” affect the credibility of a scholar? Does it show that a scholar should not be called a scholar but a schoolboy if he says, “I don’t know”? No! By saying, “I don’t know”, it is actually a sense of pride. Not pride of being someone academically incapable or lame (or naive) but pride being careful in not conveying false information to other people.

By being careful in conveying information, it actually reflects the Mu’min identity. We should know that Allah owns this deen and it is revealed to the prophet in Al-Quran and As-Sunnah. No one should claim this and that, without proper proof from Allah through Al-Quran and As-Sunnah. For if we try to act as if we know everything but we convey something that we do not know, we actually do not own any criterion of a scholar.  What will happen if the message we give is misleading? It is HALAL and HARAM we are talking about right now. We can’t just easily open our mouth and say things as we wish.  Be careful when you say “This is lawful, and this is forbidden.”

One can neither prohibits what Allah has permitted nor permits what Allah has prohibited. Only Allah has the authority on permissibility and prohibition. Anyone who invents something that the Prophet has not done it, either for his benefit or to save his own face, on any basis other than Allah’s, is an inventor of falsehood. Those who invent anything without the authority of Allah will reach a doomed losing end.

Allah has proved in the Quran surah An-Nahl verse 116:

“But say not – for any false thing that your tongues may put forth, – “This is lawful, and this is forbidden,” so as to ascribe false things to Allah. For those who ascribe false things to Allah, will never prosper.”

It is an order that they must not describe anything as lawful or unlawful without appropriate warrant. When they say that something is lawful and another thing is prohibited, without a reliable statement in support, they might be stating a naked lie, which they falsely attribute to Allah. The sūrah makes it clear that those who invent falsehood and attribute it to God will have nothing but brief enjoyment in this life. Beyond this, they will be made to experience grievous suffering.

Sometimes I’m stunned by people who kept going on claiming this and that. They have the “bravery” to do so as if they are God themselves. We are not God; we are just mere dusts. The most daring part such people would do is to still “expect with confidence” to prosper in this life and in the life hereafter as well. Huh. Don’t be like that.

You know, by saying “I don’t know” also mirrors the identity of human that has limited capability compared to Allah. However knowledgeable a person might be, however intelligent a person could be, I assure you, they still do not know so many things. This should be a drive in our heart to keep on learning and researching.

Misunderstandings surrounding “I don’t know”

                I’ve shared with you the phenomenon of a person who has no lock on his mouth and keeps on barking false truth with no end. It always happens in our daily lives, in our normal conversations and also in our communications with the members of the society. But that’s not all; there are also some people who have misunderstood the quotation by Imam Malik.

I’ve witnessed this kind of people. Every time I ask them, they will say, “I don’t know”. Literally every time I asked them a question that needed some genuine answers, that was what they said (I don’t know). Some questons were not those you need to be a bookworm to answer. The questions were simple for example:

Brother A: “What do you think of performing prayer, is it good?”

Brother B: “I don’t know. Sorry. I have no comment”

Brother A: “Eh? You don’t know about prayers? You have no comment on your own praers”

(Long silence)

Brother A: “Have you been praying lately?”

Brother B: “Yeah I have, always. But I don’t know, I just do it”

Brother A: “Oho. You don’t feel anything?”

Brother B: “Well I don’t know. Just exhaustion I guess”

Brother A: “Oh that’s ok, btw, you’re taking Al-Quran and Sunnah right? Do you know any verses on prayer? I need it for my assignment”

Brother B: “Yeah I’m taking Al-Quran and Sunnah. I don’t know any verses. Sorry. I haven’t graduated and got my degree yet”

I changed the conversation topic but the rest was the same. Guess how many “I don’t know” Brother B has said?

I got so upset when that guy said “I haven’t graduated and got my degree yet”. If he still said, “I don’t know” then it is better. Do you know what I felt after he said that? I don’t know what to say but I feel “disgusted”. If he was a pursuing other than Al-Quran and Sunnah as his degree, it would be ok because it is not his field. But he is taking Al-Quran and Sunnah and I asked only for that verse. You could just type, “Verse on performing solah” on google and out comes the web links. But he still chose to say. “I don’t know any verses. Sorry. I haven’t graduated and got my degree yet”.

Continuation of the story

Brother B’s excuse for not knowing the answer to Brother A’s question was that he had not graduated and he had not got his degree when asked. This implies that after one has got one’s degree, if aked a difficult question can say, “Sorry, I haven’t got my Masters yet.” I was so red with anger, “What about after you got your Masters?” I asked in anger. “Sorry I haven’t got…”  – I instantly said,“Cut it. I know the answer, ‘sorry I haven’t got my PHD yet’.” I just got up and left him. Whenever I saw him again, I felt disgusted. Full of excuses!

Do you think this type of person would answer the same way and give similar excuses in interviews? I bet he would. Even in interviews this type of people do not bother to answer properly.  Such people wll easily show their sloppiness. At a bank interview Brother B told me that he was asked a question on Muamalah (sale and purchase), and he said he answerd, “Sorry I don’t know. I hadn’t studied that part yet; my hands were so full this weekend. I got no time to study. I got too many programs to conduct. I’m in charge of the multimedia of this program …and so on…”

That was the answer the interviewer got whaen asking in Malay.  He told me at first he was asked in Arabic, and the answer was a silence. Then the interviewer asked in English,  the answer was still a silence. Only when the question was in Malay Brother B could answer but even this, the answer was “I don’t know”.

Do you think this type of “I don’t know” fits the “I don’t know” of Imam Malik?

Conclusion: Apply the accepted “I don’t know”

I can’t stand to see a person so full of excuses here and there, answering “I don’t know” this and “I don’t know” that.  If you do not know everything, what do you know? Eat and sleep? Play Pokemon games? Flappy Birds?

Apply the acceptable “I don’t know” such as the one given by Imam Malik. If you are asked something you haven’t dealt with, say, “I don’t know”. Don’t say, “I don’t know” to escape answering that question. Carry out some research and read references. I am sure the question asked would benefit not only the person who asks but also the person who answers.  I suggest, after you have said, “I don’t know”, add some hope such as, “Give me time” or, “I’ll check it out”, or, “when I have the answer, I’ll share it with you.” Isn’t that better?

Cut out excuses and replace them with truth and never back down.

Don’t simply say, “I don’t know” but say, “I don’t know now, but I will find out.”

Reference:

Tafsir In the Shade of the Al-Quran by Sayyid Qutb Vol XI Surahs 16 – 20.

 

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