1. Intention –  You will not find a single Hadith book which does not begin with
Innamal A’malu Bin Niyyaati
Correct your intention, it is the beginning but its also something which will need to be rectified over and over throughout your journey. You might be sitting in class just because the teacher is teaching a very important subject that day, but have the correct intention also. Our Ūlama made intention for everything from eating to sleeping!

2. Wudhu: Always try to stay in wudhu; being in a state of wudhu is also a weapon against Shaytaan, if you attend a class with wudhu that session will most likely – in’sha’allah – be one free of yawns and stray thoughts.

3. Adab – its not just adab to your teacher – yes that’s essential! – but to your kitaabs and your classmates. Have extreme adaab with your kitaabs, think! These books were written many, many years ago just for the sake of preserving this īlm and YOU are going to be the inheritor of this īlm so have utmost adaab and muhabbāh for your books. You are a special woman who has been chosen by Allah SWT to preserve and learn and teach this īlm so show Allah SWT that you appreciate this.

Our pious predecessors showed so much respect to their books that it comes one scholar would not turn the kitaab but he himself would move around the kitaab to read it. Another scholar would not ever place his feet towards the house of his teacher because of his extreme respect for him! Allahu Akbar imagine!

4. Dua: keep making duā to Allah SWT for qubooliyāh; to accept you as a Seeker of this īlm, to grant you istiqama. View every subject, every baab and even every harf which you have been blessed to learn as a form of dhikr. As Shaykh Kamaluddin Ahmed DB says after every form of worship “make duā” .

You do not know what āmaal will be maqbool in the eyes of Allah SWT, it is not your deeds that will gain you entry into Jannah rather it is the Rahma of Allah SWT, and to gain the Rahma of Allah SWT you will need all your good deeds!

Finally, do a lot of shukr for having this great blessing of ilm.

A CIL Student’s advice to her classmates.