The
Holy Qur’an: How to Benefit from Its Blessings
By Dr. Muzammil H. Siddiqi
Ramadan is the (month) in which was
sent down the Qur’an, as a guide to mankind,
also Clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (between
right and wrong). So every one of you who is present
(at his home) during the month should spend it in
fasting, but if any one is ill, or on a journey,
the prescribed period (should be made up) by days
later. Allah intends every facility for you; He
does not want to put you to difficulties. (He wants
you) to complete the prescribed period, and to glorify
Him in that He has guided you; and perchance ye
shall be grateful. When My servants ask you concerning
Me, I am indeed close (to them): I listen to the
prayer of every suppliant when he calls on Me: let
them also, with a will, listen to My call, and believe
in Me: that they may walk in the right way.
(Al-Baqarah 2:185-186)
We are in the blessed month of Ramadan.
This is the month of the Qur’an. Allah sent
down His final message for the guidance of humanity
in this month. Ramadan is an anniversary of the
revelation of the Qur’an. Fasting is associated
with the revelation. Prophet Moses fasted forty
days before he received the message of the Tawrat.
(Bible Exodus 34:28) Prophet Jesus was fasting when
he received the message of the Injil (Matthew 3:16-4:2).
Prophet Muhammad was also fasting when he received
the first revelation in the cave of Hira (Al-Bukhari,
Hadith no. 3)
During Ramadan we should pay special
attention to the Qur’an. The Qur’an
is the greatest blessing of Allah. It is the most
authentic Word of Allah. It is miraculous in its
meaning, message, language, style, information and
predictions. It is a Book of guidance, education,
healing, transformation and eternal salvation. It
is a ni’mah (favor) of Allah to humankind.
It came in a miraculous way to Prophet Muhammad
and it transformed his people. It gave them purpose
for their life and removed their ills.
The Qur’an is called al-Shifa’(healer).
When the followers of the Prophet - peace be upon
him - listened to this book, it shook them. Its
words touched their souls. It brought them into
communion with their Creator. The wounds of their
hearts and the divisions of their society were suddenly
healed. The book gave them the purpose of life and
changed their existence into authentic existence.
They were the shepherds of sheep and camels but
suddenly by the guidance of this Book they became
the leaders of humanity. Allah says about this book:
There hath come to you from Allah
a (new) light and a perspicuous Book. Wherewith
Allah guides all who seek His good pleasure to ways
of peace and safety, and leads them out of darkness,
by His Will, unto the light, guides them to a Path
that is Straight. (Al-Ma’idah
5:15-16)
O mankind! there hath come to
you a direction from your Lord and a healing for
the (diseases) in your hearts, and for those who
believe, a Guidance and a Mercy. Say: “In
the Bounty of Allah. And in His Mercy, in that let
them rejoice”: that is better than the (wealth)
they hoard. (Yunus
10:57-58)
The Prophet -peace be upon
him- said about this Book:
Allah’s Book, in it there are
information about those who were before you, the
news of that which will be after you and the judgment
of that which will happen among you. It is a decisive
word, not a joke or jest. Whoever will reject this
Book out of arrogance God will break his back and
whosoever will seek guidance from other than this,
God will mislead him. It is Allah’s mighty
bond. It is the wise reminder and it is the straight
path. With this Book your fancies will not misguide
you and your tongues will not be confused. The learned
will never be fed up with this Book and it will
not be outdated. Its wonders will never be exhausted.
Whoever will speak by this Book will be truthful,
whosoever will judge by it will be just, whosoever
will act according to it will be rewarded and whosoever
will invite to it will be guided to the Straight
Path.(Al-Darmi, Hadith no.
3197)
What should we do with this
Book?
1. Have full faith (iman)
in this Book
2. Read it regularly
3. Understand the meaning
and purpose of this Book
4. Follow its teachings and
apply them to our lives
5. Communicate its message
to the world and remove any misunderstandings about
it.
1. Faith in the Qur’an: Faith
in the Qur’an means total trust that this
is the Book of Allah. There must be total trust
in its teachings and in its guidance. The Halal
is what this Books makes Halal and Haram is what
this makes Haram. The Qur’an is the most important
book for us. This does not mean that we do not learn
from any other source or we do not respect any other
teachings. No, this means that we give supremacy
to this Book over anything and all things. This
is the Criterion (al-Furqan) of truth and falsehood,
of right and wrong for us.
2. Reading the Qur’an: The Qur’an
should be read every day. We should read its text
in its original Arabic with correct pronunciation
and with beautiful voice. We should try to memorize
this Book as much as possible. The reading of this
Book is worship (‘ibadah) and it should be
done as carefully as possible. We should try to
finish the whole Qur’an every month, but especially
in Ramadan. It is not difficult to finish the whole
Qur’an in one month. The Qur’an has
557 Ruku’s or sections (about 600 pages).
If one reads about 4 ruku’s (or 4 pages) before
or after every Salat, one can finish the whole Qur’an
in one month.
3. Understanding the Qur’an:
We should try to understand the Qur’an. Understand
the purpose and mission of this Book. Every person
must understand the Qur’an. Those who do not
know Arabic language should select any good translation
and read it in their own language. However, we must
keep in mind that no translation of the Qur’an
is Qur’an. Every translation is an interpretation.
It is an attempt of some human being/s to explain
in their own tongue what they understood according
to their own capacity and sincerity. Interpretation
also has its rules. No text should be interpreted
without reference to its historical and textual
context. It is rightly said that “text out
of context is pretext.”
4. Following the Qur’an: The
Qur’an is not just for reading, chanting or
decorating our homes and mosques. Its real purpose
is to guide. It is the Book of ‘Ibadah (worship)
and Hidayah (guidance). Its guidance has to be taken
seriously. We should live by the Qur’an and
follow in the way it is explained to us by the Prophet
Muhammad -peace be upon him. The Qur’an cannot
be understood and followed without the help of the
authentic Hadith and Sunnah.
5. Communicating the Message of the
Qur’an: We must present this Book to the world.
This book is not only for us. Allah revealed this
Book for the whole humanity. It is our duty to present
this Book to all people, but the word must become
flesh. We cannot be effective if we only pass the
Book; we must become the models, the living examples
of this Book. People must see the Qur’an and
its teachings in us, in our behavior and character,
in our families and our communities, in our interaction
and relation with others. We must also remove their
misunderstandings about this Book with wisdom and
good counseling.
(Khutbah at the Islamic Center
of Mission Viejo on Ramadan 12, 1424/ November 7,
2003)
