Is seeking knowledge considered work?

Seeking knowledge is not merely an action; it is among the best, purest, and most blessed deeds, and the most excellent way for a servant to draw near to his Lord after fulfilling obligatory duties. Allah has equated the people of knowledge with the believers and raised them in ranks. According to An-Nawawi, engagement in knowledge is superior to voluntary fasting, prayer, and glorification (tasbih), because its benefit extends to the seeker and to Muslims, and because it rectifies acts of worship, and scholars are the inheritors of the prophets.