Some of the Qualities of the Quran
1. Why-and-How-to-Learn-the-Quran--part-1.jpg“There shall come to you guidance from Me, and whosoever follows My guidance no fear shall be on them, neither shall they sorrow.” (Quran 2: 38)
The Quran is Allah’s greatest blessing for you. It is the fulfillment of His promise to Adam and his descendants.
2. It is the only means to overpower your fear and anxiety. It is the only ‘light’ (nur), as you grope in the darkness, with which to find your way to success and salvation. It is the only healing (shifa’) for your inner sicknesses, as well as the social ills that may surround you. The Prophet Muhammad said,
“The Quran is an intercessor and it’s intercession is accepted and its plea is believed. Whoever makes it lead him - it leads him to Paradise and whomsoever places it behind him (the result will be) he is dragged to the Fire.”[1]
3. The Prophet Muhammad said, “You must engage in Remembrance of Allah and the recitation of His Book, for it is light for you on earth and (a means by which) you will be mentioned in the Heavens.”[2]
The Quran is a constant reminder of your true nature and destiny, of your station, your duties, your rewards, your perils. More than anything, it is the only way to come nearer and closer to your Creator. It tells you of Him, His attributes, how He rules over the cosmos and history, how He relates to you, and how you should relate to Him, to yourself, to your fellow men and to other existence.
The rewards that await you here are surely many, increasing manifold in the Hereafter, but what awaits you at the end of the road, promises Allah in the Hadith qudsi,
“What no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no heart has ever conceived”, and Abu Hurayrah adds, “Read if you wish: ‘No human being can imagine what joys are being kept hidden for them in reward for all that they did.’ (Quran 32:17)”[3]
Quran is as relevant today as it was when it was revealed
The guidance of the Quran, by its own claim, has an eternal relevance for all people, being the word of the Eternal God. The Quran, the eternal guidance of the Ever-living God, is as relevant for us today as it was 14 centuries ago and will remain so forever. The word of the Ever-living God has been sent down to guide human beings for all times to come.
For the truth of this claim, it must be possible for us to receive, experience, and understand the Quran as its first recipients did, at least to some degree. In other words, despite the historical incidence of the revelation in a particular language and at a particular time and place, we should be capable of receiving the Quran now because its message is eternal.
For those who heard it for the first time from the lips of the Prophet, the Quran was a living reality. They had absolutely no doubt that, through him, Allah was speaking to them. Their hearts and minds were seized by it. Their eyes flowed with tears and their bodies shivered. They found it deeply relevant to their concerns and experiences and integrated it fully into their lives. They were completely transformed by it. As a result, those who grazed sheep and herded camels became the leaders of mankind.
Today we have the same Quran with us. Even though millions of copies are in circulation, since we no longer read the Quran as a living reality, our eyes remain dry, hearts remain unmoved, minds remain untouched, and our lives remain unchanged. Can the Quran be a living, relevant force, and as powerful for us now as it was 1400 years ago? This is the most crucial question that we must answer if we wish to shape our destiny afresh under the guidance of the Quran.
How do we do this? The answer is simple. We study and learn the Quran by entering the world of the Quran as if Allah were speaking to us through it now and today, and by fulfilling the necessary conditions for such an encounter. Only by centering our lives on the Quran, Muslims will find meaning to their existence or find dignity in this world. More importantly, without emphasis on learning the Quran, we will never please our Creator and Lord.
Make its message as much a real part of our lives as it was for the first believers and with the same urgent and profound relevance for all our present concerns and experiences.
The Quran’s blessings are limitless, but the measure of your taking from it depends entirely upon the capacity and the suitability of the receptacle you bring to it. So, at the very outset, make yourself more deeply aware of what the Quran means to you and what it demands of you.
In conclusion, every Muslim has a duty to devote himself to reading, understanding, and memorizing the Quran. The next lesson will focus on how to learn the Quran.
No other world scripture shares the unique features of the Quran. Every other holy book is a collection of wisdom and teachings of their religious leaders gathered over time. It is not known who compiled it and how. The Quran, on the other hand, is a book that claims to be from the Creator of the heavens and the earth. It is a book that was not collected and edited over time by unknown authors. Since the entire book is from God, taught to the Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of Allah be upon him, and handed over to us in its entirety, certain surahs (chapters) and verses have associated rewards and blessings that Prophet Muhammad has attached with reciting them. The Prophet has mentioned rewards of reciting the Quran, memorizing it, and following its teachings.
In this lesson, we will learn the rewards of reciting some of the chapters of the Quran.
The Prophet has informed us that for reciting one letter of the Quran, we get the reward of ten good deeds. It should motivate us to learn to recite the Quran in its original Arabic. It is doable and many people have done it. If you are consistent and follow the advice given in the earlier lesson “Why and How to Learn the Quran”, you will find the steps you need to take to get there.
One Letter of the Holy Quran is 10 Good Deeds
The messenger of Allah said: “Whoever reads a letter of the Book of Allah will be credited with a good deed, and a good deed gets a tenfold reward. I do not say that Alif Laam Meem is a letter, but Alif is a letter, Laam is a letter, and Meem is a letter (i.e. it is equal to three letters).”[1]
Some people will undoubtedly find difficulty in learning to recite the Quran in Arabic. After all, they will have to get familiar with certain letters and learn how to pronounce them. Here is a beautiful encouragement from Prophet Muhammad on those who struggle to learn the Quran in Aabic:
Whoever Recites The Holy Quran with Difficulty has Double Recompense
Prophet Muhammad said, “A person who recites the Quran and reads it fluently will be in the company of the obedient and noble angels, and he who reads the Quran haltingly and with difficulty will have a double recompense.”[2]
One of the first surahs (chapters) of the Quran you should have memorized is Surah al-Fatihah, the first chapter of the Quran that is recited in every single rakah of prayer.
Surah Al-Fatihah, Most Superior Surah
Abu Sa’id says that while he was praying, the Prophet called him but he did not respond to his call. Later Abu Sa’id said: “O Allah’s Messenger! I was praying.” He said, “Didn’t Allah say: ‘O you who believe! Give your response to Allah (by obeying Him) and to His Messenger when he calls you?’” (8:24) He then said, “Shall I not teach you the most superior surah in the Quran?” He said, “(It is) ‘Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds’ (i.e., Surah al-Fatihah) which consists of “Seven Repeatedly Recited Verses” and the Magnificent Quran which was given to me.”[3]
Ayah al-Kursi Provides Protection from Allah
The second chapter of the Quran following Surah al-Fatiha is Surah al-Baqarah. It also happens to be the longest chapter of the Quran. 255th verse of this chapter is called Ayah al-Kursi (verse of al-Kursi).
Abu Huraira recalls that Allah’s Messenger ordered him to guard the zakah revenue of Ramadan. Then somebody came to him and started stealing of the foodstuff. Abu Huraira caught him and said, “I will take you to Allah’s Messenger!” Then Abu Huraira described that that person said to him, “Please don’t take me to Allah’s Messenger and I will tell you a few words by which Allah will benefit you. When you go to your bed, recite Ayah al-Kursi, for then there will be a guard from Allah who will protect you all night long, and Satan will not be able to come near you till dawn.” When the Prophet heard the story he said to me, “He (who came to you at night) told you the truth although he is a liar; and it was Satan.”[4]
Last two Verses of Surah al-Baqarah
The Prophet said: “If somebody recited the last two verses of Surah al-Baqarah at night, that will be sufficient for him.”[5]
Surah Al-Baqarah and Aal ‘Imran are Two Lights
Describing the second and third chapters of the Quran, the Messenger of Allah said: “Read the Quran, because it will intercede on behalf of its people on the Day of Resurrection. Read the two lights, al-Baqarah and Aal ‘Imran, because they will come in the shape of two clouds, two shades or two lines of birds on the Day of Resurrection and will argue on behalf of their people on that Day.”[6]
Surah al-Kahf is Tranquility
There is a special surah of the Quran that comes almost in the middle of the book called Surah al-Kahf.
A man was reciting Surah al-Kahf and his horse was tied with two ropes beside him. A cloud came down and spread over that man, and it kept on coming closer and closer to him till his horse started jumping (as if afraid of something). When it was morning, the man came to the Prophet, and told him of that experience. The Prophet said, “That was ‘tranquility’ which descended because of (the recitation of) the Quran.”[7]
Surah Al-Kahf is Protection from the Anti-Christ (Dajjaal)
The Prophet said: “Whoever memorizes ten verses from the beginning of Surah al-Kahf will be protected from the Anti-Christ.”[8]
Surah al-Kahf is a Shining Light
The Prophet said, “Whoever reads Surah al-Kahf on Friday, will have a light that will shine from him from one Friday to the next.”[9]
