In the name of Allah, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful.
If there is a good habit that I find difficult to cultivate, it is the habit of reading the Quran translation whenever I’m having my monthly cycle.
I think it is partly due to the discouragement that was frequently enforced by people when it comes to girls being anywhere near the Quran when they are on their period.
I wish they emphasise more on the need to continue reading the translation so that the habit of having the Quran as one’s companion can be easily cultivated.
I decided to start with reading the translation of the opening chapter. I have already sort of memorised the meaning of the chapter by heart but I must say, when I read it again just now, I still feel affected by the verses. There is nothing plainly profound about the chapter but the reiteration of God’s characteristics made me remember things that I have forgotten about Him.
Seriously, no matter how many times you have read the Quran and memorised it, there is always something new to discover or realise and apply in your daily life.
For example, if you have been following this blog for years now, you would have always read the opening line of most of my posts to the point that you would either automatically immediately voice it in your head or skip to the content straightaway.
But what if I tell you that it is the very first verse of the Quran?
That when you open up this book, having felt a little lost and in need of guidance, the very first thing it tells you is about the nature of your Creator, that He is full of compassion and mercy — what would you feel then?
I have been feeling listless and extremely exhausted that I feel really small in this really great big world, to the point where I feel very perfunctory. Like I was only ever meant to fulfil a role or to play a part in other people’s lives. Because of that, I got lost in the generated idea of my sense of self. So for myself, when I read the verse and the entire chapter again, I realise that where I am in life right now, came from His graciousness and mercy. If I had a career that pays at least $10k, maybe I would have treated my husband like a servant; “Listen to me, I make the money, here is the money, so you gotta do this and that for me.” We are far more short-sighted than we perceive ourselves to be so it is very easy for us to say things such as, “If there really is a compassionate god, there will be no hunger in the world”. I don’t know about you guys and I can only speak for myself: The way I see it, for example, if we were to talk within the context of world hunger, God has graced those people with the ability to stay satiated the opportunity to absolve themselves of their sins by feeding the hungry. So to me, His graciousness runs deeper than what our shallow minds can comprehend of what compassion means.
But that’s just me and I am weird. So.
And Allah is Ar-Rahman, The Beneficent/The Most Gracious/The Most Compassionate. – MM
Metropolitan Muslimah 