This is something that the majority of ḥifẓ students, to my knowledge, do not achieve. At least, it's something that I never achieved or even gave any thought to. As a ḥifẓ student, the only thing on your mind is your new memorisation and your revision. It's your everything. You don't appreciate the role and the importance of a regular recitation of the Qur'ān itself.
In this article, I want to highlight the advantage of doing a regular recitation and how you can make a regular complete recitation of the Qur'ān while also memorising the Qur'ān.
Why should you recite the Qur'ān alongside a memorisation routine?
Completing a regular recitation of the Qur'ān is important. There are those that make devotional recitations of certain chapters like Yaseen, Mulk, al-Wāqi'ah, etc. Then there are those that do even more.
Making a regular recitation of the Qur'ān will give you the following benefits:
- You will fulfill a right of the Qur'ān
- You will fulfill a sunnah of the Prophet (ﷺ), his companions, and the righteous who would complete the Qur'ān with regularity. Whether that is every 3 days, 7 days, 30 days, once a year, or twice a year
- You will find more blessings (barakah) in your time
- You will build more familiarity with the words of the Qur'ān
- You will build a memory bank of the Qur'ān through that familiarity
- It can make memorising the Qur'ān easier
How can you recite when you're memorising the Qur'ān?
The first step is to create a minimum viable goal:
- How much do you want to recite on a regular basis?
- How can you recite on a regular basis?
- What would be your completion cycle? (complete every week, month, etc)
This must be realistic and to achieve it, you'll need to create a new habit, and have a clear schedule and routine. This means that you should focus on an amount that you can do consistently. Remember, consistently, doesn't need to mean every day, it can be a select number of days every week. You'll need to assess how much time you have available or how much time you can create towards your goal.
The practice of reciting the Qur'ān can either be separate from your memorisation and revision sessions, or it can be combined.
The different ways to complete a Qur'ān recitation
I will share different ways to finish a complete recitation of the Qur'ān based on the 15-lined mus'haf that has 20 pages per Juz'. For those of you using a 12, 13, or 16-line paged mus'haf, you can apply the same general principles or calculations too.
Remember the figures
Firstly, understand the different figures. In the 15-lined mus’haf (and the Qur'ān), there are around:
- 609 pages (non-‘Uthmānī)
- 604 pages (in the 'Uthmānī)
- 8901 lines (excluding the basmalah, surah name, etc in the non-'Uthmānī)
- 30 ajzā' (parts)
- 114 suwar (chapters)
- 558 rukū' (paragraphs in the non-'Uthmānī)
- 240 quarters (the maqra' in the 'Uthmānī)
- 120 quarters (the rub', nisf, thuluth in the non-'Uthmānī)
- 60 halves (the nisf in the non-'Uthmānī and the ḥizb in the 'Uthmānī)
- 7 divisions (the manzil in the non-'Uthmānī) based on ḥadīth
You can use any of these figures to help create a system of recitation. This means you can divide your recitation by:
- Pages
- Lines
- Parts
- Chapters
- Paragraphs
- Quarters
- Halves
- Divisions
Let's take a look at examples.
Make a routine to complete the Qur'ān by the number of pages
| Amount Daily | Time to complete | Some methods |
|---|---|---|
| A Juz' daily (20 pages) | Every month (30 days) | - Read 4 pages after each Fard (obligatory) prayer - Read 4 pages, 2 before each Fard prayer and 2 more after - Read 5 pages in the morning, 5 pages at noon, 5 pages in the afternoon and 5 pages at night - Read 10 pages in the morning and 10 pages in the evening |
| Half a Juz' daily (10 pages) | Every months (60 days) | - Read 2 pages after each Fard (obligatory) prayer - Read 2 pages, 1 before each Fard prayer and 1 more after - Read half a page in the morning, half a page at noon, half a page in the afternoon and half a page at night - Read 5 pages in the morning and 5 pages in the evening |
| 5 pages daily | Every 4 months | - Read a page after each Fard (obligatory) prayer - Read half page, 1 half before each Fard prayer and 1 half after - Read 2 pages in the morning, 2 in the afternoon, and 1 page in the evening |
There other examples and approaches
- Read one Juz' per week, completing the Qur'ān in 30 weeks, 6 months.
- Read 10 pages per day, completing the Qur'ān in 60 days.
- Read 10 verses per day, completing the Qur'ān in 624 days.
- Read one surah per week, completing the Qur'ān in 22.5 months.
- Reading 1 surah per day to complete a full reading in 114 days (every 3.5 months).
- Read one rukū' per day and complete the entire Qur'ān in 558 days (every 1.5 years).
- Read one rub' (quarter) per day and complete the entire Qur'ān in 120 days (3.9 months).
- Read one rub' (quarter) per day and complete the entire Qur'ān in 240 days (7.8 months).
You could also complete a reading as a group
For example, say you're in a ḥifẓ buddy group, or you're with family, friends or colleagues, you can appoint a number of Juz' per person to recite throughout a certain period. Let's say for every 30 days:
- if there are 5 people, each person takes 6 Juz' to complete the recitation within 30 days
- if there are 10 people, each person takes 3 Juz' to complete the recitation within 30 days
- if there are 15 people, each person takes 2 Juz' to complete the recitation within 30 days
- if there are 30 people, each member takes 1 Juz' to complete the recitation within 30 days
You can alternate Juz' per month, you can also recite the same Juz' but divide it out between the group.
It's important to note that the above are just examples, and the actual amount of time needed to complete a full reading of the Qur'ān will vary depending on individual reading speed and other factors.
If you set aside a specific time each day or week to read a larger portion of the Qur'ān, such as a Juz' or a few pages, you can get a lot done with consistency.
What can you do when it is the month of Ramadān?
I have mentioned some ideas of how to approach your memorisation in Ramadān, revision and recitation of Qur'ān in Ramadān.
How can you do this alongside your Qur'ān memorisation?
You need to choose a method that you know you can follow through with and starting small is key. Whether that is reciting a page a day or a quarter a day.
Here are some approaches to think about:
- reciting a certain number of pages or your specific amount before starting to memorise Qur'ān - you can think of it like a warm-up. This doesn't need to be out loud.
- reciting a certain number of pages or your specific amount before starting to revise Qur'ān
- taking a break from your memorisation or revision and doing some silent recitation of the Qur'ān
- whenever you get distracted and your focus from memorisation is starting to drop, start reciting Qur'ān by looking
- attaching recitation of the Qur'ān to an existing habit like reciting while traveling, while walking, during your morning routine, during your night routine, etc
- listening to the entire Qur'ān on a regular basis.
These are a number of ways to approach a regular recitation of the Qur'ān alongside your memorisation of the Qur'ān. I hope this sparks some ideas in you!
May Allāh grant blessing in our time and actions!
