Warning From Abandoning the Qur’aan
Edited from the work of Shaykh Muhammad Jameel Zeeno
Allaah the Most High says:
And the Messenger (Muhammad SAW) will say: “O my Lord! Verily, my people deserted this Qur’aan (neither listened to it, nor acted on its laws and orders). (Al-Furqaan 25:30)
So Allaah informs us about His Messenger and Prophet Muhammad, that he said: {My Lord my people have abandoned – acting or listening – to the Qur’aan.} and that is because the idol-worshippers did not pay attention nor listen to the Qur’aan, as Allaah says: {The ones who disbelieved said do not listen to this Qur’aan but make noise so that you may overcome it.}
Thus when the Qur’aan was being read to them they would make noise and futile speech so that they would not hear the Qur’aan. However, this is from the ways of abandoning the Qur’aan. Likewise not having faith and trust in it is also from the ways of abandoning the Qur’aan. Not pondering over it, nor trying to understand it, not acting by it, not obeying its orders and refraining from what it forbids, turning to something other than it – whether poetry, opinions or music, amusement, or other forms of speech and taking a path that is derived from other than the Qur’aan are all from the ways of abandoning the Qur’aan.
We ask Allaah – the Beneficent Provider, the One who has Power to do what He wills – to distance us from that which He dislikes and to use us in that which He is pleased with, from memorising, understanding the Qur’aan and establishing that which it necessitates – throughout the day and night – in a manner that He loves and likes for indeed He is the Most Beneficent, and Bestower.
Shaykh-ul-Islaam Ibn al-Qayyim, rahimahullaah, explains this verse by saying:
There are various types of ‘abandonment’ of the Qur’aan:
1) To abandon listening to it and believing in it.
2) To abandon acting upon it, and ignoring its lawful and prohibited ordinances (Halaal and haraam), even if one believes in it and recites it.
3) To abandon judging by it, and resorting to it as a judge when there are differences in the essence of the religion or other matters.
4) To abandon pondering over it, and understanding it, and seeking the explanation of it.
5) To abandon using it as a cure in all types of diseases of the heart, and instead to seek to cure these diseases by other means.
And all of these categories are included in the statement of Allaah,
‘And the Messenger (will) say: “0 My Lord, indeed my people took this Qur’aan as something worthy of being abandoned!’’ [25:30]
even though some of these types of abandonment are worse than others.