Using Your Mind to Boost Hifz and Motivation

Did you start memorising the Qur'ān with so much positive energy only to find that it had all vanished? You no longer feel that energy. You need to remember that your Hifz journey is one for life. You need to know how to remain focused and keep a strong mind.

One answer is using your imagination.

Using visualisation can help performance, inspire action and motivate you. The more we imagine, the more we see. This imagination raises our love and passion for memorising. After a while, those images will be printed in the memory stores and they will become an integral part of your personality.

You do not imagine yourself in a state of 'success' unless you have memorised. This mental image prompts you to exert more effort in memorising. It will increase your passion and love. For children especially, this is a powerful experience because their imaginations can be so strong.

Give this a try. Close your eyes, and imagine you are holding a delicious mango. Imagine you cut a piece and bring it close to your mouth. Then the mango hits your tongue. Now open your eyes. Did you drool? Did you smell a mango? Did you really imagine and see a mango?

This is the power of visualisation. Top performing athletes use this all the time. Before a performance, they will engage in mental training/rehearsal that builds desire, faith and certainty. When you're memorising the Qur'ān, you're an athlete too. With great intent, self-belief, continuous learning, action and commitment, you make progress. One of the things that an athlete requires is a strong mind.

Sports psychology researchers have been studying the impact of imagery on sports performance for decades. Athletes visualise success, by imagining the full picture of a scene, complete with images of previous best performances, a future they desire, and the experience of performing each move, the athlete is able to fully embody that feeling. They imagine the details and the way they feel in performing the desired outcome.

When it comes to students, researchers find that disadvantaged students benefit from visualising a positive future for themselves to manage challenges and stress. One study found that having a clear picture in mind of what their future will look like can motivate students to keep going despite the challenges of college life. This strategy seems to be particularly effective for female students from relatively low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds.

Using the power of your imagination for your Qur'ān memorisation

There are three times that this should be used.

1. Before memorisation
2. Before sleeping
3. After every salāh

Before memorisation

Before starting your memorisation session have a warm-up session in place to build relaxation and imagination. In this session, you can imagine:

• success and the moment of completion
• you see yourself in joy and those around you
• how life has changed after it
• the day of departing this world while being consulted with his happiness
• you enter the grave with a garden and the Qur'ān is your companion

Before sleeping

Practice deep breathing exercises to relax and then with eyes closed imagine the rewards you are getting and the scenes of the hereafter and beyond.

After each salāh

Especially during the early days of the journey, imagine the precious moments. The point is to imagine things again and again and keep your enthusiasm alive.

Note that, using the imagination in this way isn't a long-term strategy but can be used when needed.

May Allāh grant success.