Knowing
\r\n Fatir (The Creator) Chapter 35: Verse 28 (partial)
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"From among His servants, it is only those who know that fear Allah."
The more a person is ignorant of God's attributes, the more fearless he will be of Him. By contrast, the more a person understands attributes such as those of God's power, knowledge, wisdom, and dominance over all, the more one will fear to disobey Him.
\r\nThe expression "those who know" is not used to denote savants in conventional fields of knowledge such as science, philosophy, history and mathematics. A person may be literate or illiterate, but what really matters is whether or not he holds God in awe. It should also be borne in mind that the above expression "those who know" does not necessarily refer to those whom we call ulama al-din (religious scholars), because they have knowledge of the Quran, Hadith, Fiqh, and Kalam. This expression only applies to them if they are characterized by God-consciousness. Accordingly, Abdullah Ibn Masud observed: "Knowledge does not consist of an abundance of verbal expression, but of an abundance of God-fearing." The same observation was made by Hasan al-Basri in the following words: "A scholar is he who fears God, who is inclined to what pleases God, and who keeps away from whatever leads to God's wrath." (Ibn Kathir)
\r\nCompiled From:
\r\n \"Towards Understanding the Quran\" - Sayyid Abul Ala Mawdudi, Vol. 9, p. 226