The mosques were the primary centers of education during the time of the Prophethood and the Rightly Guided Caliphs, where both general and specialized learning circles were held. Subsequently, schools (kuttab) emerged to teach children, either attached to the mosques or operating independently. However, the houses of the Companions also served as beacons of education, welcoming students of knowledge and providing instruction to their family members, both males and females, as well as servants and freedmen.
The first house to play that role was the house of Al-Arqam ibn Abi Al-Arqam in Mecca before the migration, where the companions would gather secretly, concealing their Islam. Then there was the "House of the Reciters" in Medina, which was settled by Abdullah ibn Umm Maktum when he migrated there.
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to instruct his companions to teach their neighbors and guests, and he warned against neglecting this duty. He said: "What is wrong with certain people who do not understand their neighbors, do not educate them, do not advise them, do not command them, nor prohibit them? And what is wrong with certain people who do not learn from their neighbors, do not seek understanding, and do not take admonition? By Allah, those people will certainly be made to teach their neighbors, and they will provide them with understanding, guide them, command them, and prohibit them. And there will be some people among these neighbors who will surely learn from them, gain understanding, and be discerning, or I will hasten punishment upon them." (Narrated by Al-Tabarani and Al-Haythami).
When someone from outside the city embraced Islam and showed eagerness to learn, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) would send them to his companions to teach them. It was natural in this context for the homes of these individuals to open up for learning and teaching.
Abu Bakr bin Abi Musa Al-Ash'ari narrated that his father came to Omar ibn Al-Khattab after the evening prayer. Omar asked him, "What brings you here?" He replied, "I came to talk to you." Omar said, "At this hour?" He responded, "It is knowledge." So, Omar sat down, and they talked for a long time. Then Abu Musa said, "The prayer, O Commander of the Faithful." Omar replied, "We are in a prayer," and the Commander of the Faithful was right, for sitting for knowledge is a form of prayer, and studying knowledge is an obligation that surpasses the optional prayers.
When a question regarding inheritance perplexed Umar ibn al-Khattab, he personally walked to the house of Zayd ibn Thabit to seek clarification on it.
And here is Ali ibn Abi Talib advising his companions to visit one another to study knowledge so that they do not forget it. He says: 'Visit each other and discuss this hadith; for if you do not do so, your knowledge will fade away,' meaning it will be lost and forgotten.
Abdullah ibn Abbas recounts a part of his zeal for knowledge and his efforts in acquiring it. He says: When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) passed away, I said to a man from the Ansar: "Come, let us ask the companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), for today they are numerous." The Ansari refused, doubting that the people would need them when there are great companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) among them. Ibn Abbas continued to ask the companions about the Hadith, and sometimes he would come to one of their doors during their midday nap, laying his cloak in front of their door while the wind blew dust over him. The companion would come out and say: "O cousin of the Messenger of Allah, what brings you here? Didn't you send for me so that I could come to you?" Ibn Abbas would reply: "I am more deserving to come to you," and he would ask him about the Hadith. Ibn Abbas said: That Ansari lived until he saw people gathering around me asking me questions, and he said: "This young man is more prudent than I am.
A group of students of Ibn Mas'ud gathered in his house in Kufa, seeking knowledge from him. In what he said, he mentioned that Muadh ibn Jabal was a devout servant of Allah, a true believer. One of his companions thought that he had forgotten and meant the Prophet Abraham (Ibrahim). Ibn Mas'ud said: "Did you hear me mention Ibrahim? We used to liken Muadh to Ibrahim, or he was likened to him.
Students of Ibn Mas'ud would sometimes sit at the door of his house waiting for his permission, and their wait would be prolonged. He would then come out to inform them that he had delayed, fearing that they might get bored from the numerous lessons. He said: "The Messenger of Allah, may peace and blessings be upon him, used to give us reminders on days, fearing that we would become weary of them.
Not long passed before these educational gatherings in homes evolved into specialized councils, as happened with Ibn Abbas, where students of knowledge from various scientific disciplines would visit his home. His student Abu Saleh said: "I saw Ibn Abbas holding a gathering that if all of Quraysh were to be proud of, it would indeed be a source of pride for them. I saw people gathering until the road became narrow for them; no one could come or go. He mentioned that he informed him of what they had discussed, so he instructed him to permit those who wanted to ask about the Quran and its sciences to enter. They filled the house and the chamber until they had their fill, then they left. He then allowed those who wanted to ask about the interpretation of the Quran to enter, and then those who wanted to ask about lawful and unlawful matters and jurisprudence, then he allowed those who wanted to ask about obligatory duties – meaning inheritance – and then those who wished to ask about the Arabic language, poetry, and rare expressions.
Inside the houses, students of knowledge would find generosity, kindness, and good hospitality alongside their studies. Ibn Abbas would tell his companions when the lesson became prolonged: "Have some fruit and share your poetry, for the soul gets bored just as the body does.
The houses of the Prophet's wives, may peace be upon him, were the most prominent places for women's education. They played this role during his lifetime, and it increased after his death, such as with Umm al-Mu'minin Aisha and Umm Salama, may Allah be pleased with them both. This continued with the learned women among the wives of the companions, as we see with Umm al-Darda al-Sughra, the wife of Abu al-Darda.
Then comes the role of some non-Muslims in teaching Muslims matters of writing, such as the role of Jufayna - a Christian from Al-Hira- who was brought by Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas to Medina to teach its people how to write. Such individuals do not teach people in their mosques, nor do they have homes that serve as suitable places for education.
The role of the family in education
If the Kuttabs (traditional schools) served as centers for teaching boys under the guidance of their teachers and mentors, the homes were centers for teaching them by their fathers, where they learned the basics of prayer, Islam, and acts of worship from a young age, in accordance with the Prophet’s command, peace be upon him: 'Teach the child to pray at the age of seven, and if he does not observe it by the age of ten, discipline him for it.
The companions exerted great effort in educating their children. Although our historical sources do not provide us with many accounts on this aspect, its practical outcomes are evident. We find ourselves facing great personalities among them, whether they were younger companions who were children or young boys during the life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) or among the senior successors.
And here is Abu Bakr teaching his daughter Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, the final lesson while he is on his deathbed. She came to him, and his breath was fading, and he recited this verse: By your life, wealth does not benefit a young man when he is taken by the soul one day and his chest tightens.
He looked at her as if he were angry and then said: "It is not so, O Mother of the Believers, but ...( The trance of death will bring the Truth with it: ‘This is what you tried to escape.) (Qaf :19)
And he advised her with his will before his death, may God's pleasure be upon him.
As for Omar ibn Al-Khattab, his education for his family and children was based on asceticism and piety, setting an example for Muslims as a form of practical teaching. When he was presented with some perfume made from musk from Bahrain, Omar said in front of his wife, Atiqa bint Zayd: "I wish I could find a woman of good weight to weigh this perfume for me; so that I can distribute it among the Muslims." She replied, "I am good at weighing, so bring it to me, and I will weigh it for you." He said, "No, I am afraid that you might take it like this," and he gestured with his fingers near his temples, "and pour it on your neck, thus keeping a little for yourself from the Muslims.
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