Learn from everyone

The Quran lays great importance on learning, for it is learning that promotes and sustains intellectual development. A verse of the Quran gives a notable example of this through a conversation Prophet Abraham had with his father: 'Father, I have been given some knowledge which has not come to you, so follow me: I shall guide you along a straight path' (19:43).

Abraham's father, who was called Azar, was Abraham's senior. So, he could have been reluctant to take advice from someone who was his junior. But in the matter of learning, words of wisdom should be heeded, even if the speaker is a much younger person. This is the true spirit of learning. Without this spirit, the learning process would be a non-starter. And without the learning, there can be no intellectual development.

The universe of knowledge and wisdom is so vast that it cannot be encompassed by a single mind. The only thing that can help you gain even more knowledge is the spirit mentioned in the Quran. Everyone must develop an insatiable intellectual thirst for gaining knowledge from different sources.


Knowledge is like a great ocean: faced with its immensity, no one can be a self-sufficient person. The process of seeking knowledge has to be mutual, in the course of which everyone gains something from everyone else. Here, the taker is the giver and the giver is the taker. Everyone plays both roles.

There are several ways of acquiring knowledge, one of them being through discussion or dialogue.