Let's Read Surah Kahf Today (Friday)-- Safeguarding Ourselves With The Quran

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

Allah Almighty says in Surah Al-Kahf,

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 the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wasallam) the Book (the Qur'an), and has not placed therein any crookedness. (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)

[Quran, Al-Kahf 18:1-2]

The Quran is upright and safeguards the best interest of His servants. It will set anybody right. Even in the toughest of time, the Quran 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 Quran as the last Book. The Quran is a complete guidance. Whatever troubles or crisis we are facing -- personal, national, ethical, political, factional, ignorance, morality, shamelessness, etc -- the Quran 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. Quran is committed to rectify the most crooked of nations. So we must have hope that when we restore the relationship with the Quran to people, beginning with ourselves, our children and our families, then there will be good things lie ahead. The Quran 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.

The actual relationship we have with the Quran 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 Quran happens five times a day at least. If somebody's prayer is good, his Quran is good, and if someone is not engaging with the Quran in his prayers, then his relationship with the Quran is entirely superficial.

Isn't it time we take the Qur'an seriously? The hearts of those who claim to have Faith (the believers) should be filled with the grandeur of Allah, in awe of Allah's power, due to the remembrance of Allah. Their hearts should flood with tears because of the Quran. Our hearts should be filled with overwhelming sense of emotion because we haven't connected with the Quran yet.

We should act like the Ummah that we are supposed to be with the Quran.

وَٱتْلُ مَآ أُوحِىَ إِلَيْكَ مِن كِتَابِ رَ‌بِّكَ ۖ لَا مُبَدِّلَ لِكَلِمَـٰتِهِۦ وَلَن تَجِدَ مِن دُونِهِۦ مُلْتَحَدًا ﴿٢٧

And recite, [O Muhammad], what has been revealed to you of the Book of your Lord. There is no changer of His words, and never will you find in other than Him a refuge. (27)

Allah guarantees Quran is easy for people who want to remember Him.

وَلَقَدْ يَسَّرْنَا الْقُرْآنَ لِلذِّكْرِ فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ ﴿١٧

And We have certainly made the Qur'an easy for remembrance, so is there any who will remember? (17) [Qur'an, Al Qamar 54:17]

The dhikr here is a warning. Quran has been made easy so we will be warned properly. Allah uses the word مُّدَّكِرٍ which is easy to say as compared to other forms of Arabic word for remember. It is as if Allah is asking is there anyone out there that will put the least bit of effort (مُّدَّكِرٍ) to try to remember, to try to take the guidance? Is there anyone out there that will put a little bit of work in remembrance-- the effort you are going to make to take an Arabic class, to study the Quran and memorize its vocabulary and try to learn it, to try memorize the ayah of Quran. If we are among those who are doing all that, don't forget why you are doing it? You are doing it so you can take the advice. Remembrance of the Quran is memorization, its learning, its understanding...but at the end it all is ... if we are not taking its advice and guidance personally, then you are missing the point.

May Allah make us people of His remembrance and His select people of the Quran and guide us on the straight path. 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