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The Quran: The
Quran was not only meant to be read, but also to be experienced By: Yahya Abdul Rahman http://www.ymlp.com/pubarchive_show_message_iframe.php?montrealmuslimnews+5324
October 7, 2005: During
the month of Ramadan Muslims all over the world will gather at their local
places of worship to offer a special kind of prayer after the Ishaa prayer
(night prayer) referred to as Taraweeh. Although this prayer is not obligatory,
it was a confirmed practice of the prophet Muhammad. He prayed Taraweeh in
congregation with his companions for many nights, then he stopped doing that
lest it be made obligatory upon the Muslims. Then when the Prophet died and the
revelation came to an end, this concern was no longer an issue, because it
could not be made obligatory after the death of the Prophet. So Umar bin
Khattab gathered the Muslims to pray Taraweeh in congregation. Although it is not a
necessity, many Mosques set a goal of trying to recite the entire Quran during
the month while performing the Taraweeh prayers. In order to achieve this,
however, it is necessary for the one reciting to increase the pace of his
recitation otherwise he will not finish the Quran or the prayer would be exceedingly
long. Sadly, in the rush to
finish the Quran on time, many pronunciation mistakes are made and the
listeners are unable to fully absorb its message which this sacred book is
seeking to convey. Yes, in Islam it is considered a great virtue to read the
Quran and for each letter read there is a reward from God, but it seems Muslims
mechanically do this as fast as they can in order to gain more rewards. In
doing so, however, they are not fully appreciating or understanding its
important message. To be more fully
understood, the Quran must be read at a slow and even pace with each letter
being distinctly pronounced so that the reader and listeners can comprehend its
message and that it reaches the recesses of the heart. Rushing through the
Quran in a seemingly blind exercise and not slowing down and experiencing the
moment is, in my opinion, missing the point of the whole exercise in the first
place. We are merely performing rituals out of habit but not properly seeking
that which the ritual is supposed to do for us. The soul that hungers after God
wants much more than just the blind performance of rituals. These rituals are
not an end in themselves, but a means to an end. In order for the Quran to
be more fully appreciated and understood it is not enough to read its words,
one must also experience this sacred book. I read a saying one time which is so
true: "If you want to talk
to God then offer up a prayer but if you want God to talk to you then read the
Quran." When we come to a full
understanding - and I am not just talking about an intellectual understanding
here- that the Quran is the words of God and that it is His way of talking
directly to us, will we still want to rush through it in a blind exercise or
will we want to slow down and read its sacred words so that we may know what
message is being given to us and implement it in our lives? I would hope that those
leading us in prayer would come to the realization that it would be better to
read only 1/3 of the Quran or even less during Taraweeh prayers, but doing so
in a slow an even method, so that the listeners can absorb its message, instead
of participating in a race against time. In short, the Quran was
not only meant to be read, but also to be experienced. God is speaking through
his sacred book, let https://lists.riseup.net/www/arc/i.n.daily http://groups.yahoo.com/group/internationalnews/ Please visit also: www.apm-ram.org Please see also: http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/ Please read and feel free to forward, print, and
publish. We would like to apologize for any repeated
messages, and any typing or grammatical errors. We act because we believe in this quote:
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