Thoughts along the road

24 Monday Apr 2017

Posted by Wasfeeya in Hifdh Diary, Reflections

Tags

haafidh, Haafidha, haafizah, hafidhah, Hifdh, Hifz, huffadh, ijaza, Qur'an memorisation, Quran, Qurʾān, sanad

Bismillah. All praises and thanks are due to Allah, who blessed us with the Glorious Qur’an. Abundant salutations be upon our beloved, Nabi Muhammad SAW.

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’ll know that I like reaching milestones, and recording them. They are more for myself to look back on than anything else, ’cause I happen to be a rather sentimental being.

So today, despite my bare minimal effort, I completed my 20th juz, by the will and help of Allah, towards my khatm for sanad and ijaza in Hafs ‘An ‘Asim. Alhamdulillah.

But I find myself asking myself what I’m doing. Am I just doing this for the sake of achievement? To gain credibility? Is it really necessary? My tajwīd is good enough Alhamdulillah so why carry on?

Or is Shaytaan trying to steer me off the path I’m on? Am I being tested? Tempted?

Reminder to myself of some of the reasons I’m doing this:

To teach my future kids one day (inShaAllah). (Hopefully the future husband won’t need my help🙈)
To be a better teacher to my current and future students (inShaAllah).
To preserve the qirā-āt and make its knowledge widespread and as common as memorisation by the permission of Allah.

Oh Allah, I beg of You to grant me sincerity of deeds and actions. Don’t take my life until you’re pleased with me. Āmīn.

With best wishes for your worldly and Hereafter success,

Wasfeeya

+27793500024

wasfeeya@gmail.com

Qari Yusuf Noorbhai (ra) In His Own Words

14 Thursday Jul 2016

Posted by Wasfeeya in Advice, Inspiration

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haafidh, Hifth, Hifz, huffaaz

Qari Yusuf Noorbhai (ra) In His Own Words
by Ebrahim Moosa

Veteran South African Qari, Yusuf Noorbhai, breathed his last on Monday, drawing to a close a glorious chapter of dedication to the Qur’aan and service to humanity.

In 2012, I was blessed with the opportunity to engage Qari Saheb directly on his life’s journey as well as a number of pertinent matters related to Hifdh and the Qur’aan. In the interview which took place just prior to Ramadan, he spoke lovingly, yet also candidly and passionately about matters in the community which he deemed as requiring attention. What follows is a synopsis of what he had shared.

May Allah SWT grant Qari Saheb a special rank amongst His chosen servants.

THE INTERVIEW

At the inception, Qari Saheb was full of gratitude for the interaction, at the same time full of humility mentioning that he ordinarily would not like speaking about himself:

“We are only achieving what we did through the Duas of the people, and the good Muslim community, our mothers and fathers in Islam. We are not worthy of anything, but Allah SWT has put it in your mind to feature us, so we will try our best to answer your questions.”

Early Life and Inspiration

From a very young age I would go out with my uncle, Hashim Bhana – that’s our surname actually, somehow or the other Noorbhai came in. We were very anxious to listen to great Qurrah. And the greatest role model for me in the whole world – and until now I had not found anyone who could match his style in Taraweeh – he was Sheikh Ismail Hanif of Woodstock, Cape Town. Subhanallah! He was a reader! He was an Azhari, an Aalim and a Qari.

I was a very young man of just 14/15, and I would stand directly under the loudspeaker at the Masjid in Durban, and would hear how he would pronounce the words, his application and taqdeequl lisaan. It is as if the sound of his recitals are still ringing in my ears, even though he is lying in his Qabr. It was a different spiritual ecstasy that I experienced in Ramadan with him coming to Durban. Much credit goes to the Lockats, who used to invite him there. He was my inspiration. But prior to that, my key inspiration was my father. My father was a very senior Hafidh, who had also tutored many Hufaadh in Durban.

The enjoyment I derived from listening to Qari Ismail would lead me to awake at Sehri and mumble away, at the stove, the style of reading of this man, as my granny prepared the meal. Qari Ismail’s proficiency and command of the Arabic language translated into a great feeling of spirituality in his Quraan reading that could be sensed by the listener.

This inspired me to ask my father to grant me permission to begin my hifdh. His immediate response was: Tu Quraan Yaad Rakhe? – Will you remember this Qur’aan? It was a weighty question, but I promised him I would. Today, I know the promise I made him and Allah SWT that I will remember this Qur’aan, I am remembering this Qur’aan and have remembered the Qur’aan according to what Allah SWT wants me to remember. And when I forget, I open and check. So, from a very young age I started reading the Qur’aan, and it is still going on, Alhamdulillah! I fell in love with the Qur’aan.

Taraweeh

After completing my hifdh, I performed Taraweeh for the first time with my father behind me. It wasn’t easy having him monitoring. But he had a very special skill that very few people possessed: how to correct, when to correct and where to prompt a Hafidh from, when he gets confused on the musallah. Right until today, people in the West Street, Grey Street and May Street mosques remember my father for his art of correction.

The calling from Egypt

My father meticulously taught me all the Tajweed rules whilst I was in South Africa. When I went to Egypt, Moulana Abdur Razaaq put me onto a teacher from al Azhar, who tested me on a few Tajweed rules and when satisfied with my answers, agreed to teach me further.

My journey to Egypt only came after I had completed my hifdh, performed Taraweeh and even after I had married and had a few kids.

When I first went to Cairo in 1960, they bundled me up and sent me back to South Africa after barely a week as I had not applied properly. I went back after 10 years in 1970, and with the advice of Sheikh Mahmud Khalil al Husri and his recommendation, I was given all the necessary assistance there. I first met Sheikh al Husri in Madinah Munawarah and we became very good friends. I received a Shahadah from him personally as well as from Sheikh Abdullah Fuq’a-ee.

This was the crown of my life.

There were only 3 people from the whole world who received this specialised tuition from Sheikh Abdullah Fuq’a-ee, who was the leader of the Qur’aan teachers at Azhar at the time. I was the only one from South Africa. One of the three was Mufti Baba Ghanouf from Tashkent, the other was Qari Yusuf Muhammad from Sudan.

I had to read to my Ustaadh from the beginning to the end of the Qur’aan. In Egypt, you can’t get away easily – just reading at random places – and then hoping to be called a Qari and endowed with a red hat. Anyone can pick up styles and tunes easily, but it is the tajweed and Arabic intonation that is the core of Qira-ah.

‘It was not easy’

I underwent such challenges to solicit a bursary to study in Cairo. I went to a certain prominent person who rejected my application outright based purely on my lineage and the village my family hailed from in India. I then went to Isipingo Beach – the late Dr Mohammed Jadwat’s mother gave me the airplane ticket. She also provided for expenses of my stay in Cairo. Marhoom Ismail Lockat, the son of Mr Suleiman and Fatima Lockat, furnished me with resources to cover the living expenses of my family here in South Africa, whilst I would be away. And a Hafidh from Cape Town sponsored my return ticket. It was a very difficult task to get assistance to go to Cairo – I really went through hard times. My family too was not really affluent. But Alhamdulillah, on my subsequent trips, all was so smooth. Allah SWT made it so easy – I would say the blessings did not rain, they poured.

Meeting the greats

I was keeping the last of the Shawaal fasts when I got to meet the late Sheikh Mahmud Khalil al Husri RA. It was the greatest honour in my life sitting beside him. I posed to him a certain question on Tajweed and paid fine attention to his tongue and tip movement as he demonstrated the answer. There are some very subtle sounds in Qur’aan, and it was an ecstasy for me to get it from him directly. I was merely 30 odd years at the time and I exclaimed: Ya Allah, what an opportunity! What an opportunity!

What an amazing personality Sheikh Mahmud was: Tall, with such a beautiful round voice. I did learn and would also sometimes emulate his style. It is the best style in the Hadr, slow mode of recital.

My students

I can mention Ridwaan Esat, Mohammed Gangat, Raees Dasoo, Sheikh Sadullah Khan, Mukhtaar, Zakariyyah from Zeerust who come to mind, from amongst many many others.

My procedure and style of reciting Qira’ah

If you do not know a language, you can only become a very good copycat and learn the style of saying that word –probably you will just make it. But a good Qari needs to understand Arabic.

When I prepare to recite at a certain function, I review the Quranic words that will be recited and then plan to match their meaning with a very special tone that comes from within, that requires sincerity as well as presence of mind, heart and soul.

Anyone who knows the Arabic language would be able to detect whether the Qari is connecting to what he is reciting, whilst one listens to him.

Favourite sections of the Qur’aan

I love Surah Zaariyaat – its words lend themselves to certain rhythmical tones that come easily on the tongue. I also love to recite Surah Maryam and portions of Surah Taha. Surah Najm is also so rhythmical and beautiful to recite. But, I would also say that the entire Qur’aan is my favourite – different sections prepared and recited appropriately for the occasion.

Advice to Hufaadh leading Taraweeh

I would very sincerely and humbly tell the Hafidh to read Quraan picturing how Jibraeel AS read it to Nabi Muhammad SAW. Read like you are standing before Allah SWT. Take the musallah to be the station of Nabi SAW and afford it great reverence. Know that the angels of Allah SWT are listening and the servants of Allah SWT, who are present, are listening.

You must read with Tajweed. You must take a middle course in reading – not too fast, nor too slow. Don’t read fast, because the Quraan does not allow you to do that. There are verses in the Qur’aan that prohibit you from reading fast. I am saying: ‘Don’t read so slow like a goods train in India nor so fast like the Punjab Mail in India. You don’t have to have a melodious voice and elaborate tune, even if it is plain and simple. If you are blessed with a melodious voice or can imitate certain world class reciters, that is a gift. But it is no use reading Surah Fatiha like Sheikh Shatri, and then reading ‘ya’lamoon, ta’lamoon’ when you are reading ‘wal muhsanaat’.

This is not a game, and you will be disappointing Allah SWT and His Prophet SAW and His Malaaikah and the good people standing behind you. If you choose so, learn and read the whole Qur’aan like Shatri, Husri or Abdul Basit – not just here and there.

On public pressure for Hufaadh to read fast in Taraweeh

The greatest culprits, the greatest culprits, the greatest culprits in this arena are the trustees of the masjids. They can shoot me, they can curse me, they can do whatever, nothing will affect me, because the Qur’aan is with me. They are the enemies of the Qur’aan when they tell the Hufaadh to speed up on the pretext that people are complaining.

With the greatest humility I am saying to hell with the people who are saying speed up. This is the Word of Allah. You are going to climb a ladder, and Allah SWT is going to ask you to read this Qur’aan in the Hereafter with Tarteel.

There are culprits in the mosque who tension up the Hufaadh and time their recitals. Hufaadh have come to me with tears in their eyes complaining how some musallees are troubling them. Some seek to bring to us erroneous trends from India and Pakistan in reading the Qur’aan. We are not living in a country where we make lataas of the Qur’aan, and eat the words of the Qur’aan up. The way some people read Qur’aan in some Masaajid, I am saying in the presence of Allah SWT, and Kiraaman Katibeen on my shoulders, it is Haraam for them to read Qur’aan like that. They should leave the Musallah and be afraid of Allah. Did their teachers read like that? Did Nabi SAW read like that? Does the Qur’aan command us to read like that?

I have been to some places, I swear to Allah that I could have walked out in disgust, but did not do so just out of respect. They are making total ‘fruit salad’ out of the words of the Qur’aan.

Opinion on Hufaadh completing the Qur’aan in Taraweeh in short periods of time

They are doing it out of love for the Qur’aan, so I will not fault anyone for that. But we do find that musallees who attend these Taraweehs tend to become lethargic to read Taraweeh for the remainder of the nights. Taraweeh is Sunnah for the entire Ramadan. Also, we find that the venues reading 3 paras a night and those reading one and a quarter a night are completing at the same time. There has to be something wrong with how they are reciting to complete at the same time.

How should the Hufaadh correct, and accept correction in Taraweeh

The Hufaadh standing behind the Imam must be mature people and good listeners. If the Hafidh standing behind is an elder to the Hafidh on the Musallah, he should not expect the young Hafidh to be on his level of memorisation. This is total pride and arrogance. The elder should be merciful and patient to the Hafidh standing on the Musallah. It should not be a matter of ego, proving that one knows one’s Qur’aan, not providing the Hafidh on the Musallah any room for even breathing or self-correction: You just want to correct him, you just want to pounce on him, like a lion when he gets raw meat.

The result is that the young man gets excited, and he starts getting even more confused, because you are confusing him.

The situation demands that the listener be patient, and should be a wellwisher for the Hafidh on the Musallah, making dua that all goes smoothly for him. How difficult it is to read on the musallah – your feet are shaking, your heart is quivering. So, when you correct, your tone as the corrector says a lot. There must be no anger or aggression. Because correction, I am not ashamed to say, is given by some listeners who are very aggressive, very dirty at heart, very jealous. They want to show the people that the poor young man in front does not know his Qur’aan. They confuse him.

But I will not generalise. There are very good and respectable listeners as well.

As far as the Haafidh goes, he should be patient, and reason with those behind him if they are being inconsiderate in their correction.

How to become people of the Qur’aan (especially with reference to Ramadan)

I would advise that we peruse through the translation of the portion of Qur’aan to be recited daily from an authentic translation, as advised by the Ulama. Hufaadh would be able to understand many of the words. There are a large number of simple words that appear recurrently, and can be easily picked up even by children. We should not concentrate too much on words that need further expertise to understand.

For those with more knowledge, I think of people like my Ustaadh, Mufti Abdullah form Skeerpoort, and how much time they spend with the Qur’aan. I can just imagine how much Tafseer he is going through. One cannot reach him in Ramadan. He is only busy with the Qur’aan.

For others of the general public who have prioritised making an abundance of Khatams, I would advise that you limit the number of khatams – do a few with quality, reciting the Qur’aan as it ought to be read, making Allah SWT happy, instead of tallying up many in a ‘hit and run’ style.

And when you recite, read the Qur’aan – irrespective of whether you don’t consider yourself to have a melodious voice- clearly and beautifully. You must say, ‘I am reading to Allah’; also picture that you are in Madinah Munawaraah reciting to Nabi SAW.

If you read like this, this Qur’aan will intercede for you on the day of Qiyamah.

Final thoughts

May Allah SWT create within us a strong dislike for sin, and may we be able to readily make Tawbah when we err. May Allah SWT make us significant in His Eyes; insignificant in the eyes of people. Truly, we are nothing. Remember, if we afford the Qur’aan its due rights, we will all become of the special family of Allah SWT.

Forgetting Qur’an

10 Tuesday May 2016

Posted by Wasfeeya in Advice

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Haafidha, hafidhah, Hifdh, Hifz, huffadh, huffath, memorising Qur'an, Qur'an memorisation, Quran, Qurʾān

Bismillāhir-Rahmānir-Raheem. In the Name of Allāh, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. All praise and thanks are due to Allāh (SWT), who blessed us with the Glorious Qur’ān. Abundant salutations be upon our beloved teacher and role model, the first haafidh, Nabi Muhammad (SAW).

One of my blog followers from Bangladesh asked me a question about hifdh and salaah. I was looking for the following hadith:

Regarding the salaah: The Prophet Muhammad said, “When the Companion of the Qur’ān performs Salah, reciting it by night and day, he retains it and if he doesn’t [use it in] Salah he forgets.”

Source: Silsilah Ahadeeth as-Saheehah no. صحيح – 597 [Sahih]

when I came across this on Islam Q & A and I couldn’t stop myself from sharing it. It is a reminder to myself first!

Undoubtedly forgetfulness is something that is natural in man, and man is only called insaan because of his forgetfulness (nasiy). Usually this varies from one person to another, according to the differences in the strength of the memory that Allaah has created in His slaves.

The Qur’aan “escapes” from the heart if the Muslim does not constantly and regularly review what he has memorized of it.

The reason for this may be that it is a test of people’s hearts, to show the difference between the one whose heart is attached to the Qur’aan and regularly recites it, and the one whose heart is attached to it only whilst memorizing it, then he loses interest and forgets it.

The reason may also be to give the Muslim a stronger motive to recite the Qur’aan more frequently so as to attain the immense reward for every letter that he recites. If it were the case that he could learn it and never forget it, he would not need to read it frequently and then he would miss out on the reward for reciting and reviewing it regularly. Fear of forgetting it will make you keen to recite it so as to gain more reward with your Lord. For every letter you recite you will have one hasanah, and the reward for one hasanah is ten like it.

The Messenger SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) urged us to read Qur’aan regularly lest we forget it. He warned us against being negligent in this regard, as was stated in numerous ahaadeeth, including the following:

1- The hadeeth narrated by al-Bukhaari from Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him), that the Messenger of Allaah SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The likeness of the one who memorizes the Qur’aan is that of the owner of a hobbled camel. If he tends to it regularly, he will keep it, but if he lets it go, he will lose it.” (al-Bukhaari, 5031).

It is well known that if a camel escapes and runs away, it cannot be recaptured except with a lot of stress and difficulty. Similarly, if the person who memorizes Qur’aan does not regularly review what he has memorized, he will lose it and will require a great deal of effort to get it back.

* Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar said in al-Fath (9/79), in his commentary on this hadeeth: so long as one constantly reviews it, what one has memorized will remain, as is the case with a camel, if it remains hobbled, you will keep it. The camel was singled out here because it is the most likely of domesticated animals to run away, and if it does run away, recapturing it is very difficult.

2 – Muslim narrated in his Saheeh (no. 790 and 791) from Abu Moosa (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Read this Qur’aan regularly for, by the One in Whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, it is more likely to escape than a hobbled camel.”

3 – Al-Bukhaari (may Allaah have mercy on him) narrated that ‘Abd-Allaah said: the Prophet SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “It is not right for any one of you to say, ‘I have forgotten such and such.’ On the contrary, he has been made to forget. Try to review the Qur’aan, for it is more likely to escape from men’s hearts than camels.” (Saheeh al-Bukhaari, 5032).

Al-Haafiz said in al-Fath (9/81): Ibn Battaal said, This hadeeth is in accordance with the two aayahs (interpretation of the meanings):

‘Verily, We shall send down to you a weighty Word’ [al-Muzzammil 73:5]

and

‘And We have indeed made the Qur’ân easy to understand and remember’ [al-Najm 54:17]

So whoever strives to memorize it and recite it regularly, it will be made easy for him, and whoever turns away from it, will lose it.

This is what encourages us to constantly review what we have memorized and to keep on reciting it, lest we forget it. The Prophet SAWS (peace and blessings of Alalah be upon him) gave this example because it is the best way to explain what he meant. He also confirmed it with his oath ‘by the One in Whose hand is the soul of Muhammad’, to affirm the importance of constantly reciting the Qur’aan and reviewing what one has learned.

3 – With regard to the report that Anas ibn Maalik (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: the Messenger of Allaah SAWS (peace and blessings of Alalah be upon him) said: “The sins of my ummah were shown to me and there is no sin greater than that of a man who was given or was helped to memorize a soorah or an aayah of the Qur’aan and then he forgot it.” This is a weak (da’eef) hadeeth which was classed as such by al-Bukhaari and al-Tirmidhi. See Takhreej Mishkaat al-Masaabeeh by al-Albaani, no. 720.

Imaam Ibn al-Munaadi (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Mutashaabih al-Qur’aan (p. 52):

The Salaf were always afraid of forgetting Qur’aan after they had memorized it, because this was a shortcoming.

Al-Suyooti said in al-Itqaan (1/106):

Forgetting it is a major sin, as was stated by al-Nawawi in al-Rawdah and others, because of the hadeeth “I was shown the sins of my ummah…”

One of the best ways to help oneself to remember what one has memorized and to make it firmly-entrenched is to recite it in one’s salaah, especially in Qiyaam al-Layl. The Salaf used to recite it during the day and when praying Qiyaam al-Layl.

If you strive heard to review the Qur’aan regularly, there will be no sin on you even if you do forget some of it. The blame is on those who neglect it and fail to review it and read it regularly. We ask Allaah to forgive us.

O Allaah, make the Qur’aan the life of my heart, the light of my breast, a departure for my sorrow and a release for my anxiety. O Allaah, teach us from it that which we do not know and remind us from it of that which we have forgotten, for You are the All-Hearing, All-Knowing.

Source: Islam Question and Answer

Hifdh Diary (2)

23 Saturday Apr 2016

Posted by Wasfeeya in Hifdh Diary, Motivation

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Haafidha, hafidhah, Hifdh, Hifz, Qur'an memorisation

Bismillāhir-Rahmānir-Raheem

All praise and thanks are due to Allāh (SWT), who blessed us with the Glorious Qur’ān. Abundant salutations be upon our beloved teacher and role model, the first haafidh, Nabi Muhammad (SAW).

I apparently got my “jeems” right! I should’ve been ecstatic! But I didn’t believe my Mu’allimah this morning. I still don’t believe her. Last week I was contemplating giving up this whole reciting for sanad business. I even told my mu’allimah, “I don’t know if I should be doing this.” And then today, look.

Sometimes you have to give yourself the pep talk, like,

“Hello you amazing human being. Don’t give up so easily. You’re doing great. Keep going!”

So to all the hifdh students out there, moms of hifdh students and to you, whatever you’re doing, keep at it! Just keep going. Put one foot in front of the other. Breathe. Take it a day at a time. 1795518_715329305165375_791364063_n With best wishes for your hifdh success,

Wasfeeya

Qur’an Goals

19 Tuesday Apr 2016

Posted by Wasfeeya in Inspiration, Motivation

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Haafidha, Hifdh, Hifz, Qur'an memorisation

Bismillāh
All praise and thanks are due to Allāh (SWT), who blessed us with the Glorious Qur’ān. Abundant salutations be upon our beloved teacher and role model, the first haafidh, Nabi Muhammad (SAW).

As I renew my life goals tonight, I thought I’d share some with you to inspire you to write your own. Especially with the month of Qur’an coming up, first up should (ideally) be Qur’an goals, followed by spiritual goals. These are lifetime goals which should be broken up according to one’s ability and preference.

General Qur’an Goals

Learn to recite with tajweed (correct pronunciation)
Ensure your children or family recites with tajweed
Recite the entire Qur’an
Understand the Qur’an
Read tafseer of the entire Qur’an
Memorise suwar Mulk, Waaqi’ah, Sajda, Yaaseen etc.
Memorise the entire Qur’an

Qur’an Goals for Huffaadh

Attain sanad & ijaaza in some or all of the 10 qira-aat (from memory)
Recite the whole Qur’an in one sitting (from memory)
Recite the complete Qur’an in salaah in one night (from memory)
Write down the entire Qur’an (from memory)

Impossible? Actually, I personally know and have read or heard of people who have accomplished these goals, subhanAllah! May Allah preserve, reward and grant them the highest level of Jannah! And may Allah grant us tawfeeq (the ability and opportunity) to follow suit. Aameen!

Simultaneously work on life goals in other areas of your life.

Categories include:

Spiritual goals e.g. go on hajj
Skill-set goals e.g. public speaking
Physical goals e.g. exercise
Family goals e.g. get married
Influence goals e.g. mentor others
Giving goals e.g. charity in cash or kind
Travel Goals e.g. all the continents
Financial Goals e.g. owning a successful business
Experience goals e.g. Mount Kilimanjaro

Once you’ve written these down, read them daily. This is a reminder to myself first.

with best wishes for your hifdh success,

Wasfeeya

Hifdh Workshop [Course Book]

25 Friday Mar 2016

Posted by Wasfeeya in Advice, Motivation

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Hifdh, Hifth, Hifz, huffath, Qur'an memorisation, Qurʾān

This post is a sneak peek into my course book for my upcoming hifdh workshop. Here’s the intro plus section one.

I write this course book with the intention of pleasing Allah by benefitting those who intend to memorise the Qur’an, those who are learning as well as parents of hifdh students.

I feel that hifdh has been glamourised. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I made the intention to memorise the Qur’an. While I was learning, I always thought to myself, if I had known, I would never have started. Now that I’ve completed, I always think, if I had known, I would have thought about and done things differently.

It is my sincere intention to help others think about hifdh differently and do things differently, bi-ith-nillah (with the permission of Allah). With this in mind, this course book is written in the format of my thoughts, followed by what I should have done differently. It also integrates many of the resources I was fortunate to have access to while I was learning. This course book affords me the opportunity to compile and pass on these wonderful aids. I also aim to cover the “technical” aspect of hifdh such as correcting old mistakes and mutashabihat and the “other” side of hifdh: mental/emotional/spiritual etc.

I hope this compilation proves to be useful in-sha-Allah. I pray Allah grants us all tawfiq (opportunity and ability) to fulfill all that He loves. May Allah accept from me. All mistakes are from me and all that is good is from Him, Most Generous.

Section One

Mindset: “Box” vs “Journey”

My hifdh completion ceremony was perfect, Alhamdulillah. I looked like a bride and the ceremony looked like a small wedding. My mother and I had planned every detail, right down to the serviettes (for the cake ‘n tea afterwards).

My hifdh “journey” however, was the furthest as can be from perfection, glamour and beauty.

I put this word “journey” in inverted commas because I disagree with hifdh being a journey. Every journey has a destination, and with Qur’an memorisation, the supposed destination is completion. So being on the other side of completion, why do I feel like I’ve been fooled? Completion is supposedly an accomplishment, but how can it be when it’s still a work in progress? When every single day one still has to conscientiously revise, otherwise the memorisation will be forgotten. Forgotten in a flash, might I add.

When one is memorising, people ask, “How far are you?” but once one’s completed, nothing. Maybe one will get a “ma-sha-Allah” now and again. This proves people’s perception is all about reaching the finish-line.

I found memorising the Qur’an so difficult that I saw completion as the light at the end of the tunnel. In reality, the Qur’an was supposed to be the light. So what was I missing?

What I identify is that I had the “memorisation box” mindset as opposed to the “memorisation journey” mindset. I learned this from an awesome blog post by Qari Mubashir Anwar over at www.howtomemorisethequran.com. Here’s the post:

We need to start thinking beyond the ‘memorisation box’ and align our objectives to the Qur’an itself.

Why are you memorising the Qur’an?

When you ask people why they’re memorising the Qur’an or why they did so, you get typical responses.

– My mum or dad wanted me to do it;
– I did it for Allah;
– I wanted to gain the rewards for memorisation like the crown, the promise of ten and other things.

If I asked some of them whether they would have memorised if the case were different, I’d get a resounding no. No matter how worrying that might be, you can’t say the same for many hundreds of people. Many sacrifice everything to memorise and have clear intentions.

This is the matter I want to touch today: ‘mindset’.

There is a great truth that I have got to mention. We become too obsessed with ‘memorisation’. We become agitated and impatient for the finishing line. Parents get carried away with the desire for their children to memorise the Qur’an. Their thoughts get clouded by the great rewards in the hereafter and much more. Anyone would love to have a crown placed on their head on the Day of Judgment but, there’s a bigger picture to think about. Not for our sake but the sake of the memoriser.

What is it that people are missing?

There are two types of mindsets you can adopt:

(a) The Memorisation Box Mindset
(b) The Memorisation Journey Mindset

The Memorisation Box Mindset

This is looking at memorisation within the context of the Qur’an. The things mentioned above are examples. People concentrating on memorisation, the process, technique and completion. A focus on the mechanics but ignoring the dynamics. It’s a memorisation race mindset.

Frankly, it is a battle to move out of it.

You might change your mindset yourself but others around you might not. Your parents or your teachers may still have the same mindset. So you find yourself continually bombarded with questions and statements like:

– “How much have you memorised now?”
– “Why is memorisation taking you long for?”
– “You should be finishing within x number of years – what’s the matter?”
– “You should eat y and z, and recite a and b to boost your memory.”

Some of you may be thinking at this point, “Hey wait a minute, isn’t the work you do all about the memorisation box mindset?”

The content of what I advocate is that you should memorise the Qur’an with productivity. Which is why I concentrate on methods and practical advice. What I don’t do is advocate a sole concentration on ‘memorisation’. This is important. So in many ways it’s the memorisation journey that I explore, which is what we’ll look at now.

The Memorisation Journey Mindset

This is what you need to aim for. This is looking at memorisation in the context of Islam. In the context of Din: your transactional life with Allah. It’s about looking at memorisation as a journey of life as opposed to a journey to finish memorisation. And when that’s done, you’re done.

A shift from saying:

“What is my purpose in becoming a Hafidh?”

“What are my objectives for memorising in Islam, Din and life?”

This will work wonders for you.

Becoming a Hafidh is one thing, and memorising the Qur’an as a Muslim is another. If you make becoming “Hafidh” the end-goal of your mission there’s nothing wrong with that. It was my mission and it is likely to be or had been yours too. The thing is that it needs more depth. It needs context, it needs a step by step goal orientated journey.

For example, if it were a blanket statement: “I want to become a Hafidh in x number of days” what happens if you fail? You’ll make anew or you’ll think you’re a failure (maybe not).

If you said instead, “I’m going to start memorising the Qur’an because as a Muslim I believe that I have to do such and such a thing. And my first goal is to memorise the 30th chapter which I can then use to such and such a thing.” Like this you’re more likely to progress with better focus. You make small goals along the way that slowly build up to the finishing line.

Remember, memorisation is not a race or a marathon but it is a journey for life.

So what are some of the objectives of memorising the Qur’an under this mindset?

1. Seeking the acceptance and pleasure of Allah

This is without doubt amongst the most supreme intentions for memorising the Qur’an. Make this your aim. Remember these are the Words of Allah. You might tell me you are memorising because of your parents just like I might have. Perhaps instead say, “I seek the pleasure of Allah by fulfilling my duty to my parents.”

2. Seeking proximity with Allah and His Messenger

The Beloved of Allah, our master Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) as narrated by ‘Umar b. Al-Khattab (May Allah be well pleased with him) said:

“Actions are valued according to the intentions, and every man is credited with what he intended. If someone’s emigration was to Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), his emigration was therefore to Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). And if someone’s emigration was to acquire worldly benefit or to take a woman in marriage, his emigration was to that which he emigrated.”

You may say I’m memorising because it is a dream of mine to be able to say “I have committed to memory 600+ pages containing the Words of Allah.” You should instead say, “I seek the pleasure and acceptance of Allah through aiming to protect His Words by Hifdh.”

One of the quickest ways to become close to Allah is to become closer to His Beloved (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). One of the prime methods to do so is through the Qur’an itself. So make proximity part of your mindset.

3. To improve your prayer and enjoy it

This is a basic thing, but it’s something that we’ve forgotten these days. Many Huffadh race to finish reading just like those who haven’t memorised. They always read the same verses when leading the prayer on rotate. Why would you memorise the Qur’an if you are just going to read certain chapters or portions all the time. There might be a genuine reason you’d do it like the Ansari mentioned in the Hadith of Anas, who used to recite Surah Ikhlas in every rak’ah. His reason was his love for the Surah because it speaks about Allah, upon which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said he would enter into Paradise.

But your memorisation should be a means to make your prayer better. You can recite long passages and short, you can recite from different places, or you can recite the whole Qur’an – why not.

This is something I never appreciated. My dad always told me to recite the Qur’an as revision in the daily prayers. He always told me to stop reading the smaller Suwar and recite other verses (when leading the prayer). I didn’t do it. Most people don’t do it. My reason for not doing so was in light of those praying behind me. I could easily start reading Surah Baqarah but you have to take into account others. There could be people who can’t stand for long and others who have to leave. Most people have to realise this through experience. I am no different. Start to recite the Qur’an as revision in the prayer. Just try it. Reciting in the prayer will make your memorisation stronger.

Remember a lot of people may only know between one to four chapters by heart, if not up to ten. Their prayers are on the same routine all the time. Pencil in your prayers as a goal.

A point related to this, and one that I find annoying is that memorisation has become about leading the Tarawih night prayers in Ramadan. As if memorisation is centred around it. I’ve found this to be the case in certain circles. Again this is all to do with mindset. This is wrong on so many levels. It illustrates one thing – people need to think more long term and adopt a broader mentality.

4. Enjoying recitation

The more you memorise the more you should enjoy it.

When memorising, you make so much repetition. Through that repetition, you make corrections and through that you improve your recitation. You should make the sweetness and enjoyment of the recitation of the Qur’an a goal. Memorising with this in your mindset makes listening to the Qur’an an enjoyment too. Don’t underestimate listening.

5. To inspire action according to the Qur’an

The Hadith which I discussed talks about the Sahib al Qur’an. As pointed out the word ‘Sahib’ can mean companion, friend, holder, keeper, or authority. Although I like to translate it as ‘reciter’, in the literal sense it is companionship. Here’s the Hadith:

‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Amr narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

“It will be said [on the Day of Judgement] to the reciter* of the Qur’an: ‘Recite and be uplifted [in your rank]! And recite in the distinct manner (Tartil) as you used to recite in the world. For indeed your rank [in Paradise] will be according to the last verse you recite.’”
– Al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban, Al-Hakim, Bayhaqi, Ibn Abi Shaybah.

A companion holds a sense of friendship, loyalty, and most importantly – a continuum. If we took this Hadith to mean those who memorised the Qur’an, we can’t say so as a fact. But one thing for certain is the word ‘Sahib’. Memorisation itself is not the most spectacular thing according to this Hadith. It’s a means to an end.

Did you know that there are non-Muslims who read and memorise the Qur’an? What would make you different? – The emphasis on practice.

This is what the Hadith is indicating by the word ‘Sahib’. Some scholars have even said this reciter will only be able to recite those verses he or she had practised. The companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, and may Allah be pleased with them) had this mindset. They would memorise something new until they’d put into implementation what they already had memorised. This is why this is a must in the memorisation journey mindset.

6. To become a guardian preserver of the Qur’an

Islam has always had an incredible oral tradition. Remember that we’re looking at goals within the context of Islam. The transmission of Islamic sciences has been through chains of authority. Hadith went through a rigorous transmission process and the principles then made solid. Likewise, the Qur’an is impossible to distort due to millions adhering to the same oral tradition.

Imam Muslim quotes from ‘Abdu’llah ibn al-Mubarak, who states: “The Isnad (chain of authority) is a necessary part of Din. If there was no chain of authority then everyone would have said whatever he wanted to say.”

So remembering this, no matter how much you memorise you are contributing to the preservation of the Qur’an.

7. Memorise as preparation for further studies

Knowing the Qur’an by heart creates a strong foundation for studying further and makes it easier. There are many traditional schools that make it a prerequisite that you are a Hafidh before you can study under them. Many great scholars also had and have the same policy.

Say you don’t intend to memorise the whole Qur’an, you can one day take what you’ve memorised to understand it, and act upon it. If you wanted to memorise the whole Qur’an but never made it there – you can use that memorisation to drive further study.

8. To inculcate a life-long love and engagement with the Quran

This process should already have begun before you learnt how to read the Qur’an. We learn, recited, and completed the Qur’an in the mosque but then left it. The reason is that there was no engagement. There was no love. I refuse to teach children aged 5 or 6 and have managed to do so 99% of the time. I prefer that they play and hear stories from the Qur’an instead. In this way, they grow up listening to the Qur’an knowing it as a story book from God! Following that they immerse themselves into the Arabic textual universe, all excited.

It seems, however, our aims are for children to despise the Qur’an. We have engineered everything in a way which it is void of any fun or meaning. In the context of memorisation, far too often we place we pressurise on ourselves or our children. The pressure is often the race to complete it. Despite wanting good, this results in the opposite.

When you’re memorising, you’re not doing it for the now but you’re going to be doing it for the rest of your life.

Those who find themselves pressurised either (1) quit (2) want to finish immediately or (3) finish and then never come back to it. When you sell a product or service and you do a great job, the customers remember it well but they won’t boast about it. If you got on their bad side, they’ll want to tell the whole world. Likewise, when you memorise under pressure you remember those days more than the good days.

9. Making engagement with the Qur’an easier

Engagement with the Qur’an centres around three things: (1) recitation, (2) study, and (3) reflection.

Recitation.

Memorising makes recitation easier. As a memoriser or someone who has memorised you are bound to recite more. Revision, prayers, invites, and wherever you may be. A Hafidh can make the simple plan of covering the revision via prayer – this is easy to do. You can cover at least a third of the Qur’an, so why read the last 20 surah all the time?

Study/Reflection.

Thousands of Huffadh do not study the translation of the Quran (if they have no understanding) even once ever.

After an amazing effort, they’ve done nothing. You have ample opportunity to do so. An opportunity far greater than those who haven’t memorised. Studying and reflecting over the Qur’an is for all mankind. Not just for scholars. Yes, perhaps there are a small number of verses to do with law that scholars attention is most needed, but the Qur’an is for us all to think over. Allah commands so. We just leave matters of derivative jurisprudence to the inheritors of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Thinking along in these three stages will improve your memorisation journey.

10. Making a life-long commitment to studying Islamic knowledge

If a child or adult has memorised the Qur’an, they’ve proven something: they can memorise, they are good at it. That means you can memorise anything else like the core texts of the Qur’an. So make it a goal when you memorise looking ahead whether that be texts of Tajwid or Hadith.

11. Gain the virtues of the Qur’an

You read and hear about many virtues from the salvation of the self and family members to the company of the elite angels and prophets. Notice that practice comes first, followed by virtue. Many of us make the rewards or virtues our sole goal. It should be within the mindset but in the end. The reason to include it in your mindset is that it allows you to contemplate over the hereafter and the rewards therein.

That’s it from me today.

Hope this is useful.

I pray Allah grants us all Tawfiq for all that He loves. All mistakes are from me and all that is good is from Him, Most Generous.

Upcoming Hifdh Workshop

23 Wednesday Mar 2016

Posted by Wasfeeya in Hifdh Diary, Inspiration, Motivation

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I hate holidays! Okay maybe “hate” is too strong a word. Who hates holidays?! It’s just that holidays are truly a test of self-discipline. I just want to read #dearfuturehusband quotes all day, but I’ve got reciting, academic readings and studying to do. I tend to waste a lot of time (embarrassed face). Astaghfirullah.

That’s why I decided to host my hifdh workshop this holiday. I chose a random date and put the word out, and then started preparing days later. That’s just how I roll. And I won’t apologise for it.

It’s a bit of a daunting task. There are so many videos, blog posts and hifdh guides to sift through. There is that hifdh workshop I attended as well, which I’d like to share, but I don’t want to copy anyone’s work. Blogging myself for the past year is definitely part of my prep, ’cause I’d like to share my journey. That way I definitely won’t be copying anyone’s work or sharing stuff that people can read on their own.

I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time now, and I’m looking forward to it in-sha-Allah. So if you’re in Cape Town and are a hifdh student, a prospective student or a mom of a student, then please come over and meet me in-sha-Allah! (Sisters-Only).

The Pursuit of Awesomeness (1)

What are the Seven “Readings” of the Qur’an?

12 Saturday Mar 2016

Posted by Wasfeeya in Resources

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