Reading the Qur'an in Ramadan

The month of Ramadhan is once again with us. It’s a time of reflection and personal development; many of us make sure we take plenty of time out of our schedules to focus on studying the Quran. Muslims also abstain from the use of tobacco and sexual relations when observing Ramadan. Fasting benefits us by improving our devotion, self-control, and compassion for the poor. Allah says:

إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ فِي لَيْلَةِ الْقَدْرِ وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ لَيْلَةُ الْقَدْرِ خَيْرٌ مِّنْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِم مِّن كُلِّ أَمْرٍ سَلَامٌ هِيَ حَتَّىٰ مَطْلَعِ الْفَجْرِ

“Verily, We sent the Quran down during the Night of Decree. What will make you know what is the Night of Decree? The Night of Decree is better than a thousand months. The angels and the Spirit descend therein by permission of their Lord for every matter. Peace is therein until the emergence of dawn.” (Surat al-Qadar 97:1-5)

Many aim to finish the Quran once in the month of Ramadhan, reaping the rewards of recitation. The Quran is an important source of barakah in our lives; to succeed in the Dunya and akhira, we need the blessings of Allah. During the month of Ramadan, Satan finds it more difficult to mislead the Muslims. It becomes easier in this month for Muslims to perform good deeds and to ignore evil suggestions and bad thoughts. Allah says:

هُوَ ٱلَّذِى جَعَلَ لَكُمُ ٱلْلَّيْلَ لِتَسْكُنُواْ فِيهِ وَٱلنَّهَارَ مُبْصِراً إِنَّ فِى ذٰلِكَ لَـآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَسْمَعُونَ

“He is who has appointed for you the night that ye should rest therein and the day giving sight. Surely, therein are signs for folk that heed.” (Surat Yunus 10:67)

The month of Ramadan is a blessed time of the year for Muslims. It is the month in which Muslims indulge in excessive worship and praise Allah Almighty. Besides keeping fast, the other objective of this month is to gain as many blessings and reward from Allah Almighty as possible. One of the acts of worship is Dua (supplication). One important thing of this Holy month is Quran was revealed in Ramadan.

‏إِذَا دَخَلَ شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ فُتِّحَتْ أَبْوَابُ السَّمَاءِ، وَغُلِّقَتْ أَبْوَابُ جَهَنَّمَ، وَسُلْسِلَتِ الشَّيَاطِين‏

“When the month of Ramadan begins, the gates of the heaven are opened and the gates of Hellfire are closed and the devils are chained.” (Saḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 1800)

Our battle in this instance is to maintain a relationship with the Qur’an and continue to build on whatever we have accomplished this Ramadan. Even if it was not as productive as you would have liked, to learn from the mistakes made in Ramadan and kick-start a solid relationship with the Qur’an in the coming months is important. Allah says:

شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ الَّذِي أُنزِلَ فِيهِ الْقُرْآنُ هُدًى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَاتٍ مِّنَ الْهُدَىٰ وَالْفُرْقَانِ ۚ فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنكُمُ الشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ ۖ وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضًا أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ فَعِدَّةٌ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ ۗ يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَ وَلِتُكْمِلُوا الْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُوا اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ مَا هَدَاكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ

“The month of Ramadan in which the Quran was revealed, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. Whoever reaches the month, let him fast during it. Whoever is ill or on a journey, then fast an equal number of other days. Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship, and he intends for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that to which he has guided you, that perhaps you will be grateful.” (Surat al-Baqarah 2:185)

Ramadan is a special time to spend with the Qur’an but that does not mean we should neglect it outside of this month. Try to shift your perception of Ramadan from being a once a year peak performance demonstration, to seeing Ramadan as a glimpse of what you’re capable of doing every day. Think of all that you were able to achieve whilst fasting, and now imagine what you can do outside of Ramadan.

Here are some incredible benefits of fasting in Ramadan:

Ramadan recognize life as a blessing from Him
Ramadan could be a time to cut down on fats
Ramadan help promote chastity and humility
Ramadan practices blood sugar goes down
Ramadan develop learning healthy habits
Ramadan Is by nature a time of sacrifice
Ramadan experiences hunger and thirst
Ramadan feel closer to their Creator
Ramadan practices good manners
Ramadan increased devotion
Ramadan practices good habits
Ramadan practices good speech
Ramadan develop feelings of generosity
Ramadan provides community gatherings
Ramadan provides a more healthy lifestyle
Ramadan provides goodwill toward others
Ramadan provides rigorous discipline in life
Ramadan promotes fat breakdown and weight loss
Ramadan provides tranquillity of the heart and mind
Ramadan promotes a source of guidance to humanity

The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Quran, a guidance for mankind and clear proof for the guidance. The holy month of Ramadan provides us with the opportunity to eliminate unhealthy eating patterns and gives our overburdened digestive systems a much-needed break. The Islamic faith, such as generosity, inspired most of these traditions, just like sharing food and inviting guests over for iftar. Allah says:

The key to really benefiting from the Quran is to check your heart first before you even touch Allah’s book. Ask yourself, honestly, why you are reading it. Is it to just get some information and to let it drift away from you later? Remember that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was described by his wife as a “walking Quran”: in other words, he didn’t just read and recite the Quran, he lived it.

فِيهِ لَيْلَةٌ خَيْرٌ مِنْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ مَنْ حُرِمَ خَيْرَهَا قَدْ حُرِمَ

“Allah has made a night during Ramadan that is better than a thousand months, so whoever is deprived of it is truly deprived.” (Musnad Aḥmad 7108)

Too often, we think we should read the Quran for at least one whole hour. If you aren’t in the habit of reading regularly, this is too much. Start with just five minutes daily. If you took care of step one, Insha Allah (God willing), you will notice that those five minutes will become ten, then half an hour, then an hour, and maybe even more.

Here are some tips to help us to start, develop and maintain a strong relationship with the Holy Quran:

Treat every month as if it’s Ramadan: “And We have sent down to you the Book as clarification for all things and as guidance and mercy and good tidings for the Muslims.” (Qur’an: Chapter 16, Verse 89)
Set your goals: “We have not sent down to you the Qur’an that you be distressed.” (Qur’an: Chapter 20, Verse 2)
Set a time for Qur’an: “Fasting and the Qur’an will intercede for a person on the Day of Resurrection. Fasting will say: O Lord, I kept him from his food and desires during the day; let me intercede for him. And the Qur’an will say: I kept him from sleeping during the night; let me intercede for him. And they will be allowed to intercede.” (Sahih Muslim)
Don’t let Shaytan undermine you: We procrastinate with excuses as to why we cannot regularly recite and ponder over the Qur’an.
Give yourself a reward: “[Whoever recites a letter] from Allah’s Book, then he receives the reward from it, and the reward often the like of it. I do not say that Alif Lam Mim is a letter, but Alif is a letter, Lam is a letter and Mim is a letter.” (Jami’ at-Tirmidhi)
Take time to understand the Qur’an: Allah says that the Qur’an is “a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion.” (Qur’an: Chapter 2, Verse 184)
Recite out loud: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: ‘Make your voices beautiful when you recite Quran.’” Nasa`i)
Implement what you learn: “The character of the Messenger of Allah ṣallallāhu ‘Alayhi wa Sallam (peace and blessings of Allāh be upon him) was the Qur’an.” (Abu Dawud)
Beautify your salah: “He who finds it hard (to recite the Qur’an) will have a double reward.” (Muslim)
Make Dua: A believer who recites the Qur’an is like an orange whose fragrance is sweet and whose taste is sweet; a believer who does not recite the Qur’an is like a date which has no fragrance but has a sweet taste; (Muslim)

Five minutes of reading the Quran in Arabic is good, but you need to understand what you’re reading. Make sure you have a good translation of the Quran in the language you understand best. Always try to read the translation of what you’ve read that day.

“When the month of Ramadan begins, the gates of the heaven are opened and the gates of Hellfire are closed and the devils are chained.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 1800)

The month of Ramadan offers us this unique opportunity to refresh our understanding regarding the teachings bestowed upon us in this book of the Quran and to maintain the discipline we observe in this month of Ramadan throughout the year. The duty of reciting the Quran is not stopping at one time. Ramadan is a gift from Allah (SWT); an opportunity for Muslims to capitalize on and earn His blessings and a way to seek salvation and forgiveness. We should all make the most of it. Let’s all make this Ramadan the best Ramadan yet.

الصَّلَوَاتُ الْخَمْسُ وَالْجُمُعَةُ إِلَى الْجُمُعَةِ وَرَمَضَانُ إِلَى رَمَضَانَ مُكَفِّرَاتٌ مَا بَيْنَهُنَّ مَا اجْتُنِبَتْ الْكَبَائِرُ

“The five prayers, Friday to Friday, and Ramadan to Ramadan will be the expiation for the sins between them, so long as major sins are avoided.” (Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 233)

In a world of information overload, our brains are used to idle easy useless information being the easiest to focus on. But with anything in life, what you get out is what you put in. If you haven’t given the Qur’an importance in your daily life, then how will you get any barakah from it? In the beginning, it may feel like a struggle, and easy to just change the app on your phone and play a game instead. Allah says:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُلُوا مِن طَيِّبَاتِ مَا رَزَقْنَاكُمْ وَاشْكُرُوا لِلَّهِ إِن كُنتُمْ إِيَّاهُ تَعْبُدُونَ

“O you who believe, eat from the wholesome things which We have provided for you and be grateful to Allah if it is Him that you worship.” (Surat al-Baqarah 2:172)

However, it’s in those moments of discomfort that you become stronger and build good habits whilst letting go of negative ones. Ask Allah to guide you when you read the Quran. You aim to sincerely, for the love of Allah, interact with Him by reading, understanding and applying His blessed words. Making Dua to Allah for help and guidance will be your best tool for doing this.