Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
In the [a certain place] our noble shuyukh told me it is wajib for us to teach. I have been advised though many a time by scholars never to WASTE the time of the ulama. I have also been told that we must never be shy in asking. So can you please tell us how we could be wasting the time of the ulama?
Walaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,
One could waste the time of the scholars in various ways:
a) by spending too much time with them in casual/social ways that burdens them;
b) by asking them irrelevant, unnecessary, or useless questions;
c) by asking them to study things that are above our level or understandingthe proper adab, of course, is to study what they deem fit for us to study;
d) by being lax in our studies, by not fulfilling our responsibilities as outlined by our teachers.
As for studying under scholars, and asking them genuine and relevant questions, these are the true keys to knowledge, and one should not shy away from these even if the scholars are busy. As one person put it, “Why deny them their reward?”
And Allah knows best.
Wassalam,