Advice to someone who has a stammer and wants to seek knowledge and teach it to people
Question

                I have had a stammer for most of my life. I am going to study the Quran and I want to ask: if I seek knowledge, I want to spread it, but there is only one thing that is stopping me. Will my stammer mean that I will keep my knowledge for myself only?
Praise be to Allah.
	We ask Allah, may He be exalted, to decree healing and reward 
	for you, healing from this problem with which Allah is testing you and 
	reward for attaining knowledge and for your intention to spread it among 
	people. 

	This stammer with which Allah is testing you is a problem 
	that requires patience in order to rid yourself of it, and training to teach 
	the tongue to pronounce words steadily and out loud, with confidence. But 
	before all of that you should seek the help of Allah, may He be exalted. It 
	has to do with your psychology and sometimes, in some people, it has to do 
	with a physical problem. We advise you to consult specialists in speech 
	therapy and diseases of the jaw and tongue. 

	In al-Mawsoo‘ah al-‘Arabiyyah al-‘Aalamiyyah it says: 

	There are a number of ways in which those who have a stammer 
	can attain perfect fluency. These ways include: reading out loud with 
	others, talking in supportive environments, or talking with friends. End 
	quote. 

	 Whatever the case: 

	You should understand that you will be rewarded for attaining 
	knowledge, and the difficulty that you suffer in attaining it will increase 
	you in reward. 

	It was narrated that ‘Aa’ishah said: The Messenger of Allah 
	(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The one who is skilled in 
	reciting Qur’an will be with the noble, obedient scribes and the one who 
	recites Qur’an and falters therein, and finds it difficult, will have a 
	double reward.”

	Narrated by Muslim (798) 

	Imam al-Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: 

	Faltering refers to stumbling and having difficulty in 
	speech. He will have a double reward, because of his recitation and because 
	of the difficulty he encounters. 

	Tafseer al-Qurtubi 
	(1/30). 

	If you want to benefit others with what you learn of 
	knowledge, then you have two options: 

	1.

	You can benefit people with your writings, in which case it 
	is not essential that the one who seeks to benefit others should be able to 
	pronounce the letters well. There are leading scholars of Islam from among 
	the early generations of whose knowledge nothing has reached us except their 
	books; we have not heard a single letter from them. Some of the contemporary 
	scholars and callers decided to refrain from addressing people directly – 
	which does not necessarily mean that they cannot express themselves well – 
	and they focus their efforts on benefitting others by their pens and writing 
	very useful books. There is a great deal of room for writing in newspapers, 
	magazines, websites and other options. 

	2.

	You can make your resolve firm and face reality head-on by 
	meeting people face-to-face and teaching them verbally. Some of the imams 
	and other scholars also had a stammer, but when they ascended the minbar and 
	spoke to people, they would speak fluently and with ease, and there would be 
	no stumbling over even a single letter. One of these scholars was Shaykh 
	‘Abd ar-Rahman ad-Dawsari (may Allah have mercy on him), and there are other 
	famous scholars. This was their situation; the stammer did not prevent them 
	from being eloquent khateebs, and in some cases they combined that with 
	brilliant writing. 

	There is another example, a virtuous sister who studied 
	sharee‘ah until she obtained her PhD in that field. Read what she herself 
	says: 

	When I looked at my peers and colleagues in the department, I 
	found that some of them were able to brush off the dust of the Shaytaan – 
	namely blameworthy shyness when calling people to Allah – and why could I 
	not do that too? Why could I not instil in myself trust in Allah? So I 
	decided to begin straightaway in the prayer room of the university. My 
	specialisation in da‘wah had given me particular insight into the scheming 
	of our enemies, and their ongoing war against Islam, so how long would we 
	have to wait to respond? I thought about a way to treat my stammer, which 
	was by not speaking quickly and – in the beginning – not looking at the 
	audience; rather I would look around the room so that I would not feel 
	nervous. Any letter that I could not pronounce easily, I would change it to 
	another letter that was easier for me. 

	By the grace of Allah, I began to give lessons in the prayer 
	room of the University, but without supervision from any of the female 
	professors. Obviously, supervision of the female professors may give 
	strength and support to the one who wants to call people to Allah, and make 
	her more precise and correct in what she is discussing and teaching, so that 
	it will not be mere expressions of emotion. 

	End quote. 

	We also give you the glad tidings that one of the people we 
	know who are active in seeking and spreading knowledge also has a stammer; 
	even though he cannot rid himself of it, his classes and lectures have 
	benefitted many seekers of knowledge. Giving classes is different from 
	preaching, and it is possible to benefit seekers of knowledge and teach them 
	many books, even before ridding oneself of this problem. So go ahead with 
	that to which Allah has opened your heart of seeking beneficial knowledge, 
	and remember that if you  are sincere towards Allah, may He be exalted, in 
	your intention to seek and spread knowledge, then you will be rewarded 
	whatever the case, whether you are able to actually spread knowledge and 
	teach, or something prevents you from doing that. 

	We ask Allah to make your affairs easy for you and to enable 
	you to do that which pleases Him. 

	For information on the virtues of seeking knowledge and of 
	the scholars, please see the answer to question no. 
	10471. 

	And Allah knows best.