of questions may enable us to act
and may result in developing a better
connection with the Quran.
The story of Musa e and Khidr is
only 22 verses long. Imam Bukhari
has referenced the story in his Sahih
approximately 12 times, deducing a
different point each time. Shaykh al-
Hind stated that over 60 points related
to the propriety of seeking knowledge
can be derived from the story. Maulana
Amin Aurakzai has compiled and
extracted 289 points from the story
and pointed out at the end that more
points can be derived since it is not
possible to encompass the miracles of
the Quran (Irshad al-Haleem ila Adab
al-Ta‘leem) . Our blessed Prophet a
said, “The miracles of the Quran will
never cease” (Tirmidhi; Fada’il ul-
Quran).
No action can be executed except by
the permission and help of Allah.
We must ask the One who gives us
the ability to read the Quran during
Ramadan to help us maintain the
recitation of the Quran after Ramadan
as well. May Allah give us the ability
to recite the Quran daily, accept it,
and make it a way for us to grow in
nearness to Him. May Allah allow us
to make the most of Ramadan and
enable us to practice positive habits
throughout our lives. Ameen.
Sustaining Good Habits After
Ramadan continued from page 13
Question: Isha time is quite late in
the summer. If I pray 20 rak’a tarawih
in the masjid, I would have a hard
time making it for work the next
day. Would it be okay for me to skip
tarawih or to pray only eight rak’a?
Answer: Since praying 20 rak’a of
tarawih is an emphasized Sunnah,
it would not be permitted to miss
the tarawih or reduce the number of
rak‘a without a genuine excuse. If it is
difficult to pray in the masjid due to
the length of the congregational salat
and the short nights, one may hold
a separate congregation at another
location in which the 20 rak‘a tarawih
is completed in a shorter time with
short Suras.
expectations of the final outcome.
They would have failed in every sense
of the word, in every aspect of their
lives. Fortunately for them, their
work and dedication to their field
was only a part of the bigger picture.
The ultimate aim was the pleasure of
and submission to Allah. For us, that
bigger picture often gets blurred and
we may object to why someone would
temporarily cease any work of Deen
for recitation of Qur’an in the blessed
month of Ramadan.
The main point of this article is that
we need to continue this prophetic
legacy of reciting the Qur’an in the
month of Ramadan. It is important
for us to prepare ahead of time, to
examine our work schedules for
Ramadan, and see how much time we
can dedicate to the recitation of the
Qur’an. If we have the flexibility to
shift hours around to open up time
for more recitation, then we must
do so. This is the right of the book
of Allah upon us. We need to set a
goal of how many Qur’an we can
complete in the month of Ramadan
and challenge ourselves to do more,
rather than excuse ourselves because
of our work, jobs, and other mundane
concerns that will continue to devour
our time until we meet death. If we
don’t plant our feet firmly to take out
time for the recitation of Qur’an, we
never will recite much at all. All other
devotions and worship can be worked
into our schedule without negotiating
the principal devotion of reciting the
Qur’an. For those who cannot recite
well, learning recitation of Qur’an and
fumbling through it with diligence
will summon a greater reward,
according to the hadith (Muslim; Fadl
mahir fi al-Qur’an). They should take
this month out to hire a good teacher
to help them go from where they are
to reciting smoothly.
The blessed Prophet a said, “The
Qur’an will be a proof for or against
you” (Muslim: Fadl al-Wudu). Imam
Nawawi says that how much we recite
and live up to will determine whether
it will stand as a proof for or against
us on the Day of Judgment (Sharah
‘ala Sahih Muslim: Fadl al-Wudu).
It will be a proof of our validity as
believers in Allah for only those who
believe in Him and would recite
His Word. In another hadith, the
blessed Prophet a said, “Allah lowers
nations and raises others with this
book” (Muslim; Fadl Man Yaqumu bi
al-Qur’an). I think that if we decide
to take up the prophetic legacy, like
our predecessors did, and devote our
Ramadan to the Qur’an, Allah will
rescue us from our enfeebled state
today and restore us to being the
‘best nation ever raised for mankind’
(3:110). Ameen.
Ramadan and the Qur’an continued
from page 21
30 March - April 2020 | AL-MADINAH