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Around the world, the Qur'an becomes central during the month of Ramadan: It is recited out loud, recited in low murmurs, listened to in the car during the work commute and at home and on the MP3 player during the walk to classes, and followed along during the Tarawih Prayer.
Of course, some of you will be upset and say that for Muslims this should be the case all year round and not just during Ramadan. But if you calm down and think about it, you will come to realize that in fact as much as we would like to think that the Qur'an is popular year-round, that is simply not the case. For whatever reason, we live our daily lives without ever interacting with and reciting the Qur'an — when it's not Ramadan. And in Ramadan, well, even if we ourselves do not pick up the Qur'an and recite it out loud, then, at least we comfort ourselves with the fact that we're coming in contact with it via the recitation of the imam during the nightly Tarawih Prayer.
Especially as youth, it is critically important that you come to terms with the real and the ideal when it comes to the place of the Qur'an in our lives today. It, along with the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), is after all a user manual for our lives. Your goal this Ramadan: Bring the real as close as possible to the ideal.
The Obvious
Just so no one thinks we're overlooking the obvious, it's true that we're expected to draw closer to the Qur'an during Ramadan. Indeed, Almighty Allah reminds us, (Ramadan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur'an, as a guide to humankind, also clear (Signs) for guidance and judgment (between right and wrong) (Al-Baqarah 2:185). This verse clearly outlines not only the significance of the Qur'an being revealed during the month of Ramadan, but also more specifically the purpose of the Qur'an as a guide to all humankind, and in particular a Book to help us discern between good and evil, right and wrong, and moral and immoral.
Throughout Ramadan, therefore, when we refer back to the Qur'an, interact with it, and internalize its teachings and message, we're reliving the spiritual and human drama that unfolded some 14 centuries ago in Makkah and in Madinah. The verses come to life through our personal recitation and reflection, and beautifully so when the imam recites with passion during the Tarawih Prayer.
You (most of you anyway!) are young and might or might not yet have had the opportunity to experience the Tarawih Prayer, and especially in congregation during the last third of the night, when grown men and women, overcome entirely with emotion and anxiety and fear and hope, break out into tears at the recitation of certain verses of the Qur'an. What a powerful and gripping sight indeed that a Book revealed so long ago continues to have direct relevance and meaning for all of us!
The Not So Obvious
While it seems too obvious that we reach for the Qur'an during Ramadan, what is not so obvious is how and why we find it possible to neglect and even sometimes abandon the Qur'an during the remaining 11 months of the year. It happens very slowly, starting with the first day of Shawwal, as we emerge from the month of fasting and praying and giving in charity. We start taking small breaks from reading the Qur'an, and we stop being as regular in our interactions with it. Before we know it, we are back to the basics, performing our daily Prayers in a rushed manner, squeezing the Prayer times in between other "more important" priorities in life. Often the shortest surahs are recited, and even then, in haste. It is not exactly obvious, but it happens slowly that the Qur'an ceases to be a daily part of our life — literally.
We have been promised by Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) that we will receive a reward for our recitation of the Qur'an, and he has even reassured the faint-hearted among us who might find it a daunting task to read a lot at one time that we will be rewarded for every letter of every word that we read! But settling for the lowest possible reward of recitation only without comprehension or, worse, without consistent and constant effort at adhering to the teachings of the Qur'an is simply not an option.
Think about it. You are young now, and if Arabic is not your native language, you can and should be at least supplementing your recitation of the Qur'an in Arabic with a translation in whichever language your mother tongue is. Going beyond the recitation, you would feel inspired to uphold the teachings of the Qur'an daily and not relegate the holiest of books to someplace on the bookshelf!
Final Thoughts
The Qur'an was revealed some 1,400 years ago, but its teachings, complemented by the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), are timeless, universal, and comprehensive. You knew that and we all say we know that, but for some reason, we forget to turn to the Qur'an for guidance in our daily lives.
After all, it is a human user manual, so shouldn't we train ourselves from an early age to recite and reflect on its contents? What a tragedy indeed it would be if we do not comprehend the user manual and live our lives without guidance. Believe it or not, the Qur'an records for all of time that our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), who has been a mercy to humankind, will actually complain about his followers, saying, (O my Lord, surely my people have treated this Qur'an as a forsaken thing) (Al-Furqan 25:30).
So let's resolve this Ramadan to bridge the gap between the real and the ideal by taking the Qur'an as our user manual. We must recite the Qur'an, but not without reflecting upon what we recite and then resolving to lead our lives in accordance with the guidance in the Qur'an and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).
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