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Muslim Students

THE HOLY QUR’AN
By: Syed Abid Ali

The Holy Qur’an is the Word of Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala). It is the Book of guidance for all mankind till the Day of Judgement. The Holy Qur’an was revealed by Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) to Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa Sallam) through angel Jibreel (‘Alaihissalam). It was first revealed in the month of Ramadan. Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) had also revealed three more Books called Tawrat to Nabi Musa (‘Alaihissalam),  Zabur to Nabi Dawud (‘Alaihissalam) and Injil to Nabi Isa (‘Alaihissalam).

The Qur’an has 114 surahs (chapters) altogether. The surahs which were revealed in Makkah over a period of 13 years are called Makki surahs while the surahs which were revealed in Madinah over a period of 10 years are known as Madani surahs. The Qur’an has 6236 ayahs or verses. It also has 30 juz (parts) in it. There are 14 places in the Qur’an where we do a sajdah. The Qur’an teaches about Allah’s Message. The Qur’an teaches Muslims about respect. It also explains about Islam. The language of the Qur’an is sweet.

The first surah of the Qur’an is Surah al-Fatiha. Its translation is:

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
All praise is to Allah, Lord of the worlds.
The Beneficent, the Merciful.
Owner of the Day of Judgement.
You only do we worship, and You only do we beg for help.
Guide us on the Straight Path.
The path of those whom You have favoured;
not (the path) of those on whom is (Your) anger,
nor of those who go astray. (1:1-7)

The last surah of the Qur’an is Surah an-Naas. The most beautiful Names of Allah, the Asma al-Husna are mentioned in the Qur’an. The Qur’an has many different names such as al-Kitab (the Book), al-Furqan (the Criterion of Judgement), Majeed (Glorious) and Karim (Honourable). The Qur’an is in the Arabic language. It has been translated in all the other major languages.

If you act according to the Qur’an you will live a happy life. When you hold the Qur’an you should be careful because it might drop and some of your good deeds will be erased. We all should recite the whole Qur’an especially for those who have passed away, so Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) could forgive them. The Qur’an tells us about Heaven and Hell. The Qur’an is the way of life for everybody. The Qur’an will keep you safe. Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) revealed the Qur’an, so Muslims could know more about Islam. The Qur’an teaches the spiritual truth of Islam. The Commands in the Qur’an are Allah’s Commands. The Qur’an teaches elders to love children. It also teaches children to respect elders. The Qur’an teaches us about what is halal (permitted) and haram (prohibited). The Qur’an answers all the questions about life. The Qur’an has everything we need to know.

The Qur’an has been guiding the destiny of mankind. The Qur’an is more precious than life. The Qur’an is the path of life. The Qur’an also takes us along the right path. The Qur’an is a great noble Book. Some Muslims learn the whole Qur’an by heart. Men and boys who have memorized the whole Qur’an are called Hafiz ul-Qur’an. Women and girls who have memorized the whole Qur’an are called Hafiza al-Qur’an. It is preserved through memory as well as writing. It was written down from the very beginning that Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) has given His Protection to it. It will always be preserved. It is the last and final Book sent by Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala). It tells us how to serve and worship Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala). It tells us how to live a life of virtue. It tells us how to behave in our homes, like how to treat our parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, neighbours and strangers.

We should try to recite a minimum of one juz of the Qur’an everyday. Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa Sallam) said that “a person who doesn't recite the Qur’an is like a ruined house.” Even if a person is not able to understand the Qur’an but he can recite it, he will get thawaab (heavenly reward).

The verses which were revealed to Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu ‘alahi wa Sallam), were recorded. There were also some Sahaba (Companions) who had memorized the whole Qur’an, but many of them were martyred in battle. During his Khilafah, Sayyidina Abu Bakr Siddiq (Rady Allahu ‘Anhu) said that all these verses should be gathered and he had the Holy Qur’an compiled. Later, during the Khilafah of Sayyidina Uthman (Rady Allahu ‘Anhu), people in Iraq, Syria and Egypt were reciting the Qur’an with some differences in pronunciation. Therefore, Sayyidina Uthman (Rady Allahu ‘Anhu) had standard copies of the Qur’an produced and sent them to those countries along with a Qaari (reciter). And even today, all Muslims whether they live in Egypt or India or Afghanistan, they all recite the same standard Qur’an. This service of Sayyidina Uthman (Rady Allahu ‘Anhu) has helped preserve the Qur’an in the way it was revealed.

Before we recite the Qur’an or a Surah we should say Bismillah -ir- Rahman ir-Rahim (In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful). We should try to understand what is in the Qur’an and act according to it. We should put the Qur’an in a clean spot and put it on top of everything. Every Muslim should know how to recite the Qur’an. We could make Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta‘ala) happy by completing the recitation of the Qur’an. We could make Him happier by memorizing the whole Qur’an. More people have memorized the Qur’an than any other book.

Rabi‘ Awwal 1420, July 1999


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