to read of the Qur'an so that he may be among the people of Allah and
the closest to Him? If he stops reading for a while, does that cancel
out this virtue?
-
Praise be to Allah
Ibn Maajah (215) and Ahmad (11870) narrated that Anas ibn Maalik (may
Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Verily Allah has His own people
among mankind." They said: O Messenger of Allah, who are they? He
said: "They are the people of the Qur'an, Allah's own people and those
who are closest to Him." Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani inSaheeh Ibn
Maajah.
Al-Minnaawi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
That is, those who memorise the Qur'an and act in accordance with it
are the people of Allah, who are as close to Allah as a person's
family is to him. They are called thus by way of honouring them, just
as (the Ka'bah) is called the House of Allah.
Al-Hakeem at-Tirmidhi said: This only applies to the reciter whose
heart is free from ailments and his behaviour is free of misconduct.
No one could be one of Allah's own people except one who is cleansed
of sin both outwardly and inwardly, and does acts of obedience to
Allah. Then he will be one of Allah's own people.
End quote fromFayd al-Qadeer(3/87).
It is not sufficient for a person just to recite Qur'an in order to be
one of the people of the Qur'an, unless he also acts in accordance
with it, adheres to its limits and follows its teachings.
Al-Haafiz Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-Aajurri (may Allah have mercy on
him) wrote some good words concerning that which are worth noting. We
shall quote some of his words here. He (may Allah have mercy on him)
said:
For the one whom Allah has enabled to learn the Qur'an and has
favoured him over others who have not learned the Qur'an, and he wants
to be one of the people of the Qur'an, one of Allah's own people and
those who are closest to Him, it is essential for him to make the
Qur'an the cause of joy and comfort for his heart, so that he will
rectify the ailments of his heart through the Qur'an, and he should
follow the teachings of the Qur'an and acquire the noble attitude and
behaviour that will make him stand out from other people who do not
read the Qur'an.
The first thing he should do is be mindful of Allah in private and in
public, by being prudent with regard to how he acquires his food,
drink, clothing and accommodation. He should be aware of the time and
the environment in which he lives, and the extent of corruption among
the people of his time. He should be careful with people lest they
have a negative impact on his religious commitment. He should focus on
his own affairs and strive his utmost to rectify that which is wrong
in his own attitude and behaviour. He should guard his tongue and be
careful in his speech, speaking on the basis of knowledge if he thinks
that speaking will serve a purpose, and remaining silent on the basis
of knowledge if he thinks that remaining silent will serve a purpose.
He should not interfere in that which does not concern him, and he
should be more fearful of his own tongue than of his enemies. He
should laugh little at things at which people laugh, because of the
bad consequences of laughter. He should have a cheerful countenance
when meeting people and speak words of kindness, and he should not
backbite anyone, look down on anyone, revile anyone, rejoice in the
misfortune of anyone, transgress against anyone or envy anyone. For he
has taken the Qur'an and Sunnah, and understanding of Islamic
teachings, as his guide in the acquisition of every good attitude. He
should guard all his physical faculties against doing that which is
forbidden. If words of truth are spoken to him, he should accept them,
whether they come from one who is younger or older than him. He should
seek prominence from Allah, not from other people. He should hate
arrogance and fear lest he fall into it. He should not earn a living
by means of the Qur'an or try to use the Qur'an to meet his needs, and
he should not use it as a means of establishing connections with
people of authority. He should not sit with rich people to recite
Qur'an for them so that they might honour him (with gifts). He should
be content with little, and thus it will suffice him. He should guard
himself against worldly adornments and that which could make him
transgress the limits, following the teachings of the Qur'an and
Sunnah. When he eats, drinks, clothes himself, sleeps, engages in
intimacy with his wife, interacts with his brothers in faith and
visits them, he should do so on the basis of what he has learned of
the teachings of Islam. He should commit himself to honouring his
parents; if they seek his help in doing something that is pleasing to
Allah, he should help them, but if they seek his help in doing
something that is displeasing to Allah, he should not help them. If he
disobeys them with regard to a sinful matter, he should still treat
them with kindness, so that they might give up the intended evil deed
which was not appropriate for them to do. He should uphold the ties of
kinship and dislike severing ties; if someone cuts him off, he should
not cut him off in turn. If anyone disobeys Allah with regard to him,
he should obey Allah with regard to that person. He is gentle and kind
in all his affairs, patient in teaching good; the one who is learning
from him will feel at ease with him and the one who sits with him is
happy to do so, for sitting with him is beneficial. He refers to
knowledge and understanding as a way that guides him to everything
that is good. When he studies the Qur'an, he does so with focus of
mind. His main aim in doing so is to understand what Allah has made
obligatory for him, which is to follow His commands and heed His
prohibitions. His concern is not when will I complete the soorah?
Rather his main aspiration is: when will I realise that Allah is
sufficient for me and I need no one else? When will I be one of the
pious? When will I be one of the doers of good? When will I be one of
those who put their trust in Allah? When will I be one of those who
fear Allah? When will I be one of the patient? When will I be able to
understand the words of Allah? When will I understand what I am
reciting? When will I be able to gain control over my nafs and
restrain its desires? When will I truly strive in Allah's cause? When
will I pay heed to the warnings of the Qur'an? When will I be so
focused on remembrance of Allah that I will not be distracted by
anything else?
Whoever is like this, or is close to it, then he is truly reciting the
Qur'an as it should be recited, paying proper care and attention to
it. The Qur'an will be a witness, an intercessor, a comforter and a
protection for him. Whoever is like that will benefit himself and his
family, and will be a source of goodness for his parents and his
children in this world and the hereafter.
End quote fromAkhlaaq Hamalat al-Qur'an(p. 27).
The one who wants to be included in the words of the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) about the people of the
Qur'an being Allah's own people and those who are closest to Him
should not complete the Qur'an in more than a month.
Al-Bukhaari )1978) narrated from 'Abdullah ibn 'Amr (may Allah be
pleased with him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be
upon him) said: "Read the Qur'an (once) every month." He said: I am
able to do more, and he kept (insisting that he was able to do more in
shorter periods of time until the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him)) said: "[Read it (once)] every three days."
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The correct view in their opinion is seen in the hadith of 'Abdullah
ibn 'Amr, according to which the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him) ended up reducing it to seven days. First of all he
instructed him to read it once every month, then he set the limit
between one month and one week.
It was narrated that he first instructed him to recite it once every
forty days, which would make it at a slow, relaxed pace, and reading
it in three days is for one who wants to strive hard. End quote.
Majmoo' al-Fataawa(13/407-408).
What this means is that it is best to complete the Qur'an between one
week and one month, and if someone is busy, then he has a concession
allowing him to complete it in forty days.
No day should pass without him looking in his Mus-haf and reciting the
words of his Lord. So he should have a daily portion that he always
reads, and the minimum of that should be approximately one juz' of the
Qur'an, although the more he does the better. In addition to that, he
should reflect and act upon what those verses contain of morals and
manners.
Imam Ahmad narrated inaz-Zuhd(p. 128) that 'Uthmaan (may Allah be
pleased with him) said: "I do not like any day or night to pass me by
without me looking in the Book of Allah – referring to reading from
the Mus-haf.
Ibn Katheer (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The scholars disliked a day to pass without the individual looking in
his Mus-haf. End quote.
Shaykh Ibn Jibreen (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Those who read the Qur'an throughout the year are the people of the
Qur'an, who are Allah's own people and the closest to Him.
The Muslim should be concerned with the Qur'an, and be among those who
recite it as it should be recited, regarding as permissible what it
permits and as forbidden what it forbids, acting in accordance with
the verses that are clear in meaning, believing in the verses that are
ambiguous in meaning, pausing and wondering at what it tells of
wondrous things, contemplating the likenesses it gives, learning
lessons from its stories and what it contains, and putting into
practice its teachings, because the Qur'an was revealed to be acted
upon and put into practice, even though recitation in itself is a
righteous deed that brings reward.
Whoever would like to be among those who remember Allah, should be
among those who recite the Book of Allah as it should be recited,
reciting it in the mosque, reciting it in his house, reciting it in
his workplace, never neglecting the Qur'an; he should not recite it
only in the month of Ramadan.
So when you read the Qur'an, strive hard and do your best, such as
completing it in five days, or in three days. It is better for the
individual to have a daily portion that he recites after 'Isha', or
after Fajr, or after 'Asr, and so on. If you do that, you will find
that the Qur'an will have an impact on you, and you will start to love
the words of Allah and find pleasure, sweetness and joy in the Qur'an;
at that point you will never become bored of listening to it or of
reciting it.
These are the attributes and characteristics of the believer who
should be one of the people of the Qur'an, who are Allah's own people
and those who are closest to Him. End quote.
Fataawa ash-Shaykh Ibn Jbreen(59/31-32)
Whoever has a daily portion of Qur'an, then gives it up for a valid
reason such as travelling, sickness and the like, will not be harmed
by that, because of the report narrated by al-Bukhaari (2996) from Abu
Moosa (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: The Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "If a person falls
sick or travels, Allah will decree for him a reward like that of what
he used to do when he was not travelling and was healthy."
The one who wants to be among the people of the Qur'an should not give
up his daily recitation without a valid excuse. The companion of the
Qur'an does not neglect it or let himself be distracted from it.
And Allah knows best.
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