Praise be to Allaah. Important
rules for memorizing the Holy Qur'aan.
1.Sincerity. It is essential
to have a pure and sincere intention and a proper aim. One should learn
the Qur'aan and pay attention to it for the sake of Allaah and attaining
Paradise and earning the pleasure of Allaah. Allaah says (interpretation
of the meaning):
"So worship Allaah (Alone) by doing religious
deeds sincerely for Allaah's sake only. Surely, the religion (i.e. the
worship and the obedience) is for Allaah only" [al-Zumar
39:2-3].
According to a hadeeth qudsi, Allaah says: "I am so
self-sufficient that I am in no need of having an associate. Thus he who
does an action for the sake of someone else as well as for My sake will
have that action rejected by Me to the one whom he associated with Me." So
there will be no reward for the one who reads and memorizes Qur'aan for
the sake of showing off or gaining a good reputation.
2.Correct
pronunciation and reading. This can only be learned by listening to
someone who reads well or has memorized properly. The Qur'aan can only be
learned from a teacher. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon
him) learnt it orally from Jibreel, and the Sahaabah learned it orally
from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Then it was
passed down orally from the Sahaabah to succeeding generations of this
Ummah.
3.Deciding the amount to be memorized each time. The one who
wants to learn the Qur'aam should decide how much he wants to memorize
each time. After he has set out his objective and learned the correct
pronunciation, he has to keep on repeating it over and over. This
repetition should be with the proper intonation so as to avoid getting
bored and so that he can memorize it properly. The intonation makes a
person enjoy listening to it, helps him to memorize it and makes the
tongue get used to that intonation, so that he will spot mistakes
immediately, as the rhythm will be interrupted. This is in addition to the
fact that the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said, "He is not one of us who does not recite the Qur'aan with a rhythmic
intonation." (Narrated by al Bukhaari).
4.Not going beyond what one
has decided to learn in one day until one has memorized it perfectly. The
haafiz should never move on to a new portion until he has perfectly
memorized the prvious portion , so that it will stick in his mind. One
thing that will help the student to memorize it is to preoccupy himself
with it night and day, by reciting it in the prayers where Qur'aan is to
be recited silently, and if he is leading others in prayer, by reciting it
out loud. He can also recite it during his naafil prayers, and whilst
waiting for (congregational) prayers. In this way it will become easy for
him to memorize Qur'aan. Everyone can do this, even if he is busy with
other things.
5. Adhering to one style of writing in the Mus-haf
you use for memorizing. One thing that will help in memorizing Qur'aan is
to have one's own copy of the Mus-haf (i.e., choosing a specific edition)
and never changing it. This is because people learn as much by looking as
by listening, so the pattern of the verses and where they appear on the
pages of the Mus-haf stays in the mind as one reads and looks at the
Mus-haf. So if a person changes the Mus-haf from which he is learning, or
he learns from various Masaahif where the relative positions of the aayaat
may vary, he will get confused and it will be difficult for him to
memorize.
6. Understanding is the key to memorization. One of the
things which is of the greatest help in memorizing is understanding the
verses one is learning and knowing how they are connected to one another.
This means that the haafiz has to read the tafseer of some of the aayahs
and soorahs which he is memorizing and he has to focus his mind when he is
reading. This will help him to remember the verses. But when he is
committing the verses to memory, he should rely on understanding; what he
has to do is rely on repetition so that it will be easy for him to
memorize them.
7. Not moving on until one has learned a soorah
well. After having memorized one soorah, the haafiz should not move on to
another soorah until he has memorized the first soorah perfectly from
beginning to end and he can recite it fluently without having to think too
hard about it. Remembering it should be easy, and he should not move on to
another soorah until he is sure that he has memorized the first
one.
8. Continually reciting to someone else. The haafiz should not
rely upon training by himself; he has to recite what he has memorized to
another haafiz, or to someone else who can follow his recitation in the
Mus-haf. This other person should be someone who knows how to recite
Qur'aan properly, so that he can point out any mistakes or omissions in
pronunciation or reading. It often happens that an individual may memorize
a soorah incorrectly by himself, and he does not realize this even when he
looks at the Mus-haf. So the person who wants to memorize a soorah looks
in the Mus-haf and does not see where he is making a mistake in his
recitation. So reciting to another person is an excellent means of
correcting one's mistakes.
9. Continually following up. When it
comes to memorization, the Qur'aan is different from any other material
such as poetry or prose, in that it may be quickly forgotten. The Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "By the One in Whose
hand is my soul, it tries harder to run away than a hobbled camel" (Agreed
upon). One only has to leave it for a little while and it escapes one's
mind and is quickly forgotten. So one has to keep reviewing it and always
work hard at retaining what one has memorized of the Qur'aan. Concerning
this, the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)
said"The one who has memorized Qur'aan is like the owner of a hobbled
camel. If he pays attention to it and takes care of it, he will keep it,
but if he lets it go, he will lose it" (Agreed upon). This means
that the one who has memorized the Qur'aan has to recite it regularly as
part of his wird [regular dhikr]. At least he should recite one of the
thirty juz' and at most he should recite ten juz' each day, because the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Whoever
reads the whole Qur'aan in less than three days does not understand it"
(Agreed upon). By continually reciting it in this fashion he will retain
what he has memorized.
10. Paying attention to the parts of the
Qur'aan which resemble one another. The parts of the Qur'aan resemble one
another in their meanings and wording. Allaah says: (interpretation of the
meaning): "Allaah has sent down the Best Statement, a Book (this
Qur'aan),
its parts resembling each other (in goodness and truth) (and)
oft-repeated. The skins of those who fear their Lord shiver from it (when
they recite it or hear it). Then their skin and their heart soften to the
remembrance of Allaah" [al-Zumar 39:23]. So the good reader of Qur'aan has
to pay particular attention to those parts which resemble one another,
i.e., the parts where the wording is similar, as this will help him to
memorize it properly.
11. Making the most of the best years. The
one who is truly blessed is the one whom Allaah enables to make the most
of the best years for memorizing, which come approximately between the
ages of five and twenty-three. During these years, a person is able to
memorize things very well. Before the age of five, he is not able to do
that, and after the age of twenty-three his ability to memorize declines
whilst his ability to understand increases. So young people of these ages
should make the most of it and memorize the Book of Allaah, because they
are at the age when they will be able to learn it quickly and will be slow
to forget it, unlike when they get older. He spoke the truth who said,
"Learning by heart when one is young is like engraving something on stone;
learning something when one is old is like engraving something on water."
It is our duty towards the Book of Allaah that we should memorize it
properly, accept and follow its guidance, and make it the constitution of
our lives, the light of our hearts, the comfort of our souls. Hopefully
these rules will form a good foundation for those who sincerely want to
memorize the Book of Allaah properly.
And Allaah knows best. May
Allaah bless our Prophet Muhammad.
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