Honorable Mufti Muhammad Akmal Sahab, Respected Faculty members, Esteemed Guests and my beloved class mates.

Asslam o Alaykum.

I am honored to be a part of the graduating class of 2017. And would like to avail this opportunity to speak a few words
with all of you.

Allah Subhanawataala says in Quran - Surah Toba Chapter # 9, Verse # 22:

The translation of this verse:
And it is not possible for the Muslims that all of them go out; so it should be that a party from each group goes forth in
order to gain knowledge in religion, and upon returning they warn their people in the hope that they may avoid.

There are two narrations in the interpretation of this verse from Ibn-e-Abbas Radi Allah u Anhu. One of them is
regarding Jihad, that it was not feasible for all of the companions of Rasullah to go for Jihad. Instead, some of them
should have stayed behind and learned the commandments of Shariah directly from the Prophet. And later teach other
Sahaba who were engaged in Jihad. But today, I would like to focus on the second narration in explanation of this verse.

In Exegesis of Quran by Imam Ibn e Abi Hatim, Hazrat Ibn e Abbas narrated that a group of muslims from every tribe of
the Arabs, would come to RasulAllah. They would acquire the knowledge of the commandments and rulings of Shariah.
And would take guidance in all shariah related issues that they faced. And when these people returned to their own
tribes, they would convey the knowledge of Deen and teach them rulings regarding Salah, Zakah and other Islamic
terminologies. And they would warn them from the Day of Judgement and Hell fire.

This verse proves that the acquistion of knowledge is compulsory and also presents the concept of Taqleed. Based on
this verse and other textual evidences, Scholars have divided acquistion of knowledge into two types.

1. Farz e Ain Compulsory knowledge for every muslim. Such as codes and etiquettes of Salah and Fasting. If one is
wealthy enough, the rulings of Zakah. The complete rules and regulations of performing Hajj, when one intends to
perform it. And similarly all other matters pertaining to ones life such as marriage, divorce, business transaction etc.

And the saying of RasulAllah in Sunan Ibn e Maja clearly indicates towards this,

2. The second class of seeking knowledge acquiring complete knowledge of Deen - is Farz e Kifayah, which means that
if only one person from the locality accomplishes it, all others will be exempted. But if none of them undertake this task,
everyone will be held accountable. Here Complete means the broad and extensive knowledge of Shariah which
includes the knowledge of ibadaat, contracts, shariah-devised punishments hudood o qisas, and the exegesis of Quran
and intepretation of Hadith. So that, anyone from the masses of his time can reach out to him for seeking guidance in
any shariah related matter. And the person should be able to exercise independent reasoning Ijtihad on modern issues
such as Abortion, Family Planning, Performing Salah on a vehicle etc.

The message in this verse is very clear and seems completely logical. Its practical that not everyone of us has the
mental/health capability and social/financial independence that we go out in pursuit of broad knowledge of Deen. Even
if someone is eligible, he may not be passionate enough to pursue this field. This is where a lot of religious classes have
gone wrong. They have pushed their children into this area without taking note of their childs interest and have thus
negatively contributed in forming the society we live in. Hence, only a very limited number of people will be able to this
in any given time. Or I would rather say, that its Allahs will that very few people are chosen to accomplish this feat. But,
what we all need to realize is that we need these people desperately. We need someone on whom we can rely for all of
our religious affairs. Because, their guidance is what is going to eventually save us from the hell fire. Therefore, we need
to have someone to whom we can reach out easily for seeking guidance. And that would only be possible if we have
such a capable resource in our locality or extended family. This is exactly why the acquisition of knowledge at this level
falls into the category of Farz e Kifayah. Well, since we are not part of this group, but we need them badly too, what can
we do? Can we still contribute? This is something that everyone of us needs to ask himself.

Yes, you can and you should. You can help in creating an environment which makes it easy for the selected set to
achieve this objective. You can be a source of financial and moral support. You can set up funds to finance their studies
and cover their expenses. You can set up Islamic centers in every area,where these people can work and be the hub of
islamic guidance for anyone in the society. You should encourage your children to be a part of this blessed team, or at
least teach them to respect and honor them. Universities abroad spend millions of rupees on a single person just
because that he/she will publish a reasearch at the end of his 3 to 5 year Phd. Programme and that research might
contribute in giving the respective country an edge in that particular field. We are also spending millions, but,
unfortunately islamic education is not on our priority.

Luckily, if you are a part of the selected group. I am addressing to all the students of Al Furqan Academy or any other
similar Islamic institution. I congratulate you for being the inheritors of RasullAllah and you indeed deserve this credit for
angels spread out their wings for you and the creatures in sea pray for your forgiveness , according to a saying of
RasulAllah in Sunan Tirmidhi. Since, you have been chosen, lets not overlook the second part of this verse.

and upon returning they warn their people in the hope that they may avoid

So you need to educate and warn your people. That was the ultimate purpose of your selection. Respect, monetary
benefits, other priveleges are all secondary. You need to focus on your goal and everything will come along. Do not
separate yourself from the society. Do not become an alien to the masses by confining yourself to your limited number
of followers. And most importantly, do not hate people for sinning. Demonstrate your disliking only for what they do
wrong. The real challenge is to fullfill your task while remaning a part of the society. This is the sunnah of RasullAllah.
Get out of your comfort zone while trying to keep the masses in their comfort zone, of course within the limits set by
Shariah. This is where the Quranic verse in Chapter # 16 Verse # 125 pinpoints:

Call towards the path of your Lord with sound planning and good advice, and debate with them in the best possible way
And to begin with, do what you preach and preach by what you do. Strengthen your connection with Allah. Imam Malik
ibn Anas said:

He who practices Tasawwuf without learning Sacred Law corrupts his faith, while he who learns Sacred Law without
practicing Tasawwuf corrupts himself. Only he who combines the two proves true.

Alhamdulilah, Al Furqan Academy and other similar instituitions strive to serve this great purpose. They have set up a
curriculum through which a student is able to gain extensive knowledge of Deen over a period of 6 to 8 years. Over this
period you get to study subjects including Sarf ( Arabic Morphology), Nahv ( Arabic Syntax), Fiqh ( Islamic Jurisprudence),
Usool e Fiqh, Usool e Hadith , Aqidah, Ettiqutes of issuing fatwa and more. Especially, Al Furqan academy facitlitates you
by offering its 6-year programme during night timings between 9.30 to 11.30 pm. You dont have to forgo your job or
any other professional education for this. You can do it side by side.

Only for the sake of encouragement and promotion, I would like to put forward my own example. I started with this
academy in night timings along with my Alevel from a private college. And later continued with this course, while I got a
4 year bachelor degree in Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from one of the top universities in Karachi. Allah
Subhanawataala says in Quran, the verse I got to hear several times from Allama Nasir Sahab, who is my teacher and
also the part of the faculty at this academy. Chapter # 29, Verse # 69

And those who strove in Our way We shall surely show them Our paths; and indeed Allah is with the virtuous.

Trust me, it does not require a lot of effort. All you have to sacrifice is your gym, sports activities, tv shows, friends
gatherings, if any. But what you get in return is immeasurable and immense reward. You dont necessarily have to be a
part of the main stream clergy. You dont need to deliver Juma sermon to justify your education. Just stay where you are
and you can still be a source of guidance to hundreds in your surroundings. And more importantly, you will be at peace
with following Islam as your religion, as this was my only motivation in the beginning.

I would like to thank Allah, RasullAllah, My parents, Mufti Akmal Sahab, all of my teachers and anyone who has made
any sort of contribution in completing this journey. I wish best of luck to all my classmates in their future endeavors.

Thank you.