HD 5: De Nile is Not Just a River in Egypt

 

Bismillah walhamdulillah

In Psychology, they teach you about defense mechanisms. I believe Freud is the one that came up with them, and for those who don’t know, Freud does not have a wonderful reputation in the field of psychology. His theories mostly reflect his own abnormalities, in short.

But these defense mechanisms have become commonplace and we hear about them a lot, we just don’t hear about them by name. The one I am going to mention, I believe it is termed as Denial, but I don’t like the definition given online, so I’ll try to let my example suffice as an explanation.

We know that the key to memorizing the Qur’an is not memorizing, it’s reviewing. Anyone can sit down and memorize a page, and then the next day memorize another page, and so on. The more challenging part is reviewing and retaining what you previously memorized. It is a really wonderful feeling to be able to know a Surah so well that you can recite it in your Salah with confidence.

However, there are certain parts (ayaat, pages, surahs) that we find to be difficult for us. That doesn’t mean they’re difficult (because remember, the Qur’an is easy), they just happened to be a little more challenging for us than other parts. The way a rational person would react to this is to just review that part more times, until it is solidified.

But what is more likely to happen is that the person begins to subconsciously avoid the issue. The issue is that they haven’t solidified that portion that they memorized. The way they avoid it is simply that they fail to review it. And they do this over and over again, day after day, until it becomes like they never even memorized it.

Recognize this trap and don’t fall for it. If there is a page that is difficult for you, keep reviewing it. Recite it 20 more times, then 20 more times.

If you find yourself avoiding it, rush to the mushaf right away and start reviewing the page. The longer you wait, the more difficult it will become.

Helpful Tip: If it takes you a really long time to review what you’ve memorized, that simply means that you have not memorized it well.