Why Do Many Muslims Attach as Much Importance to Memorizing the Quran as to Studying Its Meaning?

The Quran had served as the cornerstone of the Islamic society. They spread the message of

The basic tenets of belief in Islam surround the words Allah revealed to the Prophet Muhammad within the holy text the Koran (Qur'an in Arabic). Muslims do not believe that Muhammad was the originator of Islam, but that it was he who brought back the original monotheism of Abraham, Moses, Jesus of Nazareth, and other Prophets from the Christian and Judaic Old Testament. Islam holds that these Prophets were seminal instruments of God's word, but that both the Judaic and Christian traditions have misinterpreted the meaning of the word of God, altered the texts given to man by

Islam is an Arabic word meaning submission and therefore Islam religion is believed to be an Abrahamic religion which believes in submission to the almighty God Allah and Muhammad as the prophet. Quran is the holy book believed to be the guideline of the Muslims who are the followers of the Islamic religion. It is believed that Allah repeatedly revealed to Muhammad verbally through angel Gabriel and recited in the Quran (Hadith of Revelation, Volume 1, Book 1, Number 3). Over time particular aspects arose from the Quranic teachings and Muslims began to have questions about the teachings and translation of The Quran, thus, narrations were developed in Hadiths.

In comparison, the Holy Quran, written after the Old Testament, remains in its original form. Written in Arabic, Quran means “recitation” and contains Islamic teachings believed to bring guidance, direction, and “IS the word of God,” whom they call Allah. It is against Islamic law to change the text in any way because Muslims believe Mohammad, founder of Islam, wrote the verses as revealed to him by the angel Gabriel. Muslims view Mohammad not as the creator of the religion, but as the restorer of the original the Hebrew Bible. Islam teaches Mohammad was not only a religious prophet but also a political and military leader. He was human, but not without sin, so he is not God. Although there have been several language translations, a good follower must read and memorize its teaching in its native Arabic language. For a follower to live by Islam he must completely submit (to God). In looking at its history,

The greatest problem that I find with memorizing scripture is that most people only know the old ROTE memory method. That is hard, boring, and not very effective. While some repetition is certainly necessary, there are very effective methods that can be used to help in the retention and recall of scripture.

He states, “Mi’lama training ideally culminated in an individual who had embodied, and was capable of appropriately reproducing, the interrelated forms of both text and behavior…Two complementary processes are involved: humans are entextualized and texts are physically embodied” (79-80). Through Qur’anic learning, Messick concludes, humans and the Qur’an as text act upon one another, creating a unique way of producing/reproducing knowledge through discursive and physical learning. Similarly, Helen Boyle in her essay “Memorization in Islamic Schools” argues in a much more developed and directly related thesis for the understanding of memorizing the Qur’an as “a process of embodying the divine – the words of God” (480). By attending Qur’anic schools and participating in the daily regimen, “students…possess the words of God within their very beings, where they can physically reproduce it, share, it, and refer to it, ideally over the course of their lifetimes” (491). Moreover, when students learn the Qur’an, they learn with their bodies, lessons that remain within the child’s physical being until death (and even after

Islam, now one of the major religions of the world, was found by a prophet, named Muhammad. The idea of Islam is the believer, called a Muslim, accepts surrender to the will of Allah, who is their God. Allah is viewed as the creator of the world. Islam is much like Christianity, as they are both monotheistic, potentially believing in the same God. Islam’s practices are written in the holy book, called the Qur’an, or Koran in English. Allah revealed the Koran to his messenger, Muhammad, who is considered the last of a series of prophets (Rahmin). Within the Islam religion, Muslims practice the Five Pillars of Islam, which is one of the most important practices. The Five Pillars of Islam are the five obligations that every muslim must satisfy in order to live a good and responsible life according to Islam (Five Pillars of Islam). Carrying out the Five Pillars demonstrates the Muslim is putting their faith first. The first pillar is called “Shahadah,” which focuses on reciting the Muslim profession of faith (Five Pillars of Islam).

The Qur’an is believe to the ultimate source of God by many Muslim believers. It contains 114 suras for the believers as the core practices of the Islamic religion and Muslims throughout the world recites its verses (Chang, Lecture. 1/21/14). They believed the prophet of Allah was Muhammad, who received the words of Allah through Angel Gabriel, and was passed on with the Qur’an during Ramadan. Angel Gabriel one night came to Muhammad “in clear human form” (“Scripture and Tradition in Islam- The Qur’an and Hadith” 104), and gave the messages from Allah to him. From the establishment of the Qur’an, Muslims have viewed the book as the last revelation of their god Allah, and thus are the true words from God for their ways of life and in

It explains the reality of life, the good and evil, the lawful and unlawful, the righteousness and unrighteous, moral teachings and all other aspects of life. The holy Quran also provides detailed information about the life in the hereafter and discusses its importance very effectively. The holy Quran impacts basic teachings about man’s individual and collective life, his rights and duties in society and his economic matters. It also educates man comprehensively in the fields of politics and international affairs and morality. In short, holy Quran is a treasure of information and guidance covering all the aspects of human life. It elaborately explains all the things which a common man must know and there is no other source for him to get the required knowledge (Rahman, Fazlur

The Quran is a holy book sent down by Allah to prophet Muhammad through Jibril. It is a book that provide guidance to human being to be on the right path. Guidance from Allah in the sense of giving reminders, wisdoms, warnings, and moral values to distinguish good and bad things. The Quran also provides a way of life encompass all aspects of life covers political, economy, and social so that human beings are able to live peacefully on this earth. Allah stated in the Quran that He created human beings so that they will worship Him (the oneness of Allah) in every aspects. Each act of human beings is considered as acts of worship if they have intention to act because of Allah alone. Moreover, it is also a book of laws and regulation for mankind to build and organize the society.

The Quran or Koran is the sacred text of Islam, believed to contain the revelations made by Allah to Muhammad. All Muslims study the Quran. The Quran is the final evidence of the Divine origin of the Prophet’s mission (Phipps, 9).

As Muhammad was the prophet of Islam, His words and those of Allah are represented in the Quran. The Quran is a compilation of rules, poetry, beliefs, and meanings of Islam. There are some fifteen basic concepts of the Islam and are explained within the Quran. There is not an exact list of these concepts, but are the basic meanings expressed in the book. Righteousness is explained as taking verses to heart rather than empty readings and routine. It also means expressing the beliefs of the Quran in daily life and towards others. The concept of piety is the more intense following of Muhammad. Muslims are taught to mold themselves in the form of Muhammad. The concept of prophet-hood or appearing to mortal men with the word of Allah is a very important aspect of belief in Islam. It proves a connection between heaven and earth through common men. The creation of life by Allah is a strong

The HBO Documentary, Koran by Heart, directed by Greg Barker, further reiterates the importance of the Quran on the daily lives of Muslims. Though in the past, we have learned that the Quran is the holy text of Islam, making stark comparisons to the holy texts of other Monotheistic religions such as the Bible for the Christians and the Torah for the Jews, but in retrospect, the Quran delves into other matters beyond just religion. Dr. Salem Abdel-Galil, Deputy Minister of Egypt’s Ministry of Religious Affairs, says that the Koran for Muslims is not just a book of worship, but it serves as a guide for life. In other words, the Quran is not just a compilation of religious accounts; rather it holds information to further develop a follower’s interpersonal and communicative skills along with guidance on how to live a tolerant and peaceful life with others.

Although Islam is the second largest religion in the world with a following of 1.8 billion followers, no other religion has faced more scrutiny and hardship in the past decades. This has been caused by media and governments labeling Islam as a whole with their extremist groups like Al Queda and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. I even thought that the principals held by these extremist group were more common in Islam than they are. After studying Islam and gaining more information I came to respect this religion more than any other we studied this semester because of its seriousness and unity. The Quran and Hadith provide concrete details and instructions to follow in the faith of Islam. No texts from any other religion are as upfront with their beliefs than these. Muhammad was and continues to be a powerful and understanding leader that has led it to becoming the world’s fastest growing religion. I enjoyed studying the powerfulness of Muhammad and the direct voice of God in the Quran that is sets Islam apart from Judaism and Christianity.

The quote from the textbook “understanding religion in a global society” gives tremendous significance to faith and rituals of the Islamic culture, both of which are greatly highlighted in the holy book of Quran. Just as without the roots, a tree cannot survive, similarly, without faith, performing highly valuable rituals are useless. The main source where Muslims gain an enormous amount of faith is from reading the holy book of Quran. One must fully believe and understand the messages written in the Quran to have complete faith in it as a Muslim individual. For centuries, the Quran has been preserved through writing and memorization. In fact, today Quran is the only book, which can be fully memorized by millions of people all over the