Al-Thikr & the Recitation of the Quran
Summarized from “ Purification of the Soul by Ibn Alqayytm
“Only in the remembrance of Allah will your hearts find peace.” 13:28
Ibn Taimiyyah wrote, "Remembrance of Allah is to the heart what water is to fish. What happens to a fish when it is taken out of water? Remembrance of Allah is sustenance for both the heart and the spirit. If the servant is deprived of it he becomes like a body which has been deprived of food. Remembrance of Allah also drives away Shaytan, suppressing him and breaking him; it is pleasing to swt, dispels worry and anxiety from the heart, appreciates it with delight and joy, fills the heart and face with light, and covers the one who remembers Allah with dignity, gentleness and freshness. It instils love for Allah swt, fear of Him, and relating all matters to Him. It also enhances Allah's remembrance of His servant, for as Allah says: So remember Me - I will remember you. (2:152). Even if this were the only reward for the remembrance of Allah swt, it would be mercy and honor enough, for such a heart is always aware and free from wrong actions. Although remembrance is one of the easiest forms of worship, the mercy and honor that it brings cannot be achieved by any other means. Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet saaw said, “Whoever recites the words, "There is no god but Allah, the One, having no partner with Him. Sovereignty belongs to Him and All praise is due to Him, and He is Powerful over everything, one hundred times every day, there is a reward equal to freeing ten slaves for him, and a hundred good actions are recorded for him, and a hundred wrong actions are removed from his record. That is a safeguard for him against Shaytan on that day until evening, and no one brings anything more excellent than this, except the one who has done more than this (that is, who recites these words more than one hundred times)." Remembrance of Allah is a remedy for hard hearts. A man once told al-Hassan, "O Abu Sa'id, I complain to you about the hardness of my heart." He said, "Soften it with the remembrance of Allah." Makhul said, "Remembrance of Allah is (a sign of) health, while remembrance of people is like a disease." A man once asked Salman, "Which deeds are the best?" He said, "Haven't you read in the Qur’an: “And the remembrance of Allah is greatest.” (29:45) 32
May Allah swt make us among Al-Thakireen and the constant reciters of the Quran … Ameen
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