(54) And by the same chain of transmission from our Master al-Sadiq, may His might be glorified, that he was asked about the word of Allah, Mighty and Majestic: {And do not kill your children for fear of poverty} (Al-Isra: 31). He, may His might be glorified, said: "Its meaning is: a parent should not withhold from his 'child' (student) a knowledge he possesses out of fear that the child might encompass his knowledge and rise to his rank. For Allah the Exalted will open for him manifold doors of knowledge in exchange for what he imparted."

(55) My brother Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Baghdadi, known as al-Muhalheli, may Allah have mercy on him, narrated it by his chain of transmission from his men, from Amir Almuminin, may His might be glorified, that he said: "The world stands upon four: a scholar who is not stingy with his knowledge, a learner who is not too proud to learn, a wealthy person who is generous with his kindness, and a poor person who does not sell his hereafter for his worldly life."

(56) And from him, from his men, may Allah sanctify their souls, from our Master Amir Almuminin, may His might be glorified, that he said: "Knowledge is the trust of Allah with the scholar for the sake of the learner. If he does not deliver the trust to its people, Allah will strip him of that trust and make it a proof against him and a burden upon him."

(57) And by the same chain of transmission from our Master al-Sadiq, may His might be glorified, that he said: "Allah did not take a covenant from the ignorant to learn from the scholars except that He had already taken seventy covenants from the scholar not to conceal it from those who deserve it. Seeking knowledge has five boundaries through which alone knowledge is found and from which it is taken: silence, listening well, excellence in memorization, acting upon it, and spreading it among its people."