Making Choices Worthy of Making -- It Begins With the Quran

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

Assalaamu alaykum

Allah refers to your dealings with Him as tijara (trade). It is a trade that never suffer a loss. Both our material relationships and also our human relationships are based on profit and loss (success and failure). When you enter into contract with someone, it may work and it may not work.

However, this is not the nature of our investment with Allah. The investment with Allah, when we engage in any act of turning to Allah, not only is it repaid in full, but the least it is magnified is ten-fold, to many times that. The extra is from His Bounty and the greatest of that increase is an unimaginable joy of beholding the absolutely beautiful, the absolutely majestic. So, the internal return on investment is waiting. The question is, do we embrace that investment? So, every choice we are making for the next life is a choice worthy of making. What does it begin with? It begins with the Quran--those who recite the Book of Allah.

إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَتْلُونَ كِتَـٰبَ ٱللَّهِ وَأَقَامُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَو‌ٰةَ وَأَنفَقُوا۟ مِمَّا رَزَقْنَـٰهُمْ سِرًّا وَعَلَانِيَةً يَرْجُونَ تِجَـٰرَةً لَّن تَبُورَ ﴿٢٩﴾ لِيُوَفِّيَهُمْ أُجُورَهُمْ وَيَزِيدَهُم مِّن فَضْلِهِۦٓ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ غَفُورٌ شَكُورٌ ﴿٣٠﴾

Indeed, those who recite the Book of Allah and establish prayer and spend [in His cause] out of what We have provided them, secretly and publicly, [can] expect a profit that will never perish - (29) That He may give them in full their rewards and increase for them of His bounty. Indeed, He is Forgiving and Appreciative. (30) [Quran, Fatir 35:29-30]

The word for recitation (tilawah) is an amazing word because as the scholars explained tilawah is one thing to follow another. When you recite, you recite one verse after another. As described in the Quran,

ٱلَّذِينَ ءَاتَيْنَـٰهُمُ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ يَتْلُونَهُۥ حَقَّ تِلَاوَتِهِۦٓ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِۦ ۗ وَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِهِۦ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْخَـٰسِرُونَ ﴿١٢١

Those to whom We have given the Book recite it with its true recital. They [are the ones who] believe in it. And whoever disbelieves in it - it is they who are the losers. (121) [Quran, Al-Baqarah 2:121]

Reciting the Quran as it deserves to be recited (with its true recital) entails that action follows your recitation. You recite the words of the Quran and Quranic conduct follows. You recite the words of the Quran and the Quranic character follows. You recite the words of the Quran and Quranic virtue follows. You recite the words of the Quran and Quranic state of being present with Allah follows. This is the sense of tilawah--for one thing to follow another, which is why the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam said that it will be said to the person of Quran, recite and rise, because your rank with Allah will be in accordance with the last verse you recited. The recitation that is called upon is the recitation that is followed by action, by transformation, by living it.

Then Allah says, He is the All Forgiving, Most Appreciative. In our human relationships, people are not forgiving. You made one or 2 mistakes, they will remember for the rest of their lives. Even if you did 200 good things, the 2 bad things will be a blemish with you. But with Allah is encompassing forgiving. So, this is a call to seek Allah's forgiveness. And Allah is Shakur. He is Most Appreciative. Even the least you do, Allah recognizes it, appreciates it and rewards it generously. When it comes to the Quran, this change that is a means to forgiveness, begins with beginning to recite the Quran.

So make tilawah of Quran--that thoughtful, purposeful recitation of the Quran a part of your daily life.

May Allah grant us the Quranic recitation of the People of Allah. Ameen.

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

And Allah knows best and is Most Wise, and He alone grants success, and to Him is the final return of all.

Wassalaam