CAUSES THAT WILL AID YOU IN MEMORIZING THE BOOK OF ALLAH "AL-QUR'AN" {part 2}

“And We have indeed made the Qur’an easy to
understand and remember, but is there any that
will remember?” [al-Qamar: 17]

◊ 13 – Adhere to a proficient Shaykh with whom you memorise
This is an extremely important matter, so that you can memorise Qur’aan without mistakes. Were you to memorise the Qur’an on your own then perhaps you might err in the recitation of some verses and were you to memorise it like that (with those mistakes), then it’s difficult to correct them.

◊ 14 – Adhering to one mushaf (copy of the Qur’aan)
From the things that will aid you in hifdh is sticking to one specific copy of the Qur’an that you read and memorise from until you remember the position of the verses and chapters.

◊ 15 – Persisting in the Adhkar (supplications)
Also from the aiding causes in hifdh is that you persist in the morning and evening adhkar and that you read the supplications that Allah has made a cause to protect you from the plots of the shaytan (devil) for example: when the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) would
enter the mosque, he’s say, ‘I seek refuge in Allah the Most Great in His Noble Face and lasting authority from the wretched shaytan.’ And he said, ‘If he says that, then he’ll be protected for the rest of the day.’ (Reported by Abu Dawud from Ibn ‘Amr – Sahih al-Jami’ (4715)) i.e. whoever says that, Allah will protect him from the shaytan for the entire day.

◊ 16 – Pray with what you have memorised
It is upon you to strive with your utmost to pray the sunan and nawafil (superogatory) prayers with what you’ve memorised on that day and what a delight it would be were you to also pray the mandatory prayers with it, so that you can give ground to your hifdh.

◊ 17 – Qiyam al-Lail (the Night Prayer)
The night prayer, particularly in the last third of the night, is at a blessed time wherein Allah `azza wa jall, descends to the lower heaven in a manner befitting His Majesty and He calls to His slaves – as is reported in the Sahihayn – ‘Who will call upon Me so I can answer him? Who will ask Me so I can give him? Who will seek My forgiveness so I can forgive him?’
So ask your Lord, `azza wa jall, to forgive your sins and to honour you with memorisation of His Book.

◊ 18 – Do not prioritise anything over the Qur’an
If you embark on seeking knowledge, start first of all by reviewing the portion of Qur’an which you’ve memorised, then after that, busy yourself with the rest of the sciences so that you do not prioritise the sciences of the Deen (Islam) over the most noble of sciences which is the sciences of the Qur’an.

◊ 19 – Penalise yourself for shortcomings
If you fall short from your memorisation or daily recitation of Qur’an, then penalise yourself with something from the mubahaat (permissible) for example by fasting, night prayer and charity.

◊ 20 – Do not start memorisation except after learning the rules of recitation
Never embark on memorisation of the Qur’an until you have proficiency in recitation and perfection in the rules of tajweed (art of recitation) so that when you do memorise, your memorisation will be free from mistakes.

◊ 21 – Know that hifdh al-Qur’an is the first step to seeking knowledge
A Muslim can never attain knowledge of any science from the sciences of the Shari’ah without Qur’an, for the Qur’an opens up for you the doors to knowledge – indeed it opens up for you the doors to all goodness in this world and the Next.

◊ 22 – Beware of arrogance and deception
Arrogance and deception will at times come upon the heart of the slave when he memorises the Qur’an, and this is the beginning of failure so beware dear brothers and sisters from
arrogance and delusion, and strive to attain the blessing of humbleness for the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) has informed us that ‘Whoever humbles themselves to Allah, then Allah will raise him.’  (Reported by Abu Nu’aym in al-Hilyah – Sahih al-Jami’ (6162))
‘Allamah al-Manawi said, ‘Truly, knowledge is not attained except through humbleness and through listening. Humbleness of a student to his teacher is an honour, humility to him is a mark of respect and lowering of a student to his teacher brings pride and glory.’ And al-Habr – i.e. the Imam – ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Abbas (radhiallahu `anhuma) with his honourable link to the
Messenger (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) took hold of Zaid ibn Thabit’s riding animal and said, ‘Thus we were commanded to treat our scholars.’ So Zaid kissed the hand of Ibn ‘Abbas and said, ‘Thus we were commanded to treat the household of our Prophet.’ Al-Sulaymi said, ‘No-one used to approach Ibn Musayyib to ask him a question until they
sought his permission just as they’d seek the ruler’s permission.
Al-Shafi’i said, ‘I used to turn the pages gently in front of Imam Malik so that he wouldn’t hear it shuffling.’ And Rabee’ (student of Imam al-Shafi’i) said, ‘By Allah, I never attempted to drink water whilst al-Shafi’i was looking.’ (Faydh al-Qadeer by al-Manawi (3/253))

◊ 23 – Preserving wudhu (ablution) with Ihsan
What is meant that Ihsan here is following the guidance of the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) in wudhu.
It is narrated from a companion of the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) that the Messenger of Allah (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) lead the morning prayer and read in it Soorah al-Roum but he hesitated. So when finished, he said ‘The Qur’an becomes obscure to
us because a people from amongst you pray with us but they have not perfected ablution. So whoever attempts to pray with us, let him perfect his ablution.’ (Reported by Ahmad and al-Nasa’i with a good chain of narration – as clarified by al-Arna’out)
Al-Hafidh Ibn Kathir (rahimahullah) said after mentioning this at the end of tafseer Soorah al-Roum: ‘This has a good chain (of narration) and a good matn (text), and it contains an amazing secret and remarkable news – that is, the Messenger (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) felt the lack of proper wudhu of whoever prayed behind him, and this indicates that there is a link between the prayer of the Imam and the prayer of the ma’moom (congregation).’

◊ 24 – Strive to attain a good end
Indeed, whoever dies upon something is only raised upon it, and this should make strive hard to live with the verses of the Qur’an with your heart, tongue and limbs so that you may die upon that and be raised with the people of the Qur’an who are the people of Allah and His Specialties.

◊ 25 – Envision the delights of Paradise and the Punishment of the Hellfire
If you knew that the Qur’an is a cause for your salvation from the punishment of the grave and a cause for your salvation from the punishment of the Hellfire… rather if you knew that on the Day of Judgment you will rise and ascend through the ranks of Paradise with the
Qur’an, then this should urge you to memorise the Qur’an from start to finish so that you may reach the highest levels of Paradise. May Allah make us and you from the people of Qur’an.

Extracted from "Al-Asbaab-Al-Mueena Alal Hifdh" by Sheikh Mahmood Al-Misri (Abu 'Ammar).

CAUSES THAT WILL AID YOU IN MEMORIZING THE BOOK OF ALLAH "AL-QUR'AN" {part 1}

“And We have indeed made the Qur’an easy to
understand and remember, but is there any that
will remember?” [al-Qamar: 17]

◊ 1 – Establishing the Tawheed of Allaah (`azza wa jall)
Whoever establishes the tawheed of Allaah, then He opens for him all doors of goodness – & the greatest of those doors is Hifdh al-Qur’aan. That is because tawheed is the foundation of all principles because of which Allaah created the heavens and the earth, revealed the
Scriptures, sent the Messengers and made people on the Day of Judgement into 2 parties – a party in Paradise and a party in Hellfire.

◊ 2 – Sincerity in Intention
Indeed actions are by intentions… every deed without a good intention is like a bird without a head, so it is upon whoever wants to memorise the Book of Allaah `azza wa jall, to purify their heart from evil and make his intention sincerely for the Lord of the heavens and the earth, so that he may open up for him all the doors to goodness and ease for him the memorisation of the Noble Verses.
The first that will be devoured by the Hellfire on the Day of Judgement Indeed the Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) has informed us of the punishment awaiting the one who did not have sincerity and intend by his hifdh the Face of Allah ta’aala, but rather he wished for riyaa’ (to show off) and sum’ah (to spread his mention among the people). He (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) said – as is in the Sahihayn – “Indeed, the first of the people to be judged on the Day of Judgement is – and he mentioned from amongst them – a man who studied knowledge, taught it and recited Qur’an. He (Allah) will bring him and make him recognise His blessings and say, ‘What have you done with it?’ He will say, ‘I learnt knowledge, taught it and I recited Qur’an for your Sake.’ He (Allah) will say, “You have lied.
Rather you learnt knowledge so it can be said that you’re a scholar and you recited Qur’an so it can be said that you’re a recitor and indeed it was said.’ Then he’ll be ordered away with his face on the ground until he is cast into the Fire.

◊ 3 – Du’aa
Du’aa is from the greatest causes that will aid you in memorisation because as the beloved, the chosen one (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) has said, “Du’aa is worship.” (Reported by Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi – Sahih al-Jami’ (3407))
The Prophet (sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) ordered us to have yaqeen (certainty) that the du’aa will be
answered. He said, “Call unto Allaah in certainty and know that Allaah does not answer the heedless and inattentive heart.”
So increase in du’aa – that Allaah `azza wa jall makes you from the people of Qur’aan, because as it is said, ‘whoever persists knocking at the door, it’s bound to open for him.’ (Reported by al-Tirmidhi and al-Hakim from Abu Huraira – Sahih al-Jami’ (245))

◊ 4 - Seeking Forgiveness
A person forgets all that he has memorised due to his sins and for that reason he should increase in istighfaar (seeking forgiveness). Ibn Mas’ood (radhiallaahu `anhu) said, ‘I reckon a man forgets knowledge that he has learnt due to a sin that he has earned.’ And if a mas’ala (matter) became ambiguous for Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullaah), he would say to his
companions, ‘This is not except due to a sin I have commited’ and he would seek forgiveness and perhaps even pray, then the mas’ala would become clear to him.

◊ 5 - Cleansing of the soul from bad akhlaaq
Learning the Qur’aan is worship of the heart, prayer in secret and drawing closer to Allaah `azza wa jall, and just like the fact that the prayer is not valid except with outward tahaarah (purity) of the body, clothes and place of prayer… the inner acts of worship - of the heart - are not valid except with the purification of the heart from hypocrisy, deception, filth, malice
and envy, enmity and hatred - and those are the impurities of the heart, soul and inner being.
The Noble Qur’aan is like a crop/plantation, it does not grow except in good, fertile soil. As for land that is salty or deprived, then no produce will come forth and if some things do come out, then they will not grow and if they do grow, they will not produce fruit and even if they do produce fruit, it will not be of good quality. So the Qur’aan will not grow or produce fruit except in a good, pure and righteous heart. Due to this, it is incumbant upon the student of Qur’aan that he should be clean and pure from these bad characteristics and adorn himself with good, honourable and generous characteristics like truthfulness, honesty, sincerity, and in a nutshell, all that faith requires.

◊ 6 - That he intends to adorn his heart and clean his soul by his learning
It is incumbent upon the student of Qur’aan that he intends by his learning to adorn his heart, clean his soul, purify his inner being and that he intends to draw closer to Allaah, ascend to be with the Noble Angels and join the rows of the Angels, as Umm al-Mu’mineen, ‘Aisha (radhiallaahu `anhaa) informed us of that when she said, “The Messenger of Allaah
(sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam) said, “Verily the one who recites the Qur’an beautifully, smoothly, and precisely, he will be in the company of the noble and obedient angels.” And we all know that the Angels descended to listen to Usaid ibn Hudhayr (Samat Talib Halaqat al-Qur’an by Ramadhan Muhammad Hasan al-Samdisi (pg. 23-25))

◊ 7 - Dedicating a specific time for Hifdh
From the things that will aid you in the memorisation of Qur’aan is that you dedicate a specific time towards hifdh and you inform your brothers/sisters that you will be busy during this time so that no-one can preoccupy you from your hifdh.

◊ 8 – Have a companion to assist you in continuing the hifdh
It is upon you to choose a righteous companion to help you in memorising the Qur’aan and create an honourable competition in hifdh between you and him until your goals reach a high rank and you start to feel that there is someone competing and preceding you in this good act.

◊ 9 – Do not become over preoccupied with memorisation that it leads you away from recitation. Be weary that memorisation does not keep you busy from actually reciting from the mushaf (Qur’an) because recitation is the fuel for hifdh. Looking into the mushaf confirms the correctness of your hifdh for you and allows you to read the Qur’an with contemplation and
thought until your heart and limbs live with every verse.

◊ 10 – Salah al-Haajah
I advice you to pray 2 units of ‘Salah al-Haajah’ (prayer of need) wherein you ask Allah for aid, precision and sincerity. Oh and how delightful it would be were you to also pray Salah al-Tawbah (prayer of Repentance) so that your sins do not come in between you and memorising the Book of Allah.

◊ 11 – Reading the Tafseer (explanation) of the verses you wish to memorise
From the things which assist you in hifdh is that you read the tafseer (exegesis) of the verses that you want to memorise because understanding its meaning will give concrete to it in the mind.

◊ 12 – Gradual progression in hifdh
You must have gradual progression in hifdh al-Qur’aan, and not to hasten in memorisation until you are able to do so – so do not burden your soul with more than it can take. Rather you must choose a portion which you are able to memorise every day and do not go over that limit.

Extracted from "Al-Asbaab-Al-Mueena Alal Hifdh" by Sheikh Mahmood Al-Misri (Abu 'Ammar).

SURPRISING HEALTH BENEFITS OF MEMORIZING THE QURAN

5 Surprising Health Benefits of Memorizing the Quran

We already know that there are many spiritual benefits and rewards that Allah SWT has promised those who memorize the Quran. These rewards have been related in numerous hadiths, such as:

Narrated Aisha: The Prophet (saw) said, “Such a person as recites the Quran and masters it by heart, will be with the noble righteous scribes (in Heaven). And such a person exerts himself to learn the Quran by heart, and recites it with great difficulty, will have a double reward.” ~ Sahih al-Bukhari

In addition to spiritual benefits and rewards, memorizing the Quran can also bring many other health benefits from mental health to physical health. Here’s a list of five health benefits you can experience, Insha’Allah, on your Quran memorization journey.

#1: Memorizing can help increase your memory space

Memorizing is like mental gymnastics. The more you repeat the thing you want to learn, the stronger the connection between neurons and the brain become. In turn, your brain increases its memory capacity, taking it beyond its previous capacity and duration to remember. Think of it like upgrading your memory chip from 16GB to 128GB just by memorizing the Quran.
So as you memorize the Quran, you’re actually increasing your brain’s capacity to memorize even more!. Regular memorization will also strengthens your memory muscle in general, so maybe next time you won’t forget where you left your keys

#2: Memorizing can make you smarter

A lot of people mistakenly think that memorizing is not ‘real learning’ as they believe learning should encompass more than just what you can remember and regurgitate. While it is true that learning should also include understanding and context, it does not mean that memorizing doesn’t have a place in the learning process.
Neurobiologists believe remembering facts or texts can make your brain more quick and agile. This helps us to build the foundations of higher thought because we more quickly able to recall facts required for complex thought or problem solving.

#3: Building a working memory helps us learn new things and stimulates creativity

Memorizing builds a ‘working memory’ that helps us hold enough information in our mind to make sense of new information coming in. A research by Weber State University found that students with underdeveloped short-term memory struggled to master concepts in math and reading.
A working memory is important for creativity. Dutch researchers found people with a higher working memory capacity could perform more creatively. However, under cognitive load that decreases working memory, they performed worse on a creative insight task.

#4: Memory training can help slow down mental deterioration

Progressive mental deterioration such as Alzheimer’s or disorders of mental processes such as dementia can occur in middle or old. In early stages, memory loss is mild. As memory declines further, it can impact thinking skills with the effects ranging from losing the ability to hold a conversation or respond to the environment.
Memorizing the Quran and regularly revising it can be a form of memory training as a healthy lifelong habit. Researchers from the National Institute on Health and Aging have found that practicing memorization allows the elderly adults to delay typical cognitive decline by seven to 14 years and potentially prevent cognitive diseases such as Alzheimer’s and dementia. Youths who start practicing memory training now can stay sharp in years to come.

#5: Memorizing can reduce stress and improve health

A lack of memory and organization can create a hectic life, whether in your studies, at work or at home. Since memorizing trains your brain to increase your memory capacity, this can help you become better organized in your life and lower stress levels.
As we know, stress is related to many health afflictions such as heart disease, obesity, anxiety and depression. Lowering our stress can thus lead to improving our health. Concurrently, simply lowering your stress levels actually improves your memory further and accelerates the positive benefits with a cascading effect.
Masha’Allah, these are some of the additional benefits that memorizing the Quran can bring. Of course, the ultimate benefit is the reward from Allah SWT in the hereafter.

By Quran Academy