STRIVING TO INSPIRE WRITING COMPETITION: ENTRY 109

19 May STRIVING TO INSPIRE WRITING COMPETITION: ENTRY 109

Qur’aan in my heart

I longed to have the Qur’aan in my heart for as long as I can remember. My love for the Qur’aan was engraved in my heart when I was blessed with the opportunity of going for Umrah in the month of Ramadaan thrice before I was three years old. I would always look forward to the Salaah times, especially Taraweeh, and enjoyed listening to the Qur’aan being recited by the Imams in their unique, melodious tunes. Alhamdulillah, this was my main inspiration to do hifdh.

My first two weeks of life were spent in hospital. According to my doctor, I should not have been able to walk, let alone read the Qur’aan. But Alhamdulillah with the duas of all who loved me, I had reached all my milestones. The doctors told my parents to continue doing what they were doing to help me recover. Reciting the healing words of the Qur’aan is what was granting me cure and protecting me. At the age of three I began learning to read the Qur’aan with an aunt and by the Will of Allah, within a year I was reading the Qur’aan. Although I started Madrassah when I was so young, learning was easy, as I was comfortable with my teacher and because unlike other children my age, I was not going to pre-school. My full attention was devoted to the Qur’aan.

Growing up as a child, the only thing that I listened to was the recitation of the Qur’aan. Alhamdulillah I was blessed that the majority of the time, I was in the environment of the Qur’aan. This encouraged me to memorise the Qur’aan. I commenced my journey of hifdh when I was four and a half years old. Today, at thirteen, I have memorised twenty-two Juz, Alhamdulillah. During my journey with hifdh, there are many times when I cannot learn my sabaq, no matter how hard I try. There were numerous times when I contemplated stopping my hifdh, but the thought of all the hard work and effort I put in to get this far stops me. The verse of the Qur’aan “We have made the Qur’aan easy to understand and remember, so is there anyone who will take lesson?” (Surah 54 Verse 17) is a great inspiration to me. When I read this verse, especially if I am experiencing difficulty in memorising, I know that Allah is asking this question directly to me. If HE is telling me that the Qur’aan is simple, how can I then say that it is difficult? I think of the happiness doing hifdh brings to me, my parents and family. I remember the excitement they shared with me when I came home with a few more lines to memorise for the next day. Or when I shared with them my joy of completing another Surah and then a Juz. I often listen to the recitation of a surah in the Qur’aan that I have not yet memorised, by one of my favourite reciters and yearn to have it in my heart.

My eyes fill with tears as memories fill my mind. I can still picture the first day I went to Madrassah and started my hifdh. I think to myself about the joy and enthusiasm I experienced that day. I remember with love and affection the many teachers that touched my life and the special friends that I have made in this beautiful spiritual journey. I realise how fortunate I am to be from among Allah’s chosen one’s to be able to memorise the Qur’aan. I long for the day when I can listen to recitation from the Qur’aan and be able to recall exactly where in the Qur’aan it is and be able to read along. That’s the day my heart will be filled, Insha’Allah!

May Allah preserve His words in my heart till the day of Qiyaamah and may He grant me the ability to recite for Him on the Day of Qiyaamah, such reading that will allow me to reach Jannatul Firdous, Ameen. May Allah bless all those that have shared and will share in my journey of hifdh, in whatever way, with the best of both worlds. I beseech Allah to inspire you to embark on your own journey to have the Qur’aan in YOUR heart, Insha’Allah, Ameen.

I am the eldest of four children and am currently in Grade 8 . I resumed formal madrasah this year after doing my hifdh with my father for a year and a half. I am now attending the Hifdh program at my school. My aspirations in life are to complete my hifdh, understand the Quraan, become a Doctor and a writer, InshaAllah. I hope and pray that InshaAlllah we can all be inspired by the Glorious Quraan. Please remember me in your special duas.
Aaisha Mahmood Vawda