Advice for sisters in the university doing Hifz Al-Qur’ān

All praises are for Allāh ﷻ who has sent to us the best discourse. A book containing subjects resembling each other, mentioned again and again, from which the skins of those who have awe of their Lord shiver. Then, their skins and their hearts become soft enough to tend to the remembrance of Allāh.

This is the Guidance of Allāh with which He brings to the right path whomsoever He wills. As for the one whom Allāh lets go astray, for him there is no one to guide. And peace and blessings upon Muḥammad ﷺ; the best example and role model to whom the best Book was revealed. And upon his family, companions and those who follow him until the Day of Retribution.

Memorization of the Qur’ān is a dream for every Muslim. However, most sisters in the university complain that due to their daily hectic schedules, they don’t have the time to devote to the memorization of the Qur’ān.

Here are practical tips on how to master Qur’ān memorization in spite of being busy with school activities:

1. New Lesson:

Don’t sleep after fajr, as there’s blessing of Allāh early in morning. Do not dedicate your time to frivolous activities like watching TV or surfing the internet, spend some minutes memorizing your new lessons. Early morning memorization sessions are very effective because of the minimum distractions at that time. Do your new lesson the day before it’s due date of submission so that you will be comfortable. Also take a nap during zuhr and asr because you are more focused after waking up from a short sleep and so you can memorize fast.

2. Old Lesson:

Revise the lines you learnt in the previous week before you embark on beginning new memorization. The logic behind this arrangement is that the newest memorization is the one which is often forgotten first. Therefore, revising the previous portions of the hifz before will prove to be a good warm up exercise for your brain and you will be able to build connections between the previously memorized lines and the new one you are about to memorize.

3. General Revision:

Spend the most of your weekends on general revision. Use your time- on the way to and from school, recite such as repeating your new lesson. Some may memorize an ayah or sentence after reading it 4-6 times, but that won’t settle in your heart properly. Repeating it several times is the key. Recite What You Memorize In Every Salah to further strengthen what you are learning into memory, you can recite everyday verses in the five daily prayers. In each rakah, you can alternate between the five verses you learnt the same day or the previous days. Review What You Memorize as Many Times as Possible In a Single Day In order to memorize the Qur’ān, it is important to revise every verse you learn.

4. Diet:

Don’t eat too much, as it will make you tired lazy and very much sleepy. Drink milk, honey, maintain good health, Live a healthy life avoiding certain foods which trigger mood swings and disliked things.

5. Exam:

When it comes to exam season, don’t stop learning/revising the Qur’ān. Just do less than you normally would ensuring you keep a consistent connection with your Hifz.

6. A righteous friend

Have a righteous companion with the same goals in mind who strive in this world and for the hereafter for they will keep you going. Having this kind of friends will cause you to sharpen your memory as-well and a means of healthy competition. Competition in this sense does not mean being better than others and outdoing others, rather this is something that is encouraged providing your intention is right. Don’t attend unnecessary gatherings- get used to saying no to people and focus. You have to befriend pious people in whose company you remember Allāh, you have to avoid too much joke and backbiting.

Track your goal:

If one page of the Qur’ān contains at least 15 lines, by the end of the week you would have memorized two pages of the Qur’ān and the pattern would continue until you have fully committed the Qur’ān to memory. Also, you can learn verse by verse with translation and ponder over the meanings too.

8. Sleep:

You need adequate rest so that you can function at your best. Don’t sleep too much or too less memorizing the Qur’ān is about having a balance.

May Allāh preserve the esteemed readers who will take benefit from this article and also this lowly servant of His and bless her teachers for restlessly encouraging and guiding her upon the straight path. Āmīn.