بِسْمِ اللّهِ الرَّحْمـَنِ الرَّحِيمِ (1:1)

How To Study Quran

 Discovering and embracing a particular learning method which increases our capabilities and enhances our ability to obtain a goal which enables us to understand Quran could be as important as implementing the rules and the laws are prescribed in the book of Allah.

It is absolutely so unfortunate that there are believers who will ignore the importance of considering all  the possible meaning of a word in a context and simply apply what comes to their mind at the first glance, even though Allah challenges us to acquire knowledge and wisdom in Arabic language in order to understand Quran in most sufficient manner .
إِنَّا أَنزَلْنَاهُ قُرْآنًا عَرَبِيًّا لَّعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ (12:2)
 12:2 behold, we have bestowed it from on high as a discourse in the Arabic tongue, so that you might encompass it with your reason. 

In Arabic literature there are many words carrying several definitions that only one according to the context can fit the best.
For instance the word GHATALA has many definitions including killing, destroying fighting, cursing, or to study a subject vigorously.

وَاقْتُلُوهُمْ حَيْثُ ثَقِفْتُمُوهُمْ وَأَخْرِجُوهُم مِّنْ حَيْثُ أَخْرَجُوكُمْ وَالْفِتْنَةُ أَشَدُّ مِنَ الْقَتْلِ وَلاَ تُقَاتِلُوهُمْ عِندَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ حَتَّى يُقَاتِلُوكُمْ فِيهِ فَإِن قَاتَلُوكُمْ فَاقْتُلُوهُمْ كَذَلِكَ جَزَاء الْكَافِرِينَ (2:191)
2:191 And slay them wherever you may come upon them, and drive them away from wherever they drove you away - for oppression is even worse than killing.   And fight not against them near the Inviolable House of Worship unless they fight against you there first;   but if they fight against you, slay them: such shall be the recompense of those who deny the truth.

As it is noticed the word GHATALA in a single verse has been translated in two different words such as slaying and fighting.
 
In other verse the same word is used in a completely different definition such as ruining, or corrupting a soul.

وَكَذَلِكَ زَيَّنَ لِكَثِيرٍ مِّنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ قَتْلَ أَوْلاَدِهِمْ شُرَكَآؤُهُمْ لِيُرْدُوهُمْ وَلِيَلْبِسُواْ عَلَيْهِمْ دِينَهُمْ وَلَوْ شَاء اللّهُ مَا فَعَلُوهُ فَذَرْهُمْ وَمَا يَفْتَرُونَ (6:137)
 6:137 And, likewise, their belief in beings or powers that are supposed to have a share in God's divinity makes   [even] the corrupting  of their children seem goodly to many of those who ascribe divinity to aught beside God, thus bringing them to ruin and confusing them in their faith.  Yet, unless God had so willed, they would not be doing all this:   stand, therefore, aloof from them and all their false imagery!

Another example in Quran can be the word RAAY. Most will translate or understand this word simply as ability to see a subject with ones eyes, but there is more than one definition that can be applied to this word.
RAAY is also defined as holding an opinion, considering, thinking, judging, or   perceiving.

  إِذْ قَالَ يُوسُفُ لِأَبِيهِ يَا أَبتِ إِنِّي رَأَيْتُ أَحَدَ عَشَرَ كَوْكَبًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ رَأَيْتُهُمْ لِي سَاجِدِينَ  12:4

12:4 LO!   Thus spoke Joseph unto his father: "O my father! Behold, I saw [in a dream] eleven stars, as well as the sun and the moon: I saw them prostrate themselves before me!"

Obviously in this verse seeing a dream appears to be appropriate translation.
Yet In other verse such as:
قُلْ أَرَأَيْتُمْ إِنْ أَخَذَ اللّهُ سَمْعَكُمْ وَأَبْصَارَكُمْ وَخَتَمَ عَلَى قُلُوبِكُم مَّنْ إِلَـهٌ غَيْرُ اللّهِ يَأْتِيكُم بِهِ انظُرْ كَيْفَ نُصَرِّفُ الآيَاتِ ثُمَّ هُمْ يَصْدِفُونَ (6:46)
6:46 Say: "What do you think? If God should take away your hearing and your sight and seal your hearts - what deity but God is there that could bring it all back to you?" Behold how many facets we give to our messages-and yet they turn away in disdain!

The word رَأَيْتُ is best to be translated as thinking or considering.

 
Therefore the first provision one should make is to be aware of all the possibilities that one word might carry,   contemplating in verses and it’s meaning requires a very high degree of priority, and only is possible by being aware of the big picture and make sure that our choice of a certain definition will not put us in contradiction with the rest of the text.
أَفَلَا يَتَدَبَّرُونَ الْقُرْآنَ أَمْ عَلَى قُلُوبٍ أَقْفَالُهَا (47:24)
    47:24 Will they not, then, ponder over this Qur’an? - or are there locks upon their hearts?

Those who are dogmatic and close minded in regard to exploring, and grasping the depth of the verses of Quran are refer to as those who have a lock on their heart

The truth is that all of the explanations and examples given above could be easily understood if we only reflect on the key verses in Quran. Why is it that reciting Quran especially with the absolutely proper accent and in a beautiful voice is more important than actually pondering upon its meaning? Isn’t being short sighted a sing of having a lock on our hearts?

الَّذِينَ يَسْتَمِعُونَ الْقَوْلَ فَيَتَّبِعُونَ أَحْسَنَهُ أُوْلَئِكَ الَّذِينَ هَدَاهُمُ اللَّهُ وَأُوْلَئِكَ هُمْ أُوْلُوا الْأَلْبَابِ (39:18)

39:18 who listen to the word, and follow the best of it:   [for] it is they whom God has graced with His guidance, and it is they who are [truly] endowed with insight!

 Allah is considering those of us who listen to his word, ponder upon it and chose and follow the best possible meaning of it, the guided ones, and the ones who are able to open the doors with their knowledge.

The word Quran from the root word Qara’a means to study, and to teach.  it is so different from just reciting it without considering its meaning, the name of the book alone is a great indication that   this book should be treated as a reference book, and is not destined to be just placed in some book shelves, written in most beautiful hand writings, or to be used as a décor in houses or spiritual ceremonies.

By opening the Quran and reading a few pages of it any one realizes that subjects and stories   are scattered all over the book ,  in most cases they are not organized like any other book that we  normally read. For example the creation of man, description of the day of resurrection, the laws of marriage or divorce the treatment of our friends and foes, the story of mosses and Nova will only be understood if we study Quran with awareness and patience. Except the story oh Yousof we actually have to arrange all the related materials ourselves to reach an overall conclusion.

   
The book of Allah is amazingly similar to our daily life. Once we wake up in the morning to face our everyday responsibilities, not every task we encounter is organized in order of importance, our need, or size.  as a human being we are able to fix our breakfast while we are thinking about how to solve the first problem at work place and maybe even make arrangement for lunch .While we drive to work we make a phone call to our mother and also may consider a surprise party for our children birthday party, not to mention any unexpected event which we have to deal with at any given point of the day.
A successful day ends with accomplishment of all the tasks we set our mind on for that particular day.
The degree of our success is not measured by how organized our daily tasks were but it is measured by how we are able to juggle and make connection and sense of many things at the same time, and how   intelligently we have been able to deal with many of them at the same time and yet produce a perfect day.

 
 
  
  قُمِ اللَّيْلَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا (73:2)
 نِصْفَهُ أَوِ انقُصْ مِنْهُ قَلِيلًا (73:3)
 أَوْ زِدْ عَلَيْهِ وَرَتِّلِ الْقُرْآنَ تَرْتِيلًا (73:4)
إِنَّا سَنُلْقِي عَلَيْكَ قَوْلًا ثَقِيلًا (73:5)
 73:2 Keep awake [in prayer] at night, all but a small part
73:3 of one-half thereof   - or make it a little less than that,
73:4 or add to it [at will]; and [during that time] recite the Qur’an calmly and distinctly, with thy mind attuned to its meaning.   
73:5 Behold, We shall bestow upon thee a weighty message –
 
Above verses ask us to dedicate apart of night to our study of the book of Allah and match and organize the related verses in order to create a larger picture of any subject we are interested in. BY doing so Allah promises to make us understand his message.

The word RATALA is defined as: well ordered, articulate slowly. Arrange by similarities.

 لَا تُحَرِّكْ بِهِ لِسَانَكَ لِتَعْجَلَ بِهِ (75:16)
 إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا جَمْعَهُ وَقُرْآنَهُ (75:17)
 فَإِذَا قَرَأْنَاهُ فَاتَّبِعْ قُرْآنَهُ (75:18)
 ثُمَّ إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا بَيَانَهُ (75:19)
 كَلَّا بَلْ تُحِبُّونَ الْعَاجِلَةَ (75:20)
 75:16 MOVE NOT thy tongue in haste, [repeating the words of the revelation:]   
75:17 for, behold, it is for Us to gather it [in thy heart,] and to cause it to be read [as it ought to be read].   
75:18 Thus, when We recite it, follow thou its wording [with all thy mind]:   
75:19 and then, behold, it will be for Us to make its meaning clear.   
75:20 NAY, but [most of] you love this fleeting life,

We are ordered to be patient and study Quran and follow its instruction. As we often study any scientific books such as physics, or chemistry, we apply and test the rules of these books in laboratories to witness the actual effect of it. In many cases it is not possible to understand the facts unless we put our knowledge to test and observe the outcome in practice.
Above verses in Quran clearly states and promises to those who study and implement its instruction in their daily life to receive guidance from Allah in order to attain satisfaction.

One should not reciting Quran in haste an advantage, as it is customary among many Moslems to recite Quran cover to cover in the holy month of Ramadan, this would only cause the reader to lose fuscous and be more concern by the  time and speed and not by the message it contains.

 فَتَعَالَى اللَّهُ الْمَلِكُ الْحَقُّ وَلَا تَعْجَلْ بِالْقُرْآنِ مِن قَبْلِ أَن يُقْضَى إِلَيْكَ وَحْيُهُ وَقُل رَّبِّ زِدْنِي عِلْمًا (20:114)
 
20:114 [Know,] then, [that) God is sublimely exalted. the Ultimate Sovereign, the Ultimate Truth   and [knowing this,] do not approach the Qur'an in haste,   ere it has been inspired unto thee in full, but [always) say: "O my Sustainer, cause me to grow in knowledge!   

Allah is fully aware of human’s life. He wants us to work and prosper, spend time with our families and make plan for our future; he also knows that there are times that one is ill and unable to fulfill his/her duties as a member of a society. He only ask us to study Quran as much as it is easy for us, and pay maximum attention to be aware of him in order to establish a safe and safe and sound society .  

 إِنَّ رَبَّكَ يَعْلَمُ أَنَّكَ تَقُومُ أَدْنَى مِن ثُلُثَيِ اللَّيْلِ وَنِصْفَهُ وَثُلُثَهُ وَطَائِفَةٌ مِّنَ الَّذِينَ مَعَكَ وَاللَّهُ يُقَدِّرُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ عَلِمَ أَن لَّن تُحْصُوهُ فَتَابَ عَلَيْكُمْ فَاقْرَؤُوا مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ عَلِمَ أَن سَيَكُونُ مِنكُم مَّرْضَى وَآخَرُونَ يَضْرِبُونَ فِي الْأَرْضِ يَبْتَغُونَ مِن فَضْلِ اللَّهِ وَآخَرُونَ يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ فَاقْرَؤُوا مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنْهُ وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكَاةَ وَأَقْرِضُوا اللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًا وَمَا تُقَدِّمُوا لِأَنفُسِكُم مِّنْ خَيْرٍ تَجِدُوهُ عِندَ اللَّهِ هُوَ خَيْرًا وَأَعْظَمَ أَجْرًا وَاسْتَغْفِرُوا اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ (73:20)
73:20 BEHOLD, [O Prophet,] thy Sustainer knows that thou keepest awake [in prayer] nearly two-thirds of the night, or one-half of it, or a third of it, together with some of those who follow thee.   And God who determines the measure of night and day, is aware that you would never grudge it:   and therefore He turns towards you in His grace. Recite, then, as much of the Qur’an as you may do with ease. He knows that in time there will be among you sick people, and others who will go about the land in search of God's bounty, and others who will fight in God’s cause.   Recite, then, [only] as much of it as you may do with ease, and be constant in prayer, and spend in charity,   and [thus] lend unto God a goodly loan: for whatever good deed you may offer up in your own behalf, you shall truly find it with God - yea, better, and richer in reward. And [always] seek God's forgiveness: behold, God is much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace!
Truly the most important part of understanding and learning Quran is to allow Quran itself to teach and define the words, we should search and examine a particular word in entire Quran and discover how many times and in what context a word may have been used.
For instant in order to expand our vocabulary, and horizon of our understanding we can search for the word GHATA’A in Quran

فَلَمَّا سَمِعَتْ بِمَكْرِهِنَّ أَرْسَلَتْ إِلَيْهِنَّ وَأَعْتَدَتْ لَهُنَّ مُتَّكَأً وَآتَتْ كُلَّ وَاحِدَةٍ مِّنْهُنَّ سِكِّينًا وَقَالَتِ اخْرُجْ عَلَيْهِنَّ فَلَمَّا رَأَيْنَهُ أَكْبَرْنَهُ وَقَطَّعْنَ أَيْدِيَهُنَّ وَقُلْنَ حَاشَ لِلّهِ مَا هَـذَا بَشَرًا إِنْ هَـذَا إِلاَّ مَلَكٌ كَرِيمٌ (12:31)
 
12:31 Thereupon, when she heard of their malicious talk, she sent for them, and prepared for them a sumptuous repast,   and handed each of them a knife and said [to Joseph]: "Come out and show thyself to them!" And when the women saw him, they were greatly amazed at his beauty,   and [so flustered were they that] they cut their hands [with their knives], exclaiming, "God save us! This is no mortal man! This is nought but a noble angel!"

In this verse it is so clear that women actually cut their hands and most likely they were bleeding, since the word knife in mentioned in this verse this assumption seems to be fair.
Examining another verse containing the same word provesto us that not every time the word GHATA’A in mentioned it definitely means the physical aspect of cutting to the point of bleeding.

 
الَّذِينَ يَنقُضُونَ عَهْدَ اللَّهِ مِن بَعْدِ مِيثَاقِهِ وَيَقْطَعُونَ مَا أَمَرَ اللَّهُ بِهِ أَن يُوصَلَ وَيُفْسِدُونَ فِي الأَرْضِ أُولَـئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ (2:27)
2:27 who break their bond with God after it has been established [in their nature], and discord themselves from God has bidden to be joined, and spread corruption on earth: these it is that shall be the losers. 
 
 
 
Obviously the same word has been used but there in no knife or bleeding involved and it simply means to discord and create a distance between two different entities.
 
We also should consider all of the verses of Quran in order to reach any conclusion.
 We should practice what we read to realize the effect of Qumran’s instruction.

And at last and not least we should never forget to ask his help to receive the true guidance.

إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ (1:5)
اهدِنَــــا الصِّرَاطَ المُستَقِيمَ (1:6)
  صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنعَمتَ عَلَيهِمْ غَيرِ المَغضُوبِ عَلَيهِمْ وَلاَ الضَّالِّينَ (1:7)
 1:5 Thee alone do we worship; and unto Thee alone do we turn for aid.
1:6 Guide us the straight way.
1:7 The way of those upon whom Thou hast bestowed Thy blessings,   not of those who have been condemned [by Thee], nor of those who go astray!

Peace.

A.L.M.ORG