We’re rapidly approaching the halfway point of Ramadan, which means if your Ramadan or Quran goals were unrealistic, it’s starting to show up right now.
I’m as guilty of this as anyone.
My original Ramadan goal was to read all of Muhammad Asad’s “Message of the Quran” commentary, which it turns out takes over two hours per juz (chapter). That’s a lot of time to be reading the Quran in English, and that’s before even reading it in Arabic.
So, I adjusted to my favourite Ramadan Quran strategy.
This strategy, which comes straight from the Quran For Busy People program, is one of the most beneficial, fruitful and enjoyable ways of completing the Quran in Ramadan – or in any month.
This is perfect for you if:
- You struggle to read the Arabic script
- You can read it fluently but you don’t understand it and want to read the English translation
- You’ve never read the English translation of the Quran
- You’ve never managed to ‘complete’ the Quran in Ramadan, despite your best intentions
- You just aren’t enjoying your Quran goal and it’s starting to feel like a chore instead of an act of devotion and love
This brilliant strategy was shared with me in person by Dr. Riza, the compiler of the excellent book from the early nineties called “In the Early Hours”. His recommendation was so good that I still use it to this day.
Here is how you can complete the Quran without actually reading it in Arabic:
- Get an audio recording of a reciter that you really enjoy listening to. For me personally, it’s Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Shatri.
- Get your favourite translation of the Quran (or one that you’ve heard is good but you haven’t read yet). For me, this year I’m doing Dr. Thomas Cleary’s translation.
- Put the two together!
In other words, play the audio while you simultaneously read your favorite translation of the Quran.
For this to work, you need to have a little bit of knowledge of Arabic – but most Muslims do, whether they realize it or not. (You probably know the word “Allah”, and you’ve probably heard of “Jannah”, the Garden of Paradise). The reason you need a little bit of Arabic is because you want to be reading the English translation at the same time as you’re listening to the Arabic of the same verse.
Some people are concerned that they won’t be able to ‘keep up’ with the Arabic recitation when they’re reading in English – but that’s very unlikely. The Arabic recitation is far slower than your English reading – even if you’re a slow reader! This means, you’ll actually have plenty of space to reflect on the depth of the words, while you’re absorbing the healing sound.
However, if you really doubt you can keep in sync – which I assure you is easier than you think, to make it super easy, you can use an app or website like Quran.com – where the verse being played is highlighted, so you’re always in sync between the Arabic recitation and the English. This way, you literally can’t get it wrong!
“But wait! What about the reward of reading the Arabic?!”
Some people are uncomfortable with the suggestion of listening to the Quran rather than reading it with your own eyes.
The problem is most people can’t read the Quran very fluently, and of those who can, very few actually understand what they’re reading. The Quran is meant for both the blessing of the recitation and for the understanding of what the verses are saying.
By reading the translation while listening to the Arabic, you actually get the best of both worlds.
Also, remember, the Quran is not the written symbols on the page – the Quran is the sound that is made, the recitation itself. So by listening to it, in a way you’re closer to the Quran than by reading it silently. Plus, the reciter probably recites better than you!
By listening to it in Arabic while reading the English translation, it’s almost like watching a movie with subtitles: you’re getting the full spiritual healing and emotional impact and reward of the Quran being recited, and you’re getting the full understanding by reading the English translation.
So that, my dear friend, is how you can complete the Quran during Ramadan without actually reading it.
Now, obviously, you probably also want to build the skill of reading the Quran beautifully and fluently, and you want to build the skill of understanding Quranic Arabic directly, without needing a translation… and you want to achieve all of your Quran goals!
That’s why I created the Quran For Busy People program – which, incidentally, is included as a free bonus for anybody who joins the soon-to-be-launched Spiritual Switch Coaching Program.
You can get on the early notification list by going to this link:
