Assalamualaikum,
Peace be with you,
Ramadan Mubarak.
Welcome to the University of Sufism's reading of Rosina Fawzia Alrawi's book,
The Call of Allah,
A Companion to the Holy Month of Ramadan.
Today I am sharing day number 27.
The Mystery of the Quran.
Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim,
In the name of the One,
The Most Merciful,
The Compassionate.
Quran 2,
Ayat 185.
It was the month of Ramadan in which the Quran was first bestowed from on high as a guidance unto man and a self-evident proof of that guidance,
And as a standard by which to discern the true from the false.
Ramadan is the month when the Holy Quran was born.
The Messenger of Allah,
Peace be upon him,
Said,
Whoever recites only one letter from Allah's book is credited with a good deed,
And a good deed is rated as ten good deeds.
I do not say that alif,
Laam,
Meem is a letter,
But alif is a letter,
Laam is a letter,
And meem is a letter.
Like the world,
The Quran is at the same time one and manifold.
The diversity of the world scatters and divides.
The diversity of the Quran gathers and leads to unity.
The Quran is the first sound heard by the newborn baby when the Adhan is sung into his right and left ears.
The Quran is thus the first call which welcomes a Muslim in this world,
And the last one given to a dying person on their way back to Allah.
The Quran is a book in which Allah shows us his love,
And we are the ones who must unveil this love.
The Quran shows us the path of those who found their way to Allah,
And those who lost it.
The Quran wants to bring together that which has been parted,
And to bring back to life that which has been forgotten.
When we examine the Quran,
We realize that ambiguity can be defined as its encompassing principle,
And the Arabic language is a master of ambiguity and diversity.
The Quran is Allah's universal letter to us human beings,
Revealed to us out of love through the beloved,
Peace be upon him,
In order to guide us on this earth,
And to set us out on our path back home,
Laying eyes on his countenance,
On our way to paradise.
The Quran moves in waves which stretch out,
Without the events following any logical sequence or the stories any chronological order.
The Quran is filled with stories upon stories,
Timeless pearls of wisdom,
Admonitions and memories,
Speeches and prayers,
Warnings and hopes.
Lost human beings and upright ones,
Prophets and believers,
Battles and betrayals,
Miracles and rites,
Duties and dreams,
Heavenly bodies and animals,
Deceitfulness and justice.
The book of Allah shows us our all-embracing relationship with him and his all-pervading omnipotence.
The absolute divine unity reveals itself in all those facets.
The Quran shows us the constant change and the impermanence of this world,
And the eternity of future life.
Time stops when we read or hear the Quran,
And our heartbeat is touched by the presence of God.
The Quran shows us Allah's mercy and forgiveness,
But also the consequences of our negative deeds and deliberate denial of truth.
For Allah is al-haqq,
The righteous,
The real,
The all-encompassing reality.
Quran 41 ayat 53 In time we shall make them fully understand our messages through what they perceive,
In the utmost horizons of the universe,
And within themselves,
So that it will become clear unto them that this revelation is indeed the truth.
The Quran is a deeply powerful revelation,
Sent as a mercy from heaven to this earth.
Only God's grace and compassion can open our hearts to a revelation which exceeds the human spirit.
Quran 17 ayat 82 Thus,
Step by step,
We bestow from on high,
Through this Quran,
All that gives health to the spirit,
And is a grace unto those who believe in us.
The Quran descended with a light.
In order to experience God's word,
To touch that light,
And be touched by it,
We have to touch our own spiritual light.
Quran 56 ayat 77-80 Behold,
It is a truly noble discourse,
Conveyed unto man in a well-guarded,
Divine writ,
Which none but the pure of heart can touch,
A revelation from the Sustainer of all the worlds.
It is the light of the Prophet Muhammad,
Peace be upon him,
Which makes it possible for humankind to have access to this divine revelation.
The Quran says,
Now there has come unto you from God a light and a clear divine writ.
Quran 5 ayat 15 I am a servant and a grain of sand on the path of the Prophet Muhammad.
Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi The Quran has remained unchanged for over 1400 years,
Yet these very same words affect us differently according to our awareness.
Quran 57 ayat 4 He it is who has created the heavens and the earth in six eons,
And it is established on the throne of His Almightiness.
He knows all that enter the earth and all that comes out of it,
As well as all that descends from the skies and all that ascends to them.
And He is with you wherever you may be,
And God sees all that you do.
When we read the Quran,
When we listen to the Quran,
We become willing to bring our own existence in line with God's will.
This miracle between our hands opens the willingness in our heart to know,
To develop inside,
And to surrender to Allah's will,
Thereby coming closer to Him.
The Quran comes from a timeless jewel,
The mother of the book,
Um Al-Kitab,
Which is kept by God in the Al-Lah Al-Mahfuz.
The human language it was translated into was Arabic.
The Quran first pervades the body and the soul before the mind surrenders to its flowing thoughts.
Beyond all linguistic barriers,
Its poetic,
Healing vibrations touch even those who do not master the Arabic language.
God created the world out of opposites so as to make knowledge possible.
When the world came into existence,
Its longing to return to the original state of unity was born too.
We human beings are all searchers,
Whether we admit it or not.
We want to understand,
We want to know,
And we want to be known.
Our quest may take many different forms,
Yet ultimately,
And the Islamic message teaches this very clearly,
It ends in nothing but pure praising of God.
In the end,
This is the only thing which remains,
And it is omnipresent in all levels of existence.
Praising God is the true meaning of creation.
A literal reading of the Quran will not further our understanding.
Every introduction to the Quran is more a reflection of its interpreter's awareness and viewpoint than of the Quran itself.
The Quran shows and reveals itself to you according to what you bring to the Quran.
The Quran is a mirror which enables us to know and experience where we stand and who we are.
The Quran is a challenge for each and every one of us because it confronts us with our ego,
Our nafs.
The Quran tugs at our fears,
Our resistances,
Our pictures and notions.
If we read the Quran in the quality of separation and judgment,
We will see in it a reflection of the hatred we carry in our hearts.
If we read the Quran with respect,
Love and an open heart,
We will experience its deep love and beauty.
God,
The unfathomable,
Is present in every sound of the Quran.
The Quran is the event which it wants to be,
A revelation.
This is why every time one meaning is unveiled,
Another becomes veiled.
To be given insight,
We need humility and to be close to ourselves.
If we merely read the Quran without any knowledge,
Its countless and true meanings will remain veiled from us.
The first command of the Quran is read Quran 96 Ayat 1.
Try to understand.
Understand what God means.
Understand existence,
Nature,
Humankind and yourself.
Understand so that you may always find nourishment,
Guidance and life through your understanding.
Since we say that the Quran is valid beyond time and space,
It is incumbent on us to absorb ourselves in its message and to live it.
Allah says,
We did not bestow the Quran on thee from on high to make thee unhappy,
Quran 20 Ayat 1,
But as a signpost and a means to reach bliss.
The practice suggested for today.
Let this sentence guide you through the day.
Ya Khay,
Ya Qayyum,
Bi Rahmatika Astaqitu,
You who live forever,
You who exist eternally,
I seek help and refuge in your compassion,
Rahma.
This practice is especially recommended when we are going through difficult times,
But also when we are seeking a bond with God.
Thank you for joining us for this reading of The Call of Allah,
A companion to the holy month of Ramadan,
With the permission of Rosina Fawzia al-Rawi.
Ramadan Mubarak.
