What is Gifted Knowledge or al-‘ilm al-ladunnī – Islamic Education Article Release

The Meaning of al-‘ilm al-ladunnī

The term “al-‘ilm al-ladunnī” is derived from the Arabic word “ladun” as it occurs in the following verse of the Holy Quran:

﴾وَعَلَّمْنَاهُ مِنْ لَدُنَّا عِلْمًا﴿

“…and We taught him a knowledge from Our own”¹

In the Arabic lexicon, the word “ladun” signifies “proximity” and “nearness”². The term “al-‘ilm al-ladunnī”, however, bears several different definitions. A summary of these various meaning is that “al-‘ilm al-ladunnī” signifies knowledge that is bestowed directly by God Almighty upon some of His most deserving servants³. When we say that it is “bestowed”, we wish to indicate that it is not acquisitional in nature and cannot be attained through human effort. Similarly, by using the qualifying clause “directly”, we seek to negate the role of any and all intermediaries, thereby creating a clear distinction between al-‘ilm al-ladunnī and all other types of knowledge which are invariably and without exception attained by human beings via the intercession of some intermediary or the other.

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