But if you have not gathered yourself together as you wish...

But if you have not gathered yourself together as you wish and focused your sights and thoughts exclusively on the matter, then know that you will be proceeding at random and be confounded in the darkness, whereas a seeker of religion is not one who proceeds at random or is confused, in which case it is better to hold back from that”.

Commentary In this section of the letter, Imam ‘Ali (as) refers to the new principles of education which include the approaches of acquiring knowledge and the implementation of the pious old generations and the avoidance of blind imitations and full comprehension of the conditions of the time and finally the avoidance of getting involved in dubious cases of thought.

The Approaches To The Acquisition Of Knowledge As we know, man's knowledge, compared with what is unknown to him, is like a drop of water in the sea. If man wants to capture this drop of knowledge, he has to select the proper method of approach so as not to get drowned in the immense sea of what is unknown. In his letter, Imam ‘Ali (as) provides us with three such approaches: 1.

Inspiration As God is the Creator of existence, and is aware of every detail, definitely His book of religion is based on the facts of His book of creation. No deceit or lies appear there. Thus, a resort to God's Book and to the Prophet's tradition, which is identical with divine inspiration, can help us find our right path[^1] and block our deviation.

For this reason, Imam (as) has emphasized: “What I would like the most for you to take from my will is God-wariness, restricting yourself to what God has imposed on you”. As we know, one of man's most important ways for the progress of knowledge and culture and man's civilization, has been following the guides offered by the Prophets and the Imams (as). We have dealt with this in the book called "The History of the Islamic culture and civilization." 2.

The Ways Of The Pious Ancestors It is a fact that the older generations of a community, especially if they have had the guidance of Divine Prophets, through experience and inspiration, have amassed huge reservoirs of knowledge, which could be a valuable treasure for the next generations. Thus, reliance of this worthy treasure could help us attain the right knowledge. That is why in this letter, Imam ‘Ali (as) orders his son to follow what his forefathers have done.