how to memorise the

Ok so people ask me how did you go about memorizing the entire Qur’aan brother Aboo Thaabit? From cover to cover? Was it not difficult? How can I do something like that?

Well to be honest it is very easy and I’ll let you guys in on a secret.

Memorising the Qur’aan is extremely easy, in fact even a parrot could do it! And it is this concept you have to come to terms with.

It really has to do with the mind-set of a person, meaning if you think something is hard you will naturally find it hard but if you think something is easy, it will become easy. So when you start, have the right mind-set and Ikhlaas.

Allaah tells you in the Qur’aan itself:

وَلَقَدْ يَسَّرْنَا الْقُرْآنَ لِلذِّكْرِ فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ

Hence, indeed, We made this Qur’aan easy to remember, then is there anyone to remember it? (Al-Qamar 54:17)

Do you then doubt Allaah?

Secondly is the issue of discipline, I cannot stress this enough, if you want to be a haafidh you have to make time to memorize.

Basically you will have to be a loner, lock yourself in your room listen to a recording over and over again.

When I used to memorize I had a tape player and I used to rewind the tape over and over again trying my best to get the pronunciation and flow of the verse correct, sometimes late into the night and I could hear the rest of the family snoring.

Also try to immerse yourself in the Qur’aan, make your breathing, eating and even your spare time into Qur’aan.

Recite it whilst walking or perhaps sitting in class waiting for the teacher to arrive.

In your sunnah prayers stop reciting soorah Kawthar and Ikhlaas, try a new soorah and master it!

One of the things that inspired me to start memorizing was when I saw the Imaams of Makkah, namely Sudais and Shuraim, leading the Taraweeh prayers.

When I saw them stand there leading so many people with that confidence reciting the verses of Allaah off by heart I thought to myself WOW! If they can do it so can I!

And whatever spare time I got not memorizing in my room I used to sit in front of the tv and listen to their recitations.

I used to quiz my friends about the Qur’aan, test them and then letting them test me.

When you love something it truly becomes a pleasure.

Remember to stop thinking about when you will be finished. I remember the day I finished my Qur’aan I was sad, people said to me this should be the happiest day in your life! I said I am sad because now I don’t have any new Qur’aan to memorize.

So do not be hasty dear brothers and sisters rather take your time, do not see memorizing the Qur’aan as a task or burden, but rather enjoy the journey and process.

I realise there are a lot of things left unmentioned but I figured there are many articles like this one all over the internet and my intention was only to inspire fellow Muslims  to do the same thing as me and not to boast.

My younger brother threaded the same path as me and will finish the Qur’aan shortly too inshaaAllaah.

اللَّهُمّ اجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا

O Allaah, make us leaders for the pious!

Taken from: http://khalduun.com/articles/quraan/the-quraan/ (with minor edits)

Last Week’s Question

Throughout the Qur’aan, whenever Allaah mentions parents, he uses the Arabic word ‘waalidayn’ (which means parents) but in two verses only, found in Soorah Yoosuf, He uses the word ‘abaway’. Why the distinction in these two verses?

The answer is:

The reason why Allaah mentions ‘waalidayn’ (with emphasis on the mother) throughout the Qur’aan, is to emphasise the numerous rights the mother deserves over the father. And this in agreement with the saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, when he was asked, ‘Who is the most deserving of my respect and companionship?’ He replied saying, ‘Your mother, then your mother, then your mother and then your father.’

However, in Soorah Yoosuf, ‘abaway’ is used (with emphasis on the father) and as with every letter in the Qur’aan, there is a reason for it. It is known amongst the Arabs that a woman is always preserved, protected and concealed. So she is not revealed or mentioned in public places so that people know of her and her shyness is taken away. In the aayaat where the word ‘abaway’ is used, Yoosuf (‘alayhis-salaam) is raising his mother and father in a public setting with multitudes of people from Egypt witnessing the occasion. So as a result, the word abaway is used to indicate the fact that the father (Ya’qoob, ‘alayhis-salaam) is the one who is at the forefront in full view of the spectators, whereas the mother is concealed to protect and hide her away from the eyes of the men in the crowds.

This Week’s Question

How many times have we heard that we shouldn’t rely on the translation of the meaning of the Qur’aan as it doesn’t do the Arabic language any justice at all? And subhanaAllaah some of us use some of these translations and pass on to others without fully understanding the meaning and tafseer behind it. Well this week’s question will touch upon this inshaaAllaah. When it comes to translating a word from Arabic into English, sometimes it can be quite difficult and not as easy as simply using a dictionary, so understanding the meaning through knowing the tafseer and Arabic language will help you understand it better, and thus aid in memorisation. There are many examples of this in the Qur’aan. One such example of this is in Soorah al-Kahf. If we look at the following aayah, it has been translated as follows:

فَمَا اسْطَاعُوا أَن يَظْهَرُوهُ وَمَا اسْتَطَاعُوا لَهُ نَقْبًا

So they [Ya'jooj and Ma'jooj (Gog and Magog)] were made powerless to scale it or dig through it. (Al-Kahf 18:97)

However, when we look at the above highlighted words, there seems to be a clear visual difference between the two words as one of them contains an additional letter (i.e. ‘taa’) but yet the translation seems to be the same. So what difference does this additional letter (i.e. ‘taa’) make to the above word that it doesn’t do to the other and why was it used?

Shaykh Muhammad Anwar, may Allaah have mercy on him, is one of the prominent and well-known qaaris from Egypt who passed away in the year 2008. There are many many audios and videos available of him reciting on the internet. He has two sons who he has brought up to also become great recitors of Allaah’s Book maashaAllaah, Mahmood and Ahmad and they also have many available videos and audios online.