3-minute preview · Hear the full audiobook in the app.
Adam is our opening voice — more natural narrators arriving in the app, insha'Allah.
What is Book 1 of the Iḥyāʾ?
The Book of Knowledge is Book 1 of Imam al-Ghazālī's Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn, and the first book of its opening quarter, the Acts of Worship. Al-Ghazālī wrote the Iḥyāʾ in the 11th–12th century to revive the inner life of Islam, and this is where the whole work starts. The book answers a practical question: which knowledge is worth seeking, and which is not? It examines the nature and purpose of knowledge, tells beneficial knowledge apart from harmful knowledge, and sets out the foundations of Islamic learning and scholarship.
The audiobook has an introduction and seven chapters. Chapter 1 sets out the virtue of knowledge, teaching and learning, with its evidence from the Qurʾān. Chapter 2 sorts praised knowledge from blameworthy knowledge, with their types and rules. Chapter 3 clears up common misconceptions about what counts as religious knowledge. Chapter 4 looks at why people engage in controversial knowledge and debates. Chapter 5 gives the etiquette of the student and the teacher. Chapter 6 describes the flaws of knowledge and the signs of the scholars of the Hereafter. Chapter 7 closes on the intellect: its nature, its excellence and its divisions.
It opens with the table of the seven chapters, then goes straight to the virtue of knowledge and its evidence from the Qurʾān. The first proof al-Ghazālī gives is the verse in which Allah bears witness that there is no deity except Him, and so do the angels and those of knowledge. He points out the order: Allah first, then the angels, then the people of knowledge. That is the honour the book wants the listener to feel from its first minutes, before it turns to the harder questions of which knowledge to pursue.
Is there an English audiobook of The Book of Knowledge?
Yes. Joyful Muslims publishes the complete Book 1: The Book of Knowledge as an English audiobook (about 6 hours), translated from the Arabic, with a word-synced bilingual transcript. It examines the nature and purpose of knowledge, distinguishes beneficial from harmful knowledge, and lays the foundations of Islamic learning and scholarship.
Is it free to listen?
The whole library is open to everyone. Every member gets five hours of listening free each month; Joyful+ removes the time limit.
What does it cover?
An introduction and seven chapters: the virtue of knowledge, teaching and learning; praised and blameworthy knowledge; common misconceptions; debates and controversy; the etiquette of student and teacher; the flaws of knowledge and the signs of scholars of the Hereafter; and the intellect. It runs about 6 hours.
Last updated 2026-09-11
Four minutes inside the book.
Inside the book.
Chapters
Word-synced with the narrator.
The first three minutes are transcribed here. In the app, the Living Manuscript scrolls through the entire book in rhythm with the audio — Arabic alongside English.
Living Manuscript
Listen to the full book in the app for the complete Living Manuscript.
The full, word-synced transcript in Arabic and English is in the app.
