Allah ﷻ says in Sūrah al-Qamar, “And We have certainly made the Quran easy to remember. So is there anyone who will be mindful?” [54:17] Allah ﷻ, in His infinite wisdom, repeats this statement and rhetorical question four separate times throughout the Sūrah. Repetition signifies importance.

Allah ﷻ is telling us that He has definitely made the Quran easy to remember. There are different layers of ease connected to the Quran. First, the Quran has been made easy to recite. This is an observable reality throughout history and across cultures. Muslims across the globe, regardless of their ethnicity, culture, and language learn how to recite the Quran in the Arabic language from a very young age. They learn how to read Arabic – recognize its letters, connect them, and pronounce them properly – without even understanding the language. In some cultures, they learn how to read the Quran before learning how to recite in their own native language. That is why we see Muslims from across the globe – Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Turkmenista, Kyrgyztan, all the other stans and central Asian state, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, across the African continent, America, Mexico, and anywhere else you can think of – reciting the Quran flawlessly with precision. 

The second layer of ease is that Allah ﷻ has made the Quran easy to memorize. The primary way the Quran has been preserved from the life of the Prophet ﷺ until today is in the hearts of people. Memorization will always be the primary way in which the Quran is preserved. This is part of the miraculous nature of the Quran and a manifestation of Allah’s divine promise to preserve the Quran. Millions of Muslims across the globe have the entire Quran memorized cover to cover, word for word, letter for letter. There are ḥuffāẓ that are young, old, male and female. I know of children as young as 4-5 years old that have memorized the Quran. I also know of elderly aunties and uncles that memorized in their 60’s and 70’s. The Islamophibes can burn as may copies of the Quran as they like and it won’t make any difference. There are children who are blind that have memorized the Quran simply by listening to it. I know of a child from an ex-soviet state who had memorized the Quran without ever having seen a muṣḥaf. He had the entire Quran memorized, but couldn’t read it.

The third layer of ease is that Allah ﷻ has made the Quran easy to understand. Anyone who has basic literacy of the Arabic Language will understand the message, guidance, and reminders of the Quran. It speaks to the intellectual as well as the uneducated, the urban city dweller and the desert bedouin, the rich and the poor, scholar and non-scholar.

The fourth layer of ease is that Allah ﷻ has made it easy to act upon the guidance of the Quran. Each and every single one of us has the ability to liver our lives according to the guidance of Allah ﷻ as demonstrated by His beloved Messenger Muḥammad ﷺ.

 And We have certainly made the Quran easy to remember. So is there anyone who will be mindful?” [54:17]

Tonight’s Ramadan Reflections Series talk was brought to you by the IOK Seminary Faculty. Catch up on previous videos or catch the next videos on the IOK Ramadan Reflections Series page.