The Qur‘ān is the eternal book of guidance. It is a light which illuminates the path of truth amidst the darknesses of falsehood. The Qur‘ān contains legal rulings for a human to live on Allah’s earth, as His subservient slaves. It is a book of blessings and eternal wisdom; a warner and a giver of good news. It is a cure for every disease – be it spiritual or physical.
The Qur‘ān was the manual that the Prophet ﷺ used to raise and nurture the best of generations — a generation characterised by unwavering imān, a deep love for Allah and His Messenger ﷺ and the pursuit of iḥsān. The Qur’ān transformed their hearts, minds, characters and their entire lives.
This did not happen overnight. In fact, the Qur‘ān was revealed over a period of 23 years to allow the companions to understand, internalise and shape their character according to it. Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Sulamī said: “Those who used to teach us the Qur‘ān — such as ʿUthmān b. ʿAffān and ʿAbdullah b. Masʿūd (raḍiya Allahu ʿanhum) etc — told us that when they learned ten verses from the Prophet ﷺ, they would not move on from them until they had learned the knowledge and actions contained within them.”
They said: “So we learned the Qur‘ān, knowledge, and action all together.”
Is Memorisation Enough?
Sometimes, we only focus on making our children memorise the Qur‘ān or perfect their tajwīd, but we neglect to inspire and teach them the message and the meanings of the Qur‘ān. Al-Ḥasan al-Baṣrī (raḥimahullāh) said, “Certainly, slaves and children recite the Qur‘ān and they have no knowledge of its meaning. They memorised its letters but neglected its commands, to the extent that one of them will say, “By Allah, I have recited the entire Qur‘ān without missing out on any letter.” By Allah, he has missed out on all of it! For there is no effect of the Qur‘ān on his character and actions. By Allah, it is not about memorising its letters, and then neglecting its commands!”
The number of companions who memorised the Qur‘ān was not high in number, yet they all lived and breathed the Qur‘ān. Their primary concern was to put into practice what they had learned. ʿAbdullāh b. Masʿūd (raḍiya Allahu ʿanhu) said, “Memorising the words of the Qur‘ān is difficult for us, but acting upon it is easy for us. As for those who come after us, memorising the Qur‘ān will be easy for them, but acting upon it will be difficult for them.”