Why Study the Quran?
أعوذ بالله من الشيطان الرجيم
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
Nowadays, there is a lot of trend of reminders. Sometimes we put alarms, sometimes we put reminders on our phones and digital assistants. What is a reminder? A reminder is to remind of something important that has been forgotten. God tells us that this Quran is a reminder for all of us...
Allah ﷻ says in Surah Sad 38:87,
إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ لِّلْعَالَمِينَ
It is but a reminder to the worlds.
In this ayah, Allah ﷻ tells us that this Quran is a reminder
for every human being in this world. Before we came into this world, Allah ﷻ took a pledge from
all of us. He asked us who will we consider our Master, our God, our Rabb. All of us attested that we will worship You as our Master, our God, and our Rabb. Your word will be the most important to us. We will obey You. Every child is born with this knowledge of Allah. Isa AS (Jesus) spoke about this as a child. But all of us are born with this knowledge. However, over a period of time, and depending on the family and the society that we are raised in, our beliefs get the colour of our surroundings. For example, the ones who are raised in a family believing in 3 gods, starts believing in 3 gods. Children in atheist families start disbelieving in god altogether and those in polytheist families start to put their belief in many different gods and idols. No matter where a person is raised and with what beliefs, when even one ayah of the Quran falls on the ears of a person and if Allah ﷻ wants to open the hearts of such a person, then this Quran becomes a reminder for this person. Quran reminds us of our One God - Allah ﷻ , it reminds us of who we are and it reminds us of our mission in life.
Once we develop a connection with the Quran and once we make it an intrinsic part of our hearts, our minds and our lives, then any and every time we hear, read or recite the ayaat (verses) of the Quran, they become a reminder for us.
Allah ﷻ says in Surah Al-Hijr 15:9,
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ
Surely We have revealed the Reminder and We will most
surely be its guardian.
Allah ﷻ says in Surah At-Tawbah 9:122,
فَلَوْلَا نَفَرَ
مِن كُلِّ فِرْقَةٍ مِّنْهُمْ طَائِفَةٌ لِّيَتَفَقَّهُوا فِي الدِّينِ وَلِيُنذِرُوا
قَوْمَهُمْ إِذَا رَجَعُوا إِلَيْهِمْ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَحْذَرُونَ
... For there should separate from every division of them a group
(remaining) to obtain understanding in the religion and warn their people when
they return to them that they might be cautious.
God tells us that a small group should rise from all people
who should try to gain knowledge and understanding of religion. Understanding
in a way that it becomes easy to implement. No matter what our family
commitments, lifestyle, health, age or stage of life, we can put as much time,
energy and effort as possible for us in learning.
Abud-Darda (May Allah be pleased with him) reported that The
Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "He who follows a path in quest of knowledge,
Allah will make the path of Jannah easy to him. The angels lower their wings
over the seeker of knowledge, being pleased with what he does. The inhabitants
of the heavens and the earth and even the fish in the depth of the oceans seek
forgiveness for him. The superiority of the learned man over the devout
worshipper is like that of the full moon to the rest of the stars (i.e., in
brightness). The learned are the heirs of the Prophets who bequeath neither
dinar nor dirham but only that of knowledge; and he who acquires it, has in
fact acquired an abundant portion."
(Reference: Riyadh as-Salihin, The Book of Knowledge, Book
13, Hadith 1388)
We spend so many years learning the arts and sciences of this
world in schools, colleges and universities, but that education doesn’t guarantee
us any success. It does not give us benefits unless we complete this study.
Doing three semesters out of four won’t allow us to get any educational
qualification no matter how hard we worked in the first three semesters. Moreover,
even if a person finishes the study, he or she might pass away before enjoying
the fruits of the past 15-20 years of their study. Assurance that this book
gives us is unique. The study of the Quran teaches us how to live in this world,
and it is also beneficial for the Hereafter. We start getting rewards form the moment
we make our intention and with every step we take.
Alhamdulillah (praise and thanks to God) that He made us
human beings and He made us believers and He gave us the ability to understand and
communicate with speech. Just like a child is born with the understanding of
feeding to keep alive, we could have been born with the knowledge of Quran in
our hearts and minds. But Allah ﷻ has left this opportunity to us to pursue so
that we are able to get the reward of this endeavor. That said, in His extreme
mercy God has also made a promise that He will make this endeavor easy for us
as long as we make a genuine effort. Allah ﷻ says in Surah Al-Qamar 54:32,
وَلَقَدْ يَسَّرْنَا الْقُرْآنَ لِلذِّكْرِ فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ
And We have certainly made the Qur'an easy for
remembrance, so is there any who will remember?
May Allah ﷻ protect us from riya (show-off) and may be open
to us the treasures and rehmat in this book. Ameen!