This Ramadan, MuslimMatters is pleased to host the Institute Of Knowledge‘s daily Ramadan series: Ramadan Reflections. Through this series, each day we will spend time connecting with the Qur’an on a deeper, more spiritual, uplifting level.

Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8, Episode 9, Episode 10, Episode 11, Episode 12, Episode 13, Episode 14, Episode 15, Episode 16, Episode 17, Episode 18, Episode 19, Episode 20

Transcript

All thanks and praise are due to Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala. May His peace and blessings be upon His last and final messenger ﷺ, his family, His companions, and those who follow them until the end of times. May Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala accept all the worship we have done so far during this blessed month.  

 The most important days of the year, the most important nights of the year are now upon us. One of these nights could be Laylatul Qadr. One of these nights could possibly be the night of power, the night of magnificence, the night of decree, the night of power. This night is more virtuous and better than a thousand months. 

 And if we catch this night, if we spend this night in worship, then all of our previous sins will be forgiven. May Allah make all of us among those who are able to benefit from the blessings, the rewards, and virtues of Laylatul Qadr. As you know, the human body is not simply a composition of bones, cells, flesh, and organs. We are not just a physical body. Rather, as human beings, we are composed of the physical body as well as the soul. And the soul is what truly gives life to the physical body.  

 All of us know that in order for the physical body to be healthy, we have to take care of it. It requires nourishment. It requires food, drink, nutrients. We have to take care of our health. We have to be careful about our diet. Just like the physical body requires care, the soul also requires care. It also requires nourishment. And there are certain things we can do to nourish the soul. And at the beginning of the 21st juz, in verse number 45, Allah mentions three specific acts that we can consider to be nourishment for the soul. We can classify it as soul food. Allah very beautifully instructs the Prophet ﷺ and by extension, all of us, saying, 

ٱتْلُ مَآ أُوحِىَ إِلَيْكَ مِنَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ وَأَقِمِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ ۖ إِنَّ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ تَنْهَىٰ عَنِ ٱلْفَحْشَآءِ وَٱلْمُنكَرِ ۗ وَلَذِكْرُ ٱللَّهِ أَكْبَرُ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تَصْنَعُونَ ٤٥ 

Recite what has been revealed to you of the Book and establish prayer. Indeed, ˹genuine˺ prayer should deter ˹one˺ from indecency and wickedness. The remembrance of Allah is ˹an˺ even greater ˹deterrent˺. And Allah ˹fully˺ knows what you ˹all˺ do. (Quran 29:45) 

Meaning, recite what has been revealed to you from the book and establish prayer. Surely prayer stops a person from indecency and evil. And the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows everything you do. In this verse, Allah is speaking directly to the Prophet ﷺ. He’s giving him very specific, particular instructions. And although this verse is directed to the Prophet ﷺ, by extension, it’s directed to each and every single one of us. Allah instructs the Prophet ﷺ to engage in three specific acts of worship: تِلَاوَةُ الْقُرْآن reciting the Qur’an, establishing prayer, إِقَامَةُ الصَّنَاةِ is r. And the third, ذِكْرُ اللَّهِ is remembering Allah. 

أُتْلُ مَا أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ مِنَ الْكِتَامِ Recite what has been revealed to you from the book. Reciting the Qur’an is one of the most virtuous and one of the most beneficial activities we can engage in. The Qur’an is a balm for our souls. It is a polish for our hearts. It’s one of the most beneficial activities we can engage in, because when we recite the Quran, we are spending time in the company of the divine speech of Allah. And the benefits of reciting the Quran are too numerous to be counted.  

There are several ahadith of the Prophet ﷺ that speak about the virtues, the rewards and benefits of reciting the Quran. The Prophet ﷺ told us: 

 مَنْ قَرَأَ حَرْفًا مِنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ فَلَهُ حَسَنًا وَالْحَسَنَةُ بِعَشْرِ أَمْثَالِهَا وَلَا أَقُولُ أَلِفْنَا مِمْحَرْفٌ وَلَكِنْ أَلِفٌ حَرْفٌ وَنَامٌ حَرْفٌ وَمِمٌ حَرْفٌ  

Whoever recites a letter from the book of Allah, gets a reward. And that reward is automatically multiplied by 10. And I’m not saying that Alif, Laam, Meem is one single letter. Alif is a letter. Laam is a letter. Meem is a letter. Every single letter of the Qur’an we recite, we are receiving unimaginable reward. Unimaginable blessings from Allah .  

The Prophet ﷺ said, 

 إِقْرَأُوا الْقُرْآنَ فَإِنَّهُ يَأْتِي شَفِيعًا لِأَصْحَابِهِ يَوْمَ القِيَامَةِ  

“Recite the Qur’an because it will come as an intercessor on behalf of its companion on the Day of Judgment.” (Mishkat al-Masabih 2120). 

When we recite the Qur’an, it increases our Iman. It strengthens our relationship with Allah. Allah describes the believer saying, 

إِنَّمَا ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ ٱلَّذِينَ إِذَا ذُكِرَ ٱللَّهُ وَجِلَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَإِذَا تُلِيَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَـٰتُهُۥ زَادَتْهُمْ إِيمَـٰنًۭا وَعَلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ ٢ 

“The ˹true˺ believers are only those whose hearts tremble at the remembrance of Allah, whose faith increases when His revelations are recited to them, and who put their trust in their Lord.” (Quran 8:2). 

Meaning, when His verses are recited to them, it increases their faith. Our hearts become rusted. When we engage in sins and disobedience, there are spots and rust that is covering the heart. And the Prophet was asked, “What is the polish of the heart? How do we remove that rust? He ﷺ said,  

كَثْرَةُ ذِكْرِ الْمَوْتِ وَتِلَاوَةِ الْقُرْآنِ 

‘Frequently remembering death and reciting the Qur’an.’” (Mishkat al-Masabih 2168). 

The Prophet ﷺ had a regular, daily portion of the Qur’an that he would recite. The Sahabah had a portion of the Quran that they would recite daily. Similarly, all of us should have a portion of the Quran that we recite daily.  

I believe it’s time to elevate the standard of our community. At a bare minimum, all of us should aspire to reciting one juz’ a day. All of us should aspire to hit that goal. If we can do more, alhamdulillah. But all of us should be trying to reach that bare minimum goal. That I am going to recite one juz’ of the Quran every single day. So that every month, I’m going through an entire cycle of the Quran. That is something very doable. If you are fluent, if you’re proficient in your Qur’anic recitation, it can take you perhaps 20-30 minutes to recite an entire juz’. That is not a long period of time. Only 20-30 minutes of your day. For those of us who aren’t there yet, no problem. Still recite those 20-30 minutes however much you can in those 20-30 minutes. But work towards that goal that I am going to practice so much. I am going to work on my recitation, so that I can reach this goal of reciting one juz’ a day. And the amount of barakah, the amount of blessings that it’s going to bring into our lives, cannot be described. Obviously reciting it for the sake of reward is something that’s good; it’s commendable. But the main purpose of reciting is then to understand.  

The second act, وَأَقِمِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ, is establish prayer. This means praying properly, correctly, fulfilling all of the shurut (conditions), arkān (integrals), wajibat (mandatory acts), sunan (recommended practices), adab (etiquettes). Pray properly and correctly. Praying consistently, regularly, five times a day, every single day, establishing prayer.  

And the scholars mention that when it comes to establishing prayer, there’s actually two components: the external component (an outward component) and an internal component. The outward component of establishing prayer is praying properly, correctly, following the example of the Prophet ﷺ. The form of prayer itself. Following all the rules and regulations of salah to make sure that it’s being performed properly and correctly. As the Prophet ﷺ said,   

صَلُّوا كَمَا رَأَيْتُمُونِي أُصَلِّي  

“Pray as you have seen me praying.” (Mishkat al-Masabih 683). 

So, the form of prayer is important. That’s part of iqamat as-salaah. That’s part of establishing prayer. And that is why it is a personal obligation upon all of us to learn the fiqh of salah. All of us should be well-versed in the rules and regulations related to prayer. What makes my prayer valid? What makes my prayer invalid? What are the pre-conditions for the validity of prayer? What are the arkans (integrals) of salah? What are the wajibat (mandatory actions) of prayer? What are the sunan (the recommended practices) of prayer? What are the adab (etiquettes) of prayer? That is something all of us should learn. And that’s part of establishing salah.  

The second part is the internal aspect. The inward aspect. And that is praying with ikhlas (sincerity), ihsan (excellence), khushu’ (mindfulness and concentration). Make the prayer meaningful. When I’m praying, I’m not just going through motions. I’m not just performing a physical act. Rather, I am performing an act of worship that has deep, profound meaning. And when I’m praying, I’m praying with sincerity. And I’m praying with mindfulness and concentration. I’m praying with humility. I recognize that I’m standing in the presence of my Lord and Creator. And because of that, I am going to pray with ihsan. And the Prophet ﷺ described ihsan as the following: 

أَنْ تَعْبُدَ اللَّهَ كَأَنَّكَ تَرَاهُ، فَإِنْ لَمْ تَكُنْ تَرَاهُ فَإِنَّهُ يَرَاكَ 

“It’s to worship Allah as if you can see Him. And if you can’t see Him, know that He sees you.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 50). 

So pray with that mindset and that attitude. And if I pray with that mindset and attitude, then I am going to be calm and collected in prayer. And I am going to be mindful. I’m going to be focused. I’m going to have humility and concentration. And that is how prayer becomes meaningful and impactful in my life. And that is how prayer becomes enjoyable. I will taste the sweetness of salah.  

And then Allah mentions one of the benefits of prayer, “ إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ تَنْهَى عَنِ الفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنْكَرَ Truly prayer prevents and stops indecency and evil.” الفَحْشَاء is indecency, indecent speech, indecent behavior. مُنْكَر is evil, anything that the Sharia considers to be evil, unlawful, reprehensible, disliked. That is a natural consequence of iqamat as-sana. That is the result of establishing prayer. That it’s going to help me stay away from sin. It’s going to keep me away from disobeying Allah. It’s going to help me control my tongue. It’s going to help me control my eyes. It’s going to help me control my thoughts. I’m going to have a heightened state of God consciousness. And our teachers would say that if you are praying regularly, yet you are still involved in some sin, then check your prayer. There has to be something missing in your prayer. Perhaps there’s some shortcoming, some deficiency. 

The third thing is that the remembrance of Allah is greater وَلَا ذِكْرُ اللَّهِ أَكْبَرُ. One of the understandings of this ayah is that remembering Allah is an even stronger deterrent from sinning. Engage in dhikrullah frequently.  

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱذْكُرُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ذِكْرًۭا كَثِيرًۭا ٤١ 

O believers! Always remember Allah often. (Quran 33:41) 

That, O you who believe, remember Allah abundantly. Remember Allah frequently. Remembering Allah includes reciting certain phrases and expressions of praise and gratitude. It can include all of the daily supplications: waking up in the morning, entering the restroom, exiting the restroom, looking in the mirror, putting on your clothes, before eating, after eating, exiting the home, traveling, returning home, entering the masjid, and exiting the masjid. That’s all dhikrullah. And the main purpose of these practices, is to constantly be mindful of Allah. 

And if we’re constantly mindful of Allah, then we’re definitely going to be staying away from indecency, evil, and sin. Allah knows everything you do. So in this verse, Allah has mentioned three very significant, important, and beneficial acts of worship that all of us need to make part of our routine, especially during these last ten nights of Ramadan: tilawatul Qur’an (reciting the Quran), iqamatul Salah (establishing prayer), dhikrullah (remembering Allah). And this is not only in these last ten nights, but in every day of our lives.  

We ask Allah to give us the tawfiq, the ability, to implement the guidance of this verse. May Allah make us among those who recite the Quran regularly, consistently, daily. May Allah make us among those who truly establish prayer, both externally and internally. And may Allah make us among those who remember Him frequently.  

وصل اللهم على نبيينا ومولانا محمد وعلى آله وصحبه وسلم