Will a Muslim be rewarded for learning math?
Question

                If a student learns math with the intention of seeking the pleasure of Allaah, will he be rewarded for that or not?
Praise be to Allah. 
          If this math is something which will benefit the Muslims 
          in their daily lives and the person intends to benefit the people thereby, 
          then he will be rewarded according to his intention. But math is not 
          like Islamic knowledge or sharee’ah, although it is a permissible matter 
          and a means. If it is a means that will benefit the people in their 
          lives, then a person will be rewarded for it, because the Islamic principle 
          is that the category of permissible things is very broad, but one issue 
          which in principle is permissible may change to be haraam, or makrooh, 
          or mustahabb or waajib. 
 
          We may say, for example, that selling is permissible 
          in principle, but it may be mustahabb or makrooh. If a person wants 
          to buy something from you that will save his life, such as food and 
          drink, what is the ruling on selling? The ruling is that (in this case) 
          it is obligatory. But another person wants to buy grapes from you in 
          order to make wine – in this case selling is haraam. Another person 
          wants to buy water to do wudoo’ and he has no water; in this case selling 
          is obligatory. On this basis we say that if the permissible thing is 
          a means to something which is prescribed in Islam, then it is prescribed, 
          but if it is a means to something haraam then it is haraam.