Bismillah
As salaamu alaikum,
Here we go. The Challenge has begun. It is March 1st 2010. InshaAllah on May 1st it will officially end. I'm kinda starting to get nervous. The excitement is too much, but o the joy of knowing the Qur'an. I really have been waiting to do this my whole life. Every time Master Yoda gives me a new page it feels like my birthday. I am however still trying to figure out the exact format I'll use to discuss these ayaat. All suggestions are welcome.
Ali 'Imran is the third Sura (chapter) in the Qur'an. It has 200 ayaat and is 6 pages (i think) passed a juz long. The first 80 ayaat were revealed in response to the Christian delegation form Najran that came to question the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him. So this sura is where the concerns of the Christian and Jews, but Christians in particular are addresses.
[3:1]
Alif. Lām. Mīm.
Just as chapter Al-Baqara, Ali 'Imran begins with the letters whose meaning only Allah knows. These two are the only suras reavealed in Madina that begin with letters, which further emphasizes their sisterhood and reciprocal partnership. All the other suras that begin with letters are Makki, revealed in Makka.
When suras begin with letters, they seems to me to speak to a higher inquisitiveness of the human mind. Throughout our history and experience we have been searching for the answers to untold questions. Spurred on by the echos of past hardship and pain, we launch forward in the hopes that our children won't suffer, however long or short, the ails which pained us. Much is learned and much is forgotten as each generation lives in it's own time and experiences the repercussions of failed and achieved successes.
As we move forward it is the lessons of the past that hold the most value for our faith. The knowledge that lives beyond the confines of minutes and hours, and reaches generations and centuries ahead to show us how to live. Sometimes the knowledge warns us of the inevitable consequences of our actions, and sometimes it gives us the fortitude and strength to build upon the qualities and behaviors that Allah loves. And despite all else it gives us an awareness of the constant truth, "There is nothing to worship except Allah." Only with that knowledge can we make our time on this earth splendidly magnificent.
These letters also strike another parable in that we don't know what they mean and we will never know, difinitively, what they mean. Unless Allah teaches us we do not know. We cannot understand or preserve a Qur'an that is not in our hearts, written upon our souls and our minds, such that our tongues can recite it, our faith can be fortified, our thoughts can be enlightened, our hearts can be soothed and our feet can walk towards Allah.
There are some things that we will never know because that knowledge is not for us. But just because we have limitations doesn't mean that we can't reach the highest levels of human endeavor if we choose to act, and trust in Allah. I have a dream that I want to see before I die. Maybe it's not a dream but an actionable hope. I want my children, and my family, and my people to know the Qur'an. I want us to express it from that same place we emit love, happiness and fear. I want us to rely on it more than a child upon her mother. And I want us live it everyday, freeing our spirits from the taints and confined of corruption.
Salaams,
ReplyDeleteAny suggestion on how to memorize.
Princess Leia
Bismillah,
ReplyDeletewa Alaikum as salaam,
Alhamdulillah! We live in an ipod/bluetooth age. So it's completely normal to go around talking to ourselves with random things in our ears.
What I do to memorize, especially when I'm having a time of it, is to first listen to the particular passage I'm memorizing while I do my daily work. It takes no effort to listen and it allows me to keep my focus on the Qur'an even after the listening ends. And then all I have to do is hit repeat and those couple of ayaat replay as long as I need.
Then I take out a large chunk of the day to sit and read the passage. I read it at least 100 times, breaking it down into 5-10 word sections so I can contemplate each part individually. I read each section 50-100 times then I join it with the section before and read them together 15 times. I do this formula for every 5 lines.
When I complete the page, I read the top half of the page 33 or so times then the bottom half. After that I read the whole page until my brain is fried, if it isn't fried already.
If you're just getting back into the groove listening to it really help to establish that familiarity that allows Qur'an to constantly flow through your mind and heart.
God's mercy, and I hope this helps.
Also there's this great website Master Yoda found called http://www.quranflash.com MashaAllah this is a wonderful site to read at and also there is another site http://www.tanzil.com that you can listen at inshaAllah.
If you need a particular passage perhaps I can upload a podcast with those ayat.
oops tanzil.info
ReplyDeleteAs Salaamu alayikum ....Al-Humdullilah this is a very good idea you have here, may Allah grant you the Tawfeeq in it.I do about the same way Blackseed does I memorize,I also write it all out in arabic once memorized,for me it kinda seals it all together.Now I also sometimes use my Husary's Moalem (Teacher) CD which plays each passage in a slow teachable format also good for those who don't read arabic that well yet.
ReplyDelete