Let's Read Surah Kahf Today (Friday) -- Renewing Our Commitment to the Book of Allah

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

Allah Almighty says,

ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنزَلَ عَلَىٰ عَبْدِهِ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ وَلَمْ يَجْعَل لَّهُۥ عِوَجَا ۜ ﴿١﴾ قَيِّمًا لِّيُنذِرَ‌ بَأْسًا شَدِيدًا مِّن لَّدُنْهُ وَيُبَشِّرَ‌ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ٱلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ أَنَّ لَهُمْ أَجْرً‌ا حَسَنًا ﴿٢

[All] praise is [due] to Allah, who has sent down upon His Servant the Book and has not made therein any deviance. (1) [He has made it] straight, to warn of severe punishment from Him and to give good tidings to the believers who do righteous deeds that they will have a good reward (2)

[Qur'an, Al-Kahf 18:1-2]

The Qur'an is upright and safeguards the best interest of slaves. It will set anybody right. Even in the toughest of time, the Qur'an can help us stand up straight. It teaches us to stay within limits. It does not put a burden or responsibility upon the slaves of Allah the kind of burden or responsibility that they can't carry.

It will never fall short in the realm of guidance. That's why Allah sent the Qur'an as the last Book. The Qur'an is a complete guidance. Whatever troubles or crisis we are having -- personal, national, ethical, political, factional, ignorance, morality, shamelessness, etc -- the Qur'an has the solution for it.

The world we live in now is not much different than the world before in terms of its crookedness and deviations. Qur'an is committed to rectify the most crooked of nations. So we must have hope that when we restore the relationship with the Qur'an to people, beginning with ourselves, then there will be good things lie ahead. The Qur'an is straight and no matter how much society deviates, it will remain straight. It has the power to take that which is bent and make it straight.

We tend to think that Ramadhan is the month of fasting but Allah introduces it as the month of Qur'an in the only verse of Ramadhan,

شَهْرُ رَمَضَانَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أُنزِلَ فِيهِ ٱلْقُرْءَانُ هُدًى لِّلنَّاسِ وَبَيِّنَـٰتٍ مِّنَ ٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْفُرْقَانِ ۚ فَمَن شَهِدَ مِنكُمُ ٱلشَّهْرَ فَلْيَصُمْهُ ۖ وَمَن كَانَ مَرِيضًا أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ فَعِدَّةٌ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ ۗ يُرِيدُ ٱللَّـهُ بِكُمُ ٱلْيُسْرَ وَلَا يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ ٱلْعُسْرَ وَلِتُكْمِلُوا۟ ٱلْعِدَّةَ وَلِتُكَبِّرُوا۟ ٱللَّـهَ عَلَىٰ مَا هَدَىٰكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ ﴿١٨٥﴾ وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِى عَنِّى فَإِنِّى قَرِيبٌ ۖ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ ٱلدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ۖ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا۟ لِى وَلْيُؤْمِنُوا۟ بِى لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ ﴿١٨٦

The month of Ramadhan [is that] in which was revealed the Qur'an, a guidance for the people and clear proofs of guidance and criterion. So whoever sights [the new moon of] the month, let him fast it; and whoever is ill or on a journey - then an equal number of other days. Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship and [wants] for you to complete the period and to glorify Allah for that [to] which He has guided you; and perhaps you will be grateful. (185) And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me - indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided. (186)

[Qur'an, Al-Baqarah 2:185-186]

These verses were revealed after more than 2/3 of the Qur'an has been revealed. Interesting to note that in this particular verse, Allah is telling us that the Qur'an is guidance for the people and the criterion between right and wrong as if people don't already know this. Why? Because in the month of Ramadhan we are supposed to be reintroduced to the Qur'an almost as though we don't know anything about it. This is the spirit we should enter Ramadhan with -- we refresh our relationship with the Qur'an all anew as if we never had a relationship with it before.

The actual relationship we have with the Qur'an is when we are standing in prayer and reciting it, and when we are standing behind an imam and listening to it being recited. Our relationship with the Qur'an happens five times a day at least. If somebody's prayer is good, his Qur'an is good, and if someone is not engaging with the Qu'ran in his prayers, then his relationship with the Qur'an is entirely superficial.

Make this Ramadhan a starting point to train ourselves to have that actual relationship with the Qur'an. Pick a few surahs, memorize them, know the meanings and tafsir of the surahs and learn the vocabulary also. Make this your family project this Ramadhan. If you have not memorized much Qur'an, start with the oft-recited surahs like Al-Mulk (67), Al-Waqi'ah (56), Al-Kahf (18), Ya-Sin (36), Al-A'la (87). If you can do more, continue with Al-Hadid (57), Al-Jumu'ah (62), Al-Munafiqun (63), Al-Taghabun (64). Recite what you have memorized in your prayers everyday throughout Ramadhan. All this boils down to so we can have a better prayer. Inshaa Allah, this exercise will continue beyond Ramadhan and your prayer will become better and better as you progress in your memorization and understanding of the Qur'an.

May Allah bring us closer to His Book. Our Lord, grant us from Yourself mercy and prepare for us from our affair right guidance. Ameen.

Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wassallam.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam