Friday August 30, 2013

Jumah Mubarak!!!Jumah Mubarak!!!

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Just like how people have different times in which they are productive studying for a test, people have different times in which they are most able to memorize the Quran. So the key is to finding that time that works for you.

However, the early generation of the Muslims did favour some hours over others. One of those times is fajr and the reason is because the Prophet (SAW) said: "Allah has blessed my Ummah in its early hours" [Saheeh Jami']. It is also been reported that whenever the Prophet would wish to send an expedition, he would send them in the early hours of the morning.

Another time which has been favoured is after Isha' just before sleeping. Abu Hafs Umar bin Ali Bazzar who met with Ibn Taymiyyah had said that he was most earnest in reviewing and seeking knowledge after Isha'.

So if you haven't found that time which you favour the most, try these two hours of the day and you will be surprised how much you can accomplish within such a small frame of time

This tip might work for some and not others. Some people benefit by going in the exact opposite direction of this piece of advice but this has worked for me personally and many others I know. Do not think of your goal of memorization the Quran as a long and weary objective. Treat each lesson as a jewel because Wallahi after you finish your goal you will find revision to be very different from memorization. Memorizing a page would be the most exciting part of my day as I did not know what awaited me the next page. What was going to happen in the Quranic story next? What piece of advice does Allah (SWT) have on the next page? What other descriptions of Paradise are there of which I have not come across yet? This feeling of anxiousness is one I cannot explain to you

I asked a brother who finished the Quran within 11 months about what kept him going. He replied that after school he always looked forward to reciting his lesson to his sheikh. He only thought about his daily lesson and that's about it. He said by doing this he enjoyed each day because he saw himself grow on a daily basis. He then noticed his capacity to memorize grow within weeks. When he started he could not even finish memorizing Surah Takwir and by the end he was memorizing half a juz a day. So what happened in the end? He finished memorizing the Quran 2 years earlier than he thought. 

So for those who think this is the way to go then this advice is for you while others like to keep the long term goal inscribed in their memories and that is fine too. Personally, this worked for me.

Ibn Qayyim said in al Faw'id: "Those who perceive the path to good deeds to be long will find his resolve weakening."

I know memorizing is exciting but do not forget revision. If you do, all or most of your efforts will be in vain. 

Narrated Ibn Umar: Allah's Apostle said, "The example of the person who knows the Qur'an by heart is like the owner of tied camels. If he keeps them tied, he will control them, but if he releases them, they will run away." [Hadith 549. Sahih Bukhari] 

and

narrated Abdullah: The Prophet said, "It is a bad thing that some of you say, 'I have forgotten such-and-such verse of the Qur'an,' for indeed, he has been caused (by Allah) to forget it. So you must keep on reciting the Qur'an because it escapes from the hearts of men faster than camel do." [Hadith 550 Sahih Bukhari]

My advice is that you either leave a part of your day for revision or one entire day in the week. This will be of benefit, Inshallah.

Ibn Taymiyyah said that when he found that he couldn't understand a text from the Quran or sunnah he would isolate himself for a while and ask Allah's forgiveness (istighfar). He said only a few moments would pass and he would feel his intellect being able to understand what he was studying.

Imam Shafi' would believe that if he found memorizing the Quran or hadith difficult it was because of a sin he committed so he would seek istighfar and he would testify that his memory would strengthen

When Abu Hanifah found a matter hard for him he would say: "This is not except due to a sin I have committed". Sometimes he would pray two rakah as well and then ask for forgiveness.

You will realize the truth of these statements soon. If you find yourself in a state of disobedience for a while and then come back to memorize the Quran you will surely find it difficult. This is because Allah SWT does not want to make it a trivial affair where one can simply put a "half heart" into it.

Seeking forgiveness to make a matter easier can also be translated into your studies. If you have an exam or test and find something hard to grasp try this tip out and see. You have absolutely nothing to lose from istighfar but everything to gain.

Sheikh Yahya Ghouthani says:

"Beware of your voice’s beauty from distracting you at this point. The sweetness of your tone encompasses you in the atmosphere of chanting. So you start thinking that you’re so-and-so, the famous reciter, then you assume his persona and start to recite with deliberation and perfecting the letters. You repeat it and recite it again like some of the reciters. Perhaps it all goes over the top and you bring out a microphone and recording equipment. Time will pass by whilst you are unaware, and you become like that young man who really wanted to memorize the Quran but every time he sat down to memorize he opened the Quran at 7-rah Y-suf and began to chant it until the time passed him by and he memorized absolutely nothing."

Often people who memorize try to blaze through their lessons. They recite so quickly that the person listening often has trouble distinguishing one word from another. Remember, if you memorize it wrong it will take a lot of effort to fix the mistake. There were times where I would memorize and because I wanted to hurry I would actually miss memorizing a verse on a page simply because my gaze averted that verse. If it weren't for my sheikh I would not know that that specific verse existed! Even until now I have to put a lot of cognitive effort in remembering where my mistakes were so that I don't make them again. Believe me, its been years and I still make some of the same mistakes that I did when I first recited my lesson to my teacher. This is because when you memorize it for the first time it becomes ingrained in your memory that way so please take care and don't sacrifice accuracy for speed.

My recommendation: Warm up. Before diving head straight into committing a verse to memory, recite the page once or twice to get familiar with it. This will make sure you don't miss anything and you avoid memorizing a word with incorrect pronunciation.

Abdullah ibn Mughaffal said that he saw the Prophet (SAW) reciting Surah Fath on the Day of the Conquest of Mecca on his she-camel. What lesson can we take from this? Recite the Quran wherever you are. People often say "We don't have time for Revision" and as a result they forget their lessons. How many hours do we spend in a week sitting in our offices, waiting for the bus at the bus stop, fooling around at break during school hours and just sitting around at home? Instead of day dreaming during these hours we can make good use of our time by reciting the Quran, strengthening our memorization and earning reward at the same time.

You have an amazing opportunity in the month of Ramadan not only to memorize more but also to revise. Make an extra effort to go to the masjids on the nights in which the Imaam will be reciting the portions of the Quran you have memorized. For example, if you have memorized the last five juz then make a special effort to head to the Masjid those nights if you are able. In my opinion one has not tasted the full sweetness of Qiyaam unless he can follow the Imam. Most of us generally find it hard to stand for an hour or so listening to a portion of the Quran that we are not aware of. However, when you know what the Imaam is reciting then it truly becomes an enjoyable experience.

Knowing the virtues of some of the verses in the Quran sometimes can help you remember the entire page or some of the other verses before and after that verse. An example which many of us may not be aware of is the verse:

"Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding" [Imran: 190]

When the Messenger of Allah (SAW) came to this verse he said: "Woe to the one who recites this verse but does not reflect on it" [Tafsir ibn Kathir]

Some people who hate to see others succeed try to deter the one who is on the right path by reminding them of their faults. I have observed a case where a brother or sister wants to memorize the Quran and devote themselves to do so but their "friends" say "How can you do something like this? You use to smoke!". Wallahi, they are just trying to steer you away from good. You should not think that because of your past Allah will cease to accept the good deeds you do in the future. 

This was the same trick Fir'own tried to use on Musa (AS) when Musa first came with the Message from Allah. Fir'own reminded him of his deed of killing one of his soldiers so Musa (AS) replied:

"I did it [killing the soldier] when I was in error. So I fled from you when I feared you but my Lord invested in me Wisdom and made me one of his Messengers" [26:20-21]

If someone tries to remind of us our past we should reply in the same way Musa (AS) did. "I did this sin when I was in error but then My Lord guided me to a better path"

One of the most effective ways of solidifying your memorization is through reciting it in prayer. This can be done in two ways: 1) have someone stand next you in nawafil (voluntary) prayer or 2) pray by yourself but mentally note the mistakes you make. Then after you make your tasleem check the mus-haff and fix your mistakes.

The best Quran teacher in the city that I live in is actually not well known. What makes him the best is the attention he gives his students. One of his amazing techniques is that he chooses one Saturday per month for each student to lead him in Qiyam. The student must recite 1 juz in 2 rakah. Each time he makes a mistake the teacher corrects him. His students are so strong in memorization now that all they need to do to remember their lesson is literally just look at their mus-haffs. Inshallah, you can try this technique as well. Have your sibling, friend, spouse stand next to you or behind you with a mus-haff and correct you when you make a mistake! This way, you pray your Qiyam and recite your Quran so inshallah the reward is double

Umm Hisham bint Harithah said, "For around two years, or a year and a part of another year, our oven and the oven of the Prophet was one and the same. I memorized Surah Qaf (surah 50) from the tongue of the Messenger of Allah who used to recite it every Friday while standing on the Minbar delivering the Friday sermon to the people" [Muslim]

How many of us take advantage of the People of Knowledge like this? We might not be able to take Quran classes with the likes of Mishary al Afasy or Tafsir with Nouman Ali Khan in person but even then you have access to them and many others over the internet. How many Muslims around the world wish they had access to knowledge like we do.

If you give whatever time "remains" after you finish your worldly affairs to memorizing the Quran, your goal of being a Haafiz will always take a back seat. Schedule an amount of time (whether its 20 minutes, 30 minutes or an hour) and stick to it.

It is reported that ‘Awn b. ‘Abdillâh – Allâh have mercy on him – said:

"Those before you used to give to their worldly affairs what was left over from their pursuit of the hereafter. But today, you give to the matters of the hereafter the left-overs from your pursuit of worldly affairs."

The first piece of advice I was given by my instructor when I was beginning my hifz was to stick to one copy of the Quran. The Reason? It is because it is easy to visualize the verses so it becomes more easy to remember surahs as a whole. When you change from a mus-haff that has 15 lines on one page to another that has 13 lines the order of the verses change. This makes you put in more cognitive effort in remembering the order of verses. 

Not only that, but as you grow older it is nice to look back at the mus-haff from which you memorized. It becomes your own time capsule as it contains all of your memories of your hifz. Today I can tell you that my mus-haff which I have been using for a number of years has been worn out by time but is still my most prized possession.

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