Nothing kills Knowledge but Stories

عَنْ أَبِي قِلَابَةَ، قَالَ: «مَا أَمَاتَ الْعِلْمَ إِلَّا الْقُصَّاصُ يُجَالِسُ الرَّجُلُ الرَّجُلَ الْقَاصَّ سَنَةً فَلَا يَتَعَلَّقُ مِنْهُ بِشَيْءٍ، وَيَجْلِسُ إِلَى الْعَالِمِ فَلَا يَقُومُ حَتَّى يَتَعَلَّقَ مِنْهُ بِشَيْءٍ»

“حلية الأولياء” ( 2 / 287 )

It was narrated that Abu Qilaabah ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Zayd said: Nothing kills knowledge but stories. A man may sit with a storyteller for a year without really learning anything that will last, whereas a man who sits with a scholar for an hour learns what will last and benefit him before he even gets up.

Source: Hilyat al-Awliya’ (2/287).

The salaf of this ummah issued a stern warning against these storytellers, because of the bad effects that their stories have on the common folk and because they contain things that go against the laws of Allaah.

In a hadeeth that was classed as hasan by Shaykh al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah (1681) it was narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:

إِنَّ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ لمَّا هَلَكُوا قَصُّوا

“When the Children of Israel were doomed they started to tell stories.”

Shaykh al-Albaani (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:

It says in al-Nihaayah: “when they were doomed they started to tell stories” which means they relied on words and forsook deeds, and that was the reason for their doom, or vice versa: when they were doomed it was because they stopped doing good deeds and turned to stories.

Al-Albaani said, commenting on this:

ومن الممكن أن يقال : إن سبب هلاكهم اهتمام وعاظهم بالقصص والحكايات دون الفقه والعلم النافع الذي يعرف الناس بدينهم ، فيحملهم ذلك على العمل الصالح ؛ لما فعلوا ذلك هلكوا .

“السلسلة الصحيحة” ( 4 / 246 )

“It may be said that the reason they were doomed was that they paid too much attention to stories at the expense of fiqh and beneficial knowledge which teach the people about their religion, and motivate them to do righteous deeds. Because they did that, they were doomed.”

Source: Al-Silsilah al-Saheehah (4/246).

This is the case with the storytellers; they pay too much attention to stories and myths, which they narrate to the common folk, without any understanding or knowledge, and the common man hears a lot but does not understand any ruling or gain any knowledge.

Ibn al-Jawzi said in Talbees Iblees (p. 150):

والقصاص لا يُذمون من حيث هذا الاسم لأن الله عز وجل قال : ( نَحْنُ نَقصُّ عَلَيْكَ أَحْسَنَ القَصَص ) وقال : ( فَاقْصُص القَصَص ) .

The storytellers are not condemned just for being storytellers, because Allaah says :

“We relate unto you (Muhammad) the best of stories” [Yoosuf 12:3] and His saying: “So relate the stories” [al-A’raaf 7:176]

وإنما ذُمَّ القصاص لأن الغالب منهم الاتساع بذكر القصص دون ذكر العلم المفيد ، ثم غالبهم يخلط فيما يورد وربما اعتمد على ما أكثره محال .

“تلبيس إبليس” ( ص 150 ) 

Rather the storytellers are condemned because they tell many stories without mentioning any beneficial knowledge, and usually they mix sound and unsound material in what they narrate and rely on things that are mostly impossible.

Source: Talbees Iblees (p. 150).

How often do these storytellers narrate from bad reports to the masses, and tell them these fables, which reach such a status among the masses that they believe everything that they hear and even give them precedence over the scholars and seekers of knowledge.

We ask Allaah to set straight the affairs of those on the path of acquiring knowledge, and to guide them to that which is best for them and others.