Completing the Quran in Ramadan

and blessings and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah.

 What may be understood from that is that we should study the Quran, and that studying the Quran is useful and beneficial, because the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) reviewed it with Jibreel in order to study it and benefit from it, for Jibreel was the one who brought it from Allah and was the “ambassador” between Allah and the Messengers, so undoubtedly Jibreel would be able to teach the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) how to recite the Quran and understand the meanings of its verses. So if a person studies the Quran with someone who can help him to understand it and recite it, this is what is required, just as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) studied with Jibreel. This does not mean that Jibreel is better than the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), but Jibreel was the Messenger who came from Allah and conveyed to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that which Allah commanded him to convey of the Quran, its wordings and meanings. So the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) benefited from Jibreel in these ways. But it does not mean that Jibreel is superior to him  (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), rather he is the best of mankind and superior to the angels (upon whom be peace). But this teaching brought a great deal of good to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and to the ummah, because it was the study of that which had been brought from Allah, so that he might benefit from that which had been brought from Allah.

 There is also another lesson to be learned, which is that studying it at night is better than during the day, because this reviewing took place at night, and it is known that at night the heart is more focused and can benefit more from studying than it can during the day. Another benefit is the fact that studying is prescribed and it is a righteous deed, even at times other than Ramadan, because it brings benefit to both parties; if there are more than two people, that is fine, because each one can benefit from his brother and encourage him to read. For a person may not bother to read if he is sitting alone, but if he has someone else there to study with him, or other companions, that will be more effective in encouraging him to read. There is also the great benefit that all of them will find of discussing things that they did not understand, etc… all of that brings a great deal of good.

It may also be understood from this that for the Imaam to recite the whole Quran to the congregation in Ramadan is a kind of this studying together, because in that way they may benefit from hearing the whole of the Quran. Hence Imaam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) used to like the one who led them in (Taraaweeh) prayers to complete the whole Quran (during the month). This is akin to the actions of the Salaf who loved to hear the whole Quran. But this should not make us hasten in reading Quran, rather we should feel humble and at ease when reading Quran; paying attention to that is more important than thinking of completing the Quran.