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Everything you need to know about putting Allah’s holy words to heart
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The Qur’an is Islam's holy book, and it is divided into 114 chapters, which are called surahs in the Arabic language. Each surah is made up of individual verses, named ayahs also in the Arabic language. During prayer, entire surahs are recited from memory with the aim of growing closer to Allah(SWT) and making a connection with him, making your heart pure. In order to memorize an entire surah, you'll need to start by learning the individual ayahs. Begin by obtaining a copy of the Qur’an. Get a version with a translation if you don't speak Arabic. Use audio recordings to ensure that you use the proper pronunciations when reciting the passages aloud. Remember to always wash your hands, arms, head, mouth, nostrils, and feet with clean water to perform ablutions before you handle a Qur’an.
Steps
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Set a schedule for yourself and stick to it by practicing every day. Memorizing an entire surah can be a big task, so it helps to set a reasonable pace and stick to a strict time schedule. Generally, 20 minutes is a reasonable amount of time to dedicate to surah memorization every day.- If you spend 20 minutes a day working on memorizing the Qu’ran, you could memorize the entire book within a year.
- Consider working on a surah first thing in the morning. This way you can work on reciting it during every salah , which is the required daily prayer.
- Try to remember to practice your Qu'ran on your own without a reminder, which will show the love you have for Allah(SWT) and his divine words in his holy book. He might reward you and give you a better chance of admittance into jannah.
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Understand Quran Arabic. Learning Quran Arabic helps you remember Quran.- First learn Arabic Grammar . You can find many books, websites and online videos on Arabic Grammar. Then search online for word to word Quran meaning. Learning Quran Arabic is not a difficult task. About 80% of Quran has 500 repeated words.
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Study English Phonology. English Phonology deals with English pronunciation. English Phonology helps in understanding pronunciation of Arabic. You can find many websites and online videos on English Phonology. -
Learn the ayahs in chronological order and start from the beginning each time. After you memorize an individual ayah, repeat the entire surah up to the point that you've just memorized. Do this after every ayah that you memorize so that you can commit the order to memory at the same time that you're memorizing the individual passages. [1] X Research source- For example, if you were memorizing the first surah in the Qu’ran, you would start by saying “In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful” out loud. Repeat it 5-6 times, then add the second ayah to the first. So it would become “In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds.”
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Practice reciting a surah back to a friend to ensure that you've mastered it. Have a friend or family member open up the Qur’an to the surah you've memorized. Recite it out loud and have them stop you whenever you miss something. This will help you identify any passages you need to focus on. If you can recite it perfectly, you'll know that you've mastered the surah. Do this for 2-3 days after you've memorized it to fully internalize it. [2] X Research sourceTip: If you find yourself struggling, take a break for a day or two. It can be easy to get mixed around if you don’t relax periodically.
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Recite other surahs that you've memorized once every 7 days. If you've memorized other surahs, it can become difficult to keep track of all of them if you don't revisit them on occasion. Once every 7 days, go back to the other surahs that you've memorized to ensure that they stay fixed in your memory. [3] X Research source- You can always recite surahs while you're doing everyday tasks like cleaning, showering, or walking somewhere.
- Repeat a newly-memorized surah whenever you have down time.
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Find a quiet place that's free from distractions for a 20-minute session. You're not going to have much luck memorizing passages if you're sitting in a loud, busy environment. Find a room in your home or mosque where you'll be free from distractions. Avoid rooms with TV or computer screens, and leave your phone in a different room after turning the sound off. [4] X Research source- If you work on memorizing for less than 20 minutes, you're probably not going to remember the passage later on. If you memorize for more than 30 minutes, you can lose track of all the information—20 minutes is the perfect length for a memorization session.
- You can easily memorize a single ayah in one 20-minute session. Practice a new ayah every day to build up to a full surah.
- If you live with others, consider enlisting a friend or family member to memorize passages with you. This way the two of you can keep each other accountable when you're starting out.
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Select an ayah at the start of a surah you like. Select a surah that you identify with and feel a strong emotional connection to. There is nothing wrong with memorizing a single ayah because you love the meaning of the passage. Standard Muslim practice requires knowledge of an entire surah though, so you probably want to learn the whole thing. [5] X Research source- If you're planning on memorizing an entire surah, start with the ayah at the very beginning of the chapter that you plan on memorizing.
- You should start memorizing surah Al-Fatihah since every muslim must know this in order to pray their salat.
Tip: Consider looking towards the end of the Qur'an if this is your first surah. The surahs at the end tend to be shorter than the surahs at the beginning. If you plan on memorizing the entire Qur’an, start at the beginning so that you don’t need to bounce around when reciting it.
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Consider the meaning of an ayah by reading it carefully. Before you start trying to memorize the ayah, read through it carefully in a language you understand to ensure that you understand the meaning of the passage. This will have the added benefit of helping you memorize the surah since you'll be able to rely on the sequence of the passages as opposed to simply memorizing the sounds. [6] X Research source- Even if it weren't helping you memorize, you should know the meaning of the words that you're memorizing. The entire point is to help you preserve and understand the word of Allah(SWT). You can't do that if you don't know what the words mean!
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Obtain a copy of the ayah's pronunciation if you don't speak Arabic. Ayahs are always memorized in the classical Arabic that they were originally written in. This means that you'll need to obtain a recording of the Qur’an if you aren’t a natural Arabic speaker. Find an audio recording online or purchase an audio companion to help you with the pronunciation. [7] X Research source- The online version of the Qur’an at https://www.quranwow.com allows you to listen to the ayahs while reading a translated version. This can be an incredible aid during the memorization process.
- There are plenty of YouTube tutorials that can walk you through the pronunciation techniques.
- The proper recitation techniques and sounds are called tajweed.
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Recite the entire passage out loud to get a sense for the rhythm. Once you have a copy of the Qur’an, a quiet place to work, and an audio guide, start by reading the ayah out loud. Read the individual passage out loud in its entirety. [8] X Research source- Avoid splitting a single ayah into parts. When citing or reciting it, other Muslims will expect you to know the entire ayah as opposed to part of it.
- Focus on the meaning of the words instead of the sounds alone to make memorizing easier. It's much easier to remember a story than a pattern of noises.
- Most ayahs are pretty short and are divided in a way that makes memorization easy.
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Repeat the ayah over and over again until you internalize it. Say a single ayah at least 5 or 6 times while reading it on the page. Then, lower your book or look away from your computer and try to say it out loud from memory. If you get stuck, refer to your Qur'an or audio recording. [9] X Research source- Depending on how good you are at memorizing, this could take you anywhere from 2 to 30 minutes.
- Once you think you memorize the ayah, revise from the beginning of the surah up to the ayah after your recent ayah without the Qur'an to make sure you might not forget it.
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Check your work against the audio recording to ensure you've got it down. Say the ayah out loud one more time. Then, immediately play a recording of the ayah with the proper tajweed. Check your recitation against the audio guide to ensure that your pronunciation, cadence, and tempo are correct. If it is, you can move on to another passage. Keep practicing if you need a little more work. [10] X Research source- Repeat an ayah regularly to make sure that you don't forget it.
- Don't worry if you don't master it on the first attempt. The Arabic pronunciations can be pretty difficult if you grew up speaking a different language.
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Expert Q&A
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QuestionWhat are other acts of worship that I can do in Mecca?Shaykh Mekaeel is an Imam at the Islamic Community of Salinas in Salinas, California. He is the founder of the Voyagers of Knowledge YouTube channel, which creates Islamic educational content. He attended the Islamic University of Madinah and earned a degree from the school of Da'wah and Usuluddeen.There's one similar to the Hajj, but you don't have to be there for as many days. It involves you walking around the Kaaba seven times, praying, then walking between the mountains of Safa and Marwa, then trimming or shaving your hair for the men. For the women, they're only going to trim a very small portion of their hair. That's the optional version of the Hajj, just like there are five daily prayers, and then we have the optional prayers.
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QuestionCan I do something else (getting a degree or anything similar) along with memorizing Quran?This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.wikiHow Staff EditorStaff AnswerIf you memorize the entire Qur'an, you'll be considered a hafiz, which is a cultural designation for a guardian or keeper of the book. It's not a degree, but it is an impressive feat that is widely recognized as a monumental achievement in the Muslim culture.
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QuestionWhat if my friends don't want me to read the Qur'an?This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.wikiHow Staff EditorStaff AnswerIt may be time to get new friends. You don't want to be around people that are prejudiced and don't respect your religious beliefs. Don't let it bother you. Focus on making new friends that will respect you for who you really are.
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Tips
- Memorizing the entire Qur’an will make you a hafiz, or guardian of the holy book. It is considered a monumental achievement and you will be highly respected by other Muslims.Thanks
- Working with a friend is a good way to stay focused. If two of you are working on the same surah, you can talk to one another about difficult pronunciations and work through it as a team.Thanks
- Don't jump around and work on different ayahs in different surahs. This will make it hard to keep track of all of it.Thanks
Tips from our Readers
The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
- Don't give up! I felt discouraged when I was having trouble memorizing, but I pushed through and focused and eventually my work paid off.
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Expert Interview
Thanks for reading our article! If you’d like to learn more about the quran, check out our in-depth interview with Mekaeel Mohsin .
References
- ↑ https://medium.com/how-to-memorise-the-quran/how-i-memorized-the-quran-377c55d2a334
- ↑ https://muslimmatters.org/2009/10/27/13-steps-to-memorize-the-quran-by-yasir-qadhi/
- ↑ https://muslimmatters.org/2009/10/27/13-steps-to-memorize-the-quran-by-yasir-qadhi/
- ↑ https://medium.com/how-to-memorise-the-quran/how-i-memorized-the-quran-377c55d2a334
- ↑ https://medium.com/how-to-memorise-the-quran/how-i-memorized-the-quran-377c55d2a334
- ↑ https://tariqramadan.com/english/how-to-memorize-quran-8-tips-for-busy-people-by-lisa-zahran/
- ↑ https://tariqramadan.com/english/how-to-memorize-quran-8-tips-for-busy-people-by-lisa-zahran/
- ↑ https://tariqramadan.com/english/how-to-memorize-quran-8-tips-for-busy-people-by-lisa-zahran/
- ↑ https://tariqramadan.com/english/how-to-memorize-quran-8-tips-for-busy-people-by-lisa-zahran/
About This Article
Article Summary
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Each surah in the Qur’an is made up of individual verses, called ayahs. During prayer, entire surahs are recited from memory to grow closer to Allah, but you’ll want to start by learning the individual ayahs. Try setting aside 20-minute sessions that are free of distraction. Then, pick a surah or ayah that you especially like or identify with. Read the passage carefully to fully appreciate the meaning, which will also help you memorize it. Since ayahs are always memorized in classical Arabic, get a pronunciation key if you don’t speak the language. Then, recite the passage out loud to get a sense of the rhythm. Repeat the ayah several times while looking at it, then try lowering the page and only glancing at it when needed. To learn how to recite entire surahs, keep reading!
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- "The article is very helpful, as it prescribes a clear method with steps. But in view of the importance of the Quran and the need to memorize it, I suggest that some brothers who are already Huffaz should set up some blogs and websites to aid the memorizers." ..." more
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"The article is very helpful, as it prescribes a clear method with steps. But in view of the importance of the Quran and the need to memorize it, I suggest that some brothers who are already Huffaz should set up some blogs and websites to aid the memorizers."
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