Encouraging and urging the pursuit of knowledge

Abdullah bin Yahya bin Abi Kathir narrates from his father (Yahya bin Abi Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him)) that he said: I heard my father saying: "The worth and value of knowledge is far better than gold, and a righteous and pure soul is more precious and better than pearls."
This report is mawquf and sahih (authentic).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whether he is a seeker of knowledge or a possessor of knowledge, everything in creation seeks forgiveness from Allah Almighty for him, even the fish of the sea (pray for forgiveness for him)."
Abu Ya'la recorded this hadith in his Musnad. Although its chain has been criticised, the theme of the virtue of knowledge and of creation seeking forgiveness for the seeker of knowledge is established by other authentic hadith.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Seeking knowledge is an obligation and a duty upon every Muslim."
Imam Ibn Majah recorded this hadith in his Sunan (224), and Imam al-Bayhaqi in Shu'ab al-Iman (1665). On the strength of supporting reports and corroborating chains, this hadith reaches the level of sahih li-ghayrihi (authentic due to supporting evidence).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Wathilah bin al-Asqa' (may Allah be pleased with him) that he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) saying: "Whoever seeks knowledge and attains it, Allah Almighty will grant him two portions of reward; and whoever strives for knowledge but cannot attain it (as it deserves), Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, will grant him one portion of reward." Then he (peace and blessings be upon him), explaining it, said: "Whoever strives for knowledge and attains it, Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, will grant him the reward of his knowledge and the reward of acting upon it; and whoever seeks knowledge but cannot attain it, Allah Almighty will grant him the reward of the knowledge he learnt, and the reward of the knowledge he could not attain will be dropped from him."
The chain of this report contains Yazid bin Rabi'ah al-Dimashqi, a da'if (weak) narrator, due to which this hadith is da'if (weak).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that he used to say: "It was the practice of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) that when they had finished the morning prayer, they would sit in circle after circle (in groups), and there they would recite the Noble Qur'an and learn the rules of inheritance (fara'id) as well as the Sunnahs and the Prophetic ways."
Imam al-Darimi recorded it. Its chain contains Ja'far bin Maymun al-Basri, who is saduq (truthful) but there is some criticism of his memory; however, on the strength of other supporting reports this athar is reliable.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Allah Almighty has not been worshipped and served with anything more excellent and superior than acquiring deep understanding (fiqh, profound insight) in the religion."
Ibn Abi Umar narrated this hadith through Yusuf bin Khalid, Maslamah al-Qa'nabi and Nafi'.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has not been worshipped with anything more excellent than acquiring deep understanding (fiqh) in the religion; and surely a single faqih (a scholar with deep understanding of the religion) is heavier and harder on Satan than a thousand (mere) worshippers."
Imam Ahmad bin Mani' recorded this hadith in his Musnad; however, due to the weakness of Yazid bin Iyad in its chain, this report is da'if (weak) according to the hadith scholars.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Everything has a pillar and support, and the firm pillar and true foundation of this religion (of Islam) is fiqh (deep understanding and insight into the religion)."
Imam al-Bayhaqi recorded this hadith in Shu'ab al-Iman, although the hadith scholars have criticised the soundness of its chain.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Teach (people goodness and virtue), and do not be harsh and severe (in teaching), for the fact is that a teacher who teaches (with love and kindness) is far better than one who is harsh and reproachful."
Imam al-Harith bin Abi Usamah recorded this hadith in his Musnad; its chain contains Isma'il bin Ayyash al-Himsi and Humayd bin Abi Suwayd. Imam al-Bayhaqi also transmitted this same report in "Shu'ab al-Iman". According to the hadith scholars, the narration of Isma'il bin Ayyash from other than the people of his own region (the Syrians) is weak.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) entered the mosque and found two groups there: one group was busy with the remembrance of Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, and the other group was engrossed in acquiring understanding of fiqh and the religion and discussing it with one another. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Both these gatherings are upon goodness. As for those who are remembering Allah Almighty and making supplication and requests to their Lord, if Allah wills He will give them, and if He wills He will withhold (according to His wisdom). But these people who are teaching others and learning knowledge themselves (are of higher rank), for in reality I have been sent only as a teacher, and this is more excellent (than the first)." Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) sat down with them.
Imam al-Tayalisi and Imam al-Harith narrated it, each with his own chain, through Imam Abdullah bin al-Mubarak.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Jabir bin Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) that a man came to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and asked: "Who is the most knowledgeable of people?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The one who gathers the knowledge of people together with his own knowledge (that is, benefits fully from the knowledge of others as well); and remember that every possessor of knowledge is 'gharthan', thirsty and eager (for more knowledge)."
Imam Abu Ya'la recorded it in his Musnad. Its chain contains a narrator named Mas'adah bin al-Yasa', who is a liar and matruk (abandoned), because of which this report falls to the level of very weak or mawdu' (fabricated).

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The virtue and superiority of a scholar over a worshipper (one occupied merely with voluntary worship) is like my virtue over my whole Ummah."
Imam al-Harith recorded it in his Musnad.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abd al-Rahman bin Awf (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "A scholar of the religion has been given superiority and virtue over a mere worshipper by seventy degrees, and between every two of these degrees there is a distance like that between the earth and the heaven."
Imam Abu Ya'la recorded it in his Musnad; however, because of narrators such as Khalil bin Murrah and Mubashshir in its chain, the hadith scholars have criticised its reliability.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Teach (people) knowledge, make things easy (for them) and do not make (matters) difficult." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said these words three times, and further said: "So when anyone of you becomes angry, let him remain silent."
Imam Abu Bakr bin Abi Shaybah recorded this hadith in his al-Musannaf, and its chain contains Layth bin Abi Sulaym, whose memory has been criticised; however, it has supporting reports in Musnad Ahmad and other books of hadith that strengthen it.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever memorises and preserves for my Ummah forty hadith concerning the affairs of their religion that benefit them, he will be raised on the Day of Resurrection among the scholars; and a scholar will be given superiority over a worshipper by seventy degrees, while Allah Almighty knows best how great a distance (of grandeur and vastness) lies between every two degrees."
Imam Abu Ya'la al-Mawsili recorded this hadith in his Musnad; however, because of the presence of a narrator named Amr bin Husayn al-Uqayli in its chain, the hadith scholars have declared this report mawdu' (fabricated) and very weak.

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Shall I not tell you about the One who is the most generous and bountiful? The most generous is Allah Almighty, and I am the most generous of the children of Adam, and after me the most generous of them will be a man who acquired knowledge and then spread it (among people); he will be raised on the Day of Resurrection as a nation by himself; and (the other) a man who strove in jihad with his life in the path of Allah until he was martyred."
[Takhrij: Imam al-Tabarani narrated this hadith in 'al-Mu'jam al-Awsat' (3107). Its chain contains Suwayd bin Abd al-Aziz and Nuh bin Dhakwan, who are da'if (weak) narrators. Allamah al-Albani declared it da'if (weak) in 'Da'if al-Jami' al-Saghir' (2178).]

It is narrated from Sayyiduna Abu al-Darda (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) narrated a blessed hadith in which he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The death of a scholar of the religion is a calamity that cannot be made good and a breach in the religion that cannot be filled; the scholar of the religion is like a shining star whose light has been extinguished; and the passing away of a whole tribe is easier and lighter than the death of one scholar."
This hadith is da'if (weak) due to the presence of an unnamed narrator in its chain; however, other authentic reports concerning the importance of knowledge and the void created by the death of scholars support its meaning.