RECITING THE NOBLE QUR’AN
The Noble Qur’an is Allah Ta’ala’s word and His message to mankind. It’s His instructions for us on how we need to live our lives in a way that both pleases Him and keeps us safe in both worlds. It’s His directions on how we can reach heaven easily and avoid the pitfalls of the Shaytan, this world and our desires.
The Noble Qur’an is vital to connect with Allah Ta’ala outside of the month of Ramadan already, and in the month of Ramadan, it’s indispensable. Allah Ta’ala Himself talks about the connection between Ramadan and the Noble Qur’an, showing us the importance of pairing the two.
The Noble Qur’an has many rights over us. We need to:
• Read it correctly and regularly
• Memorise the necessary parts of it
• Understand its meanings
• Reflect over its meanings and verses
• Act upon its teachings In the month of Ramadan, we should be trying to do all of the above five things throughout the entire month.
The First Right of the Noble Qur’an: Recitation
Firstly, we need to recite it as much as possible and as often as possible, and for this, targets are a must. However, what’s important is not how much we read, but how often and how many hours of our day go into it. There are people who can read an entire Juz in fifteen minutes, though some only manage it in an hour. However, we should be ambitious and try to complete at least one entire recitation within the month.
If we haven’t recited much in the past, we should set ourselves an easier target of reading just one Juz daily. We should calculate how long it takes for us to recite one Juz, and divide that time throughout the day. For example, if it takes us an hour to read one Juz, we can read fifteen minutes at four points throughout the day.
One trick is reaching the Masjid ten minutes early before Salahs and staying behind ten minutes after Salah too. This should be enough time for a person to read at least 1 hour and 40 minutes of reading a day. Reading in the Masjid will be easier for most people, especially with the environment of everyone reading together.
See the table on the next page to figure out how long you need to read daily to achieve the number of Khatms (complete recitations) of the Noble Qur’an you want to achieve. The key is setting a target and making a plan of when you’ll be reciting to reach the required daily praying time. If we had a target last year, we should be trying to improve the target for this year. Note that in the table, the maximum amount of time displayed is around three hours of daily recitation, though you can always pray more. If you’re really ambitious, you can aim to complete the entire Noble Qur’an in just one day! If you can read one Juz in twenty minutes, it takes ten hours of reading time!
Along with reciting the Noble Qur’an frequently, it can’t be stressed enough how
important it is to recite it correctly. Reciting it correctly requires you to pray it with the
following:
• The correct pronunciation of each letter (Makharij)
• With Tajwid rules
• Praying in a clear manner in which every is said properly without rushing
• Preferably in a melody
In fact, it’s more rewarding to read a smaller amount properly than rushing through a
larger amount. Therefore, choose the time it takes you to read one Juz in the previous
table based on how long it would take if you were to read it clearly.
If you haven’t yet learnt Tajwid, or your Makharij are not up to scratch, you should take
this month to learn from qualified teachers. Ask your local Imam and Masjid leaders to
organise lessons, as there will most definitely be others in the same position. It’s the
Masjid officials’ duty to ensure there is some sort of service available, even if it means
it’s a paid service.
Along with reading the Khatm amount daily, we should also add the following Surahs into our reading schedule:
• Surah Yasin – 22nd Juz – to be prayed in the morning
• Surah Mulk – 29th Juz – to be prayed at any time in the night
• Surah Waqi’ah – 27th Juz – to be prayed at any time in the night
• Surah Alif Lam Mim Sajdah – 21st Juz – to be prayed at any time in the night
• Surah Kahf – 15th Juz – to be prayed at any time from the Maghrib of Thursday to before the Maghrib of Friday.
• Surah Dukhan – 25th Juz – to be prayed at any time from the Maghrib of Thursday some time in the night before the Fajr of Friday.
As mentioned earlier, all of this will require a timetable if you want to effectively manage your time!
The Second Right of the Noble Qur’an – Memorisation
It’s compulsory on every Muslim to memorise enough of the Noble Qur’an that allows them to pray their Salah correctly. However, we should always be trying to store more of Allah Ta’ala’s words in our hearts and not be content with just the last few Surahs.
Here is a list of the different parts of the Noble Qur’an we should aim to memorise in order of priority:
1. A small portion of the 30th Juz (Surah Fil – Surah Nas)
2. A large portion of the 30th Juz (Surah Duha – Surah Nas)
3. Surah Yasin
4. Surah Mulk
5. Surah Waqi’ah
6. Surah Alif Lam Mim Sajdah
7. The entire 30th Juz
8. Beginning Hifz from the 1st Juz
We should set aside at least half an hour a day for memorisation and going over what we have already memorised. Ideally, consult a scholar for a more detailed plan and help on memorisation. If we are already a Hafiz of the Noble Qur’an, we should try to recite at least three Juz daily for revision (Dor).
The Third Right of the Noble Qur’an – Understanding its Meanings
Reciting the Noble Qur’an is indeed a noble task, but a Muslim shouldn’t become stagnant and believe that recitation is sufficient for them. Every Muslim should yearn to understand the Noble Qur’an and the words of Allah Ta’ala. Though knowing the Arabic of the Noble Qur’an would have been ideal, it may not be practical for all Muslims to take time out to learn it unfortunately.
However, they should still try to sit in gatherings in which the meanings of the Noble Qur’an are taught, whether it’s a small course being offered online or in person, or there’s a gathering in your local Masjid, or there’s a book on the meanings written by a reliable scholar, or even Youtube lectures of a qualified speaker. Before choosing the book or listening to online lectures, consult your local Imam for any recommendations. However, the best and most beneficial method is sitting in a gathering yourself and hearing it live from the scholar, just as it was meant to be and has been learnt since the time of the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم.
The Fourth Right of the Noble Qur’an – Reflecting over its Meanings
The Noble Qur’an has clear straightforward messages, but those who ponder over them will realise their depths and take their intended effects. By sitting in gatherings like above, you’ll get a chance to ponder over the meanings already with a qualified scholar, but reminding yourself of the verses when alone may be helpful otherwise, especially the verses that ask you to observe things, such as the intricacies of the creation of Allah Ta’ala, how Allah Ta’ala has absolute power and control, the traits of our human nature, amongst other things. The more we contemplate over the Noble Qur’an, the more we will understand Allah Ta’ala and what He expects from us. We just have to be careful not to try and take out meanings ourselves unless we have studied it with qualified scholars first.
The Fifth Right of the Noble Qur’an – Acting Upon It
After learning the meanings and teachings of the Noble Qur’an, it should become easier to know what it expects from us. Now is the real test: whenever we remember something we have learnt, whether from previous knowledge, or from a new lesson, we must try to bring it into our lives.
For example, if we learn about the importance of spending in charity, we should spend at least a little bit that moment. If we learn the importance of avoiding thinking ill of others, we should try to stop at that very moment. If we learn about human character flaws, such as pride, greed etc. we should check within ourselves whether we are suffering from these flaws and try to eradicate them. Only by this introspection and self-examination will we be able to fully act on the Noble Qur’an.
This was really the main purpose of the Noble Qur’an: to change us into better human beings.
BY HUDA PRESS
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John Doe
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