by Muhammad Alshareef
Ramadan is the month of Quran. Many start the month off with lofty Quran reading and memorization goals, and many hit what they intended DURING Ramadan.
Maintaining consistency after Ramadan, however, is an entirely different story.
The Shaytans are out and about, daily routines start obstructing us once again. And the Quran, “respectfully” returns to our shelves. Sure we feel guilty, but guilt is not the greatest of motivators. You need tried and proven routes to capture your post-Ramadan Quran reading and memorization and review goals. Here are 4 routes to consider:
1. Review the Juz’ (para) that corresponds to the day of the month.
Humans love to be perfectionists. If we missed our reading for today, then we will not be satisfied until we have made it up ADDED TO today’s lesson.
But that doesn’t work when you’ve missed 2-5 days of reading, and you are falling behind. The all or nothing attidude has to be replaced with something else.
Try this: Review the Juz’ (or para, the Quran is divided into 30 Juz/para’s) that corresponds to that day of the month. That way if you miss a day, then skip it. Jump to the Juz’ that corresponds to the day of the month. That way you will always have a fresh mindset and not get stuck in the “I have to be perfect” mode.
2. Reviewing what you have already memorized.
Memorize a selection, and recite it every Salah chance you get for the entire day. I love this route and it’s got to be one of the most effective. Lets say you have 1 Juz’ memorized (equivalent of about 20 pages). Take a page, RE-memorize it, and recite it in your prayers all day long. There are certain Surahs that you know like the back of your hand, like Surat AlFatiha, Qul Huwal Allahu Ahad, for instance. Why do you know them so well? Cause you read them, like, ALL THE TIME. If you use this route I’m talking about here, these new Surahs can become just as strong, in sha Allah.
3. Pray Qiyam with a partner, alternating
This is rather simple, a review technique used by traditional Quran schools. How it works: you get a partner who has similar Quran memorization goals as you do. And you act like an Imam, leading the other person in Sunnah prayer, reading out loud what you have memorized. Your partner corrects you whenever you make a mistake. And once you are done, you switch and your partner then leads that Sunnah prayer.
4. Silent Speed Reading
It has been my experience that if you read silently, you can read much faster. So for example, if you read out loud, it may take you 30 minutes to read a Juz. But if you silent speed read, you can review the same amount of Quran in only 5-7 minutes. This is extremely useful when you need to review memorized material in a “maintenance” type of way.
Whichever route you take, I wish you the joy and happiness of cultivating your understanding and connection to the Quran.
With best wishes to see you succeed at the highest level! – Muhammad Alshareef
Al Muqarraboon 