The smell of delicious food dragged Khaled to the kitchen where his wife Sara was.
“Wow, I smell Biryani. Is that your cooking?” asked Khaled
Sara replied, “Yes dear.” “Can we share some with our neighbor?”
“Yes sure, we will share it with Amena this time.”
“And also some with Salah.” Sara said surprisingly, “We often share our food with Salah.”
“Sara, we should be generous with our neighbors.”
“Alhamdulillah, I know you are a very generous person. But I find you being extra generous with this particular neighbor all the time, is he someone special to you?”
“He works in a university where I dream of our son studying some day. I hope when our son gets to university level, Salah will be of great help in getting him admitted.”
Khaled is worried about his son’s admission at the university. So he is being extra good to the person who he thinks can help him in this regard. Similar is the case with most of us, we try to be extra good to those whom we think can be of help in the future. We send gifts, visit occasionally, and are as nice and good as possible. We try to strengthen bonds with them so that they don’t deny our request when we need their help.
Shouldn’t we be concerned about our Akhirah in the same way? Shouldn’t we look for that which can be of help on the Day of Judgment? In line with the above, let’s think about the following.
The Qur’an intercedes for its reciters on the Day of Judgment. Abu Umamah (radiAllahu anhu) reported: I heard the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) saying, “Read the Qur’an, for it will come as an intercessor for its reciters on the Day of Resurrection.” [Muslim]
If we keep the Quran on the top shelf and dust it only to recite during Ramadan, will it intercede on our behalf? Of course not! Just as we keep up good relations and strengthen the bonds with those whom we expect help from, we need to similarly strengthen our bonds with the Book of Allah in order that it may intercede on our behalf on the Day of Judgment.
Ramadan is approaching fast; the month of the Qur’an! the month in which Shaitan is chained and it has been made easy for us to do good deeds. It is the best time to avail this opportunity and start getting closer to the Book of Allah during this blessed month! Let us look at some of the things that we can try doing during this month to strengthen our bond with the Qur’an.
1. Recite the Qur’an slowly, following the rules of Tajweed:
Sometimes during Ramadan we rush through the recitation without following proper rules of Tajweed, so that we may recite more and receive more reward. By reciting slowly, focusing on every letter, it is very unlikely that we may make mistakes. Slow recitation not only brings peace and serenity to our heart, but we also feel attached to Qur’an and enjoy its recitation. Moreover if we are fluent and recite without facing difficulty then we may be associated with the angles. ‘Aishah reported the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) as saying: “One who is skilled in the Qur’an is associated with the noble, upright recording angels, and he who falters when he recites the Qur’an and finds it difficult for him will have a double reward”.
And, if we are amongst those who cannot recite with Tajweed then this is the best time to take initiative and start learning to recite the Qur’an properly.
2. Recite the Qur’an whenever possible:
During this month of Ramadan we can try to make most use of our time. The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would recite the Qur’an in all circumstances. When we are occupied with physical activities which do not require much focus and concentration like home chores etc. we can combine it with Qur’an recitation. We can recite memorized parts of the Qur’an from heart or memorize parts of the Qur’an by simply listening to the recitation. This will not only keep us occupied with the dhikr (remembrance) of Allah but it will have a good influence on our children. Our children will also get closer to the Qur’an when they see an atmosphere that gives important to the Qur’an. They can also memorize just by listening to our recitations throughout the day.
3. Focus on the meanings:
Reciting without understanding is not fruitful. If we are not fluent in Arabic, we can refer to the transla- tion and read and understand the meanings. Thus, during the recitation we can recollect and focus on the meanings of what we recite. When we understand the meanings we can stop where the ayahs of punishment are mentioned and make dua from its protection, when ayahs regarding Allah’s forgiveness and Mercy are mentioned, we can cry and seek forgiveness. Understanding the meaning of the Qur’an helps us to get attached to the Qur’an, it softens our heart and increases our Imaan. During this blessed month we can focus more on the translation. If we are ahead in going through the translation of the portions that will be recited in taraweeh, then this will help us focus on the meanings while we pray. We will not only enjoy taraweeh prayer but also come out of the mosque with more internal peace and receive greater rewards, inshaAllah.
4. Implement what you learn:
During Ramadan we tend to be more focused towards performing extra good deeds and sadly lose focus on improving our manners and enhancing our character. The Prophet’s character was reported to be the Qur’an:
We went to ‘A’isha and I said: Oh mother of the Faithful, tell me about the character of the Messenger of Allah. She said: “Don’t you read the Qur’an?” I said: “Yes”. Upon this she said: “The character of the Messenger of Allah was the Qur’an”. [Sahih Muslim]
The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) was more generous during Ramadan. We should follow his example and focus on our character during Ramadan. Working on acquiring good characteristics and eliminating bad characteristics mentioned in the Qur’an will make us a person who has a strong bond with the Qur’an. Changing our inner self to be a better person and living with the commandments of the Qur’an will make us companions of the Qur’an, thus making us eligible to avail its intercession on the Day of Judgment.
May Allah make us amongst those who recite, understand and implement the Qur’an and thereby avail its intercession on the Day of Judgment. Ameen.
