Respect for Islamic Books

Many of us have Islamic books in our houses and rooms. We find that as we get more interested in Islam, the literature we purchase also increases. However, many of us lack the correct etiquettes on how to behave witch such books and sadly we see them lying around the house, next to the toaster in the kitchen or used as a coaster in the living room.

The reality is that these books are of great importance and deserved of enormous respect due to the writings within them. Often we will find the blessed name of Allah ‘azza wa jal and Rasulullah salallahu alayhi wa salam written inside. Many books have Qur’anic verses and ahadith and thus are books of a venerated nature. The more respect we show these books, the more we will be able to benefit from them. The more disrespect we show them, the less we will gain from them. It does not befit a book of such a stature that it be left next to the toaster in the kitchen, rather it should deserve a place on a accessible, clean shelf. Such books should be handled with care.

The books which are studied in classical madressas usually have the main text in the center of the page and the commentary/footnotes are carefully etched all around the sides of the page. These annotations are sometimes upside down and at angles which are hard to read. Allamah Anwar Shah Kashmiri rahimahullah would have such respect for his books that in order to read these annotations, he would never move the book that was in front of him but rather he would move himself around the book if he wanted to read something which was written upside down. Such respect for his books contributed highly into making him one of the greatest scholars to have ever emanated from the sub continent.

Similar is the case of the king Bahadur Shah Zafar. After his death, somebody saw him in a dream and asked him, “O King! How did you fare in front of Allah Ta’ala?” He said, “Allah Ta’ala forgave me and he was very kind to me.” The person asked, “Is the reason because you were a very just king and ruler?” The king replied, “No, it was because of one incident that Allah Ta’ala liked so much. I was on a journey and I came to a resting place and we stopped there and when I was about to sleep on my bed, I noticed that on the shelf there was a Qur’an and I couldn’t spread my legs towards the Qur’an. I immediately stood up and sat straight. Now I thought that I would move the Qur’an from there and put it somewhere else but I thought no, I should not do that for the sake of my own rest. So, I tried to turn around and slept the other way but I couldn’t sleep. Sometimes I was sitting down; sometimes I was in some other posture until I spent the whole night in a sleepless state because of the respect of the Qur’an. I did not move the Qur’an for my own sake and I couldn’t sleep on the other side. So Allah Ta’ala said to me, “O Zafar! I liked this deed of yours so much that because of that, I am forgiving you.”

Today we consider such things such a trivial matter but when we look at our elders, we see an intense and burning love for books which are of a deeni nature. It is very important to become humble in front of such books. Many of us out of ignorance and disrespect sleep with our feet pointing towards Islamic books. There was a time where sleep in this manner would be unbearable but today, we are happy to place our feet towards deeni books and then sleep like a grizzly bear with full on snoring.

Similar is the case of sleeping in a high position whilst the books are lower than the feet of a person. It should not be the case that a person sleeps on such a high bedding that there are books on his shelf/desktop etc which are lower than his feet. If possible, he should lower his bed so that he is closer towards the floor and if he cannot do this, then he should look to sleep in another room. If that is really hard then he should ensure that the books are kept in another place where they will not be disrespected.

The following bullet points will inshallah be of benefit:

• Keep your Islamic books in high, dust-free shelves.
• Keep them nicely arranged starting with Qur'anic related books, Hadith related books then Fiqh related books and so on.
• Keep them in good condition.
• Do not use them for any other purpose other than what they are meant for. No 'coaster-ing!'
• Do not keep them in places which denote disgrace, i.e. below the feet.
• Do not point your feet towards Islamic books when you sleep.
• Hold the Islamic books with your right hand as this is the hand of respect.
• Try to maintain wudhu when reading such books. Although it is not necessary, it will be better and respectful. (Note: it is compulsory for one to have wudhu before physically handling the Qur'an)
• When you are carrying a book, carry it above your waist.
• Use nice bags when carrying Islamic books, not just a ripped Tesco bag!
• If one has many books and shelves in proportion to them, then make sure the room in which they are kept is clean and fragranced well.

Finally, I finish on a statement that our teachers would tell us, "Whomsoever acquired anything in this world did so by respect (adab). And whomsoever lost something in this world did so because of (a lack of) respect."

May Allah Ta'ala give us the ability to revere everything which is deserved of respect. Ameen.