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The Qur'an has a wondrous
impact on those who receive it as a book of
guidance and remedy. Its influence on them is
great and radical; the Qur'an reforms the
character and remolds it into a new form that
is loved by Allah. One who doubts this effect
has to consider what happened to the
Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings
be upon him).
Before Islam, the Companions
led a miserable, ignorant life. The change
effected by the Qur'an in their life testifies
to its power of change and reformation. Those
poor, insignificant, barefooted desert
dwellers were reshaped into new beings; their
ambitions were elevated to sublime goals; and
their hearts were raised and attached to
Allah.
Their souls were changed and,
therefore, Allah's promise came true: (Surely
Allah does not change the condition of a
people until they change their own condition)
(Ar-Ra`d 13:11). Thus, within a few years,
a fresh force emerged from the desert of
Arabia, conquering the strong empires of the
time and seizing leadership from them.
How could the Qur'an bring
about such dramatic change? Actually, what
made the Qur'an so effective is the excellent
approach followed by the Prophet's Companions
toward it. They understood the Qur'an and
appreciated its value, taking in this regard
the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him)
as their best example.
The Prophet Muhammad lived the
Qur'an and was imbued by its spirit, approving
what it approved and rejecting what it
rejected. Therefore, it is not strange that
his wife `Ai'shah described him as the
"Qur'an walking on the earth."
The Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him) used to recite the
Qur'an slowly and clearly. Once a night, he
would repeat the following verse in his
prayer: (If
You should chastise them, then surely they are
Your servants; and if You should forgive them,
then surely You are the Mighty, the Wise)
(Al-Ma'idah 5:118).
The Qur'an had such an
overwhelming effect on the Prophet that he
said "(Surat) Hud [Surah 11] and
its sisters [related surahs] have
brought me white hairs before their due time."
So the appalling scenes of the Day of
Resurrection and the description of what
happened to previous nations, as mentioned in
Surat Hud and its likes, affected not only the
Prophet's spirituality, but even extended to
his physical being.
The Prophet's Companions
followed in the Prophet's footsteps. They also
savored the sweetness of the Qur'an and were
touched by it. In this regard, the story of
`Abbad ibn Bishr is very indicative. On their
way back from one battle, the Prophet (peace
and blessings be upon him) appointed `Abbad
and `Ammar ibn Yasir to guard the camp at
night. `Abbad took the first turn and `Ammar
went to sleep.
The place seemed safe and,
therefore, `Abbad spent his time in prayer.
However, one polytheist was watching the camp
and shot `Abbad with an arrow; `Abbad took the
arrow out of his body and continued his
prayers. The polytheist shot another arrow at
`Abbad, and, once again, `Abbad took out the
arrow and continued with his prayers. The
polytheist shot `Abbad with a third arrow and
it was only then that he stopped his
recitation, made ruku` and sujud, and woke up
`Ammar. When `Ammar asked why he did not wake
him up after he was shot the first time,
`Abbad answered,
I was reciting a surah that I
didn't want to interrupt. But when he (the
polytheist attacker) kept on shooting me, I
awakened you. By Allah, had not I feared that
the task (of guarding the camp) assigned to me
by the Prophet would be jeopardized, I would
not have ceased the recitation of the surah
until I had finished it or until he had
finished me off. (Abu Dawud; authenticated by
Al-Albani)
The above example affirms that
reciting the Qur'an was not mere lip service
practiced by the Prophet and his Companions.
Actually, the real value of the Qur'an lies in
its meanings and in its ability to effect
change in the reader. The Qur'an is meant to
revive believers' hearts and to reform their
minds. This in turn would produce people who
know Allah and worship Him sincerely. However,
such a fruit cannot be attained through
thoughtless reading of the Qur'an, even if one
were to read the entire Qur'an thousands of
times.
The Companions affirmed this
point repeatedly. `A'ishah (may Allah be
pleased with her) was told about some people
who used to read the whole Qur'an two or three
times a night. Her comment was that "they
(obviously) read, but as a matter of fact,
they did not read." And she then related
how the Prophet would spend the whole night
reading in his prayer just the surahs of
Al-Baqarah, Aal `Imran, and An-Nisa'. While
reading, he would ask Allah for His mercy when
he would read a verse that imparted good news,
and he would supplicate and seek refuge in
Allah when he would read a verse that caused
fear.
Abu Jamra once said to Ibn
`Abbas, "I am quick in reading the Qur'an
and I am used to finishing it in three
days." Ibn `Abbas replied, "As for
me, I would prefer to spend a whole night
reading (only) Surat Al-Baqarah with due
reflection and careful recitation."
In his book on the morals of
the Qur'an bearers, Al-Aagri said,
Studying a small part of the
Qur'an with careful reflection and due
contemplation is better than reading large
portions of it without such contemplation.
This is emphasized by the lucid provisions in
the Qur'an, by the Sunnah, and by the sayings
of great Muslim scholars.
Mujahid was asked which of two
men who spent similar time in prayers was
better; the duration of their ruku` and sujud
was the same, but one of them recited only
Surat Al-Baqarah and the other recited the
surahs of Al-Baqarah and Aal `Imran (but they
spent the same time in reading). Mujahid said,
"The one who reads only Surat Al-Baqarah
is better." He supported his view with
the verse (And
it is a Qur'an which We have revealed in
portions so that you may read it to the people
by slow degrees)
(Al-Israa' 17:106). (Al-Aagri 82-83)
Sources:
Al-Aagri, Akhlaq Hamalat
Al-Qur'an.
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