Which comes first: serving one’s parents or completing one’s studies

Question

I completed hifz (memorisation of the Qur’an), then studied some Arabic; my intention was to complete the Dars-i Nizami (the traditional madrasa curriculum) and then render some service to the religion. However, my parents are doing their utmost to make me give up studying and occupy myself with some other work that would build up my worldly life.

Answer

If your parents are in need of your service and help, have no means of subsistence, and only you can fully provide for their service, then you are not permitted to sever relations with them, go off somewhere and complete the Dars-i Nizami; rather, keep on serving them, and in your free time you may also acquire religious knowledge, even if it be only in Urdu.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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