We all feel touched when we open up a good translation
of the meaning of the Qur’an and we ponder and wonder at the
beauty of the words and the deep meanings within. But in reality
we are just seeing a glimpse of the real treasure that the
Qur’an is.
Imagine how you’d feel if you could understand the words of
Allah in the form in which they were sent down and not just rely
on a translation of the meaning in English. Imagine the power of
the words and the directness of the message then! The potency
would be awesome!
The Qur’an is the word of Allah; a direct message from Allah to
us His creation and Allah chose the Arabic language as the
language of this message. Indeed Allah tells us this in the
Qur’an emphasising to us that to understand the message in its
fuller form one must understand the language:
“Indeed we have sent it down as an Arabic Qur’an, in order
that you may understand” (Surah Yusuf, Aayah 2)
“And thus we have inspired to you an
Arabic Qur’an so that you may warn the mother of towns and all
around it” (Surah ash-Shura, 7)
Arabic and the message of the Qur’an cannot be separated and
translators throughout the ages have tried to convey to the
non-Arabic speaking people the beauty of the meaning of the
Qur’an but have always called it ‘The translation of the meaning
of the Qur’an’, emphasising the fact that the Qur’an’s direct
translation is not possible, because so much of the potency and
splendour of the words and their meanings which are inextricably
linked to the Arabic language are lost in English or any other
language. Indeed to even appreciate the poetic beauty of the
Qur’an one needs to have an understanding of Arabic.
Remember that for the Arabs in the time of the Prophet (SAW) who
were masters of eloquence and poetry, the words of the Qur’an
itself were so unique compared to the poetry of the most
eloquent of them that many came to Islam recognising that the
Qur’an could not be the handiwork of even the best human poet,
rather it could only come from Allah. The language itself was
one of the miracles of the Qur’an. Allah challenges mankind:
“And if you are in doubt about what we
have sent down to our servant, then produce a chapter like it
and call your witnesses besides Allah if you are truthful. But
if you do not do it, and you can never do it, then fear the Fire
whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the disbelievers”
(Surah Baqarah, aayaat 23-24)
The Preservation of the Arabic Language
Languages usually evolve. Just look at the difference
between Shakespearean English and modern day English. In many
ways they seem like two totally different languages and a man
from England in Shakespearean times and a man from modern day
England would find it extremely difficult to communicate! But
the Arabic language is not just ‘a language’. This is why the
Sahabah and the early generations of Muslims strove to preserve
the classical Arabic language. It was Ali (radi allaahu ‘anhu)
who noticed on the tongues of some of the Arabs a slight change
in dialect and ordered for the grammar rules of Arabic to be
recorded in a universal form. He knew that the preservation of
the Arabic language was part of the preservation of Islam
itself.
Arabic unified the Muslim countries as it spread to every
land that embraced Islam. This is why it is seen that those
Muslim societies that are ignorant of Arabic are in general less
knowledgeable about Islam. This ignorance has in turn made them
more prone to stray from the straight path.
The enemies of Islam know this and have worked hard to tear the
Muslims from the Arabic language and the Qur’an. During the
French occupation of Algeria, the French government was advised,
“We will never be able to overpower the Algerians as long as
they read the Qur’an and speak Arabic. Therefore we must remove
the Arabic Qur’an from their midst and abolish the Arabic
language from their tongues.”
And unfortunately this is exactly what the secular leader of
Turkey, Kamal Ataturk, who abolished the Islamic caliphate, did.
He ordered that the Qur’an be recited in Turkish, even in
prayers and changed the Turkish language which used to be
written in Arabic into a Latin alphabet.
Today you will find that although Arabs throughout the world
unfortunately have different colloquial dialects, they are still
taught the Classical Arabic in their schools and Classical
Arabic is the standard written Arabic in every Arabic newspaper
and book. So it has been preserved by Allah as He(SWT) promised
in the Qur’an:
“Indeed we have sent down the Reminder
and surely we will preserve it.” (Surah Hijr, Aayah 9)
A Priority for all of us
Scholars throughout the ages, from the Companions to the
present day, encouraged the Ummah to learn the Arabic language.
Ubay ibn Ka’b (RA) said, “Teach Arabic like you teach the
memorisation of the Qur’an!”
Abu Bakr (RA) said, “That I recite and forget (a portion of the
Qur’an) is more beloved to me than to make a grammatical
mistake!”
And ‘Umar (RA) once passed by a group of archers who missed
their targets. He admonished them and they responded that they
were only beginners, but in answering back they made a
grammatical mistake in their wording. He told them, “Indeed,
your mistakes in Arabic grammar are more difficult to bear than
your mistakes in archery!”
Imam ash-Shaafi’ee said, "Therefore it is imperative that every
Muslim should strive to learn Arabic as hard as he can, so that
he can testify the shahada, and recite the Book of Allah and say
the invocations that are mandatory upon him, such as the takbeer,
tasbeeh, tashahud and other prayers. And the more he learns the
language that Allah Himself chose to be the language of him who
sealed the Prophets (SAW), and to be the language of His final
revelation, the better it is for him!”
Imam ash-Shaafi’ee also said : "It is compulsory for every
responsible Muslim to learn what they can of the Arabic
language."
The great 8th century scholar Shaykul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (rh)
even went so far as to say that, “The Arabic language is part of
the Religion, and knowing it is an obligation.”
Unfortunately, we have become comfortable with simply relying on
translations and spending all of our time and efforts in
studying other things, (other languages even!) which may not
even benefit us in the hereafter and have forgotten that the
Qur’an is in a very approachable language and we all have the
ability or rather the responsibility to study and understand it.
If you knew that Allah (SWT) had a message for you, personally,
then would you not want to understand it in its original form?
Think about it…we have the last revelation to mankind, the only
communication from our Lord and Master, which is preserved in
its original form, and yet in a 70 odd year life we do not give
it the attention, which it deserves. We should realise that
Allah has honoured us with the Qur’an and chosen for us the
noblest of languages. Attention to Arabic is attention to the
Book of Allah so we should make learning it a priority.
I remember the feeling of tasting the sweetness of Allah’s words
in my Salaah when I first embarked upon my Arabic studies. I
just repeated the same aayah of the Qur’an again and again
savouring the words and suddenly feeling a deep emotion that I’d
never felt before though I had read the same aayah many times
before studying Arabic, it was as though a light had been lit
for me and I’d suddenly discovered a new part of a house that
I’d been living in for years. One of the definite benefits of
learning Arabic is that it aids Khushoo’ or consciousness in
salaah and helps us to improve all of our worships. Taraweeh
prayer in Ramadan becomes a new experience!
Practical steps towards learning Arabic
Alhamdulillah with all the teaching aids and easy access to
information that we have, learning Arabic does not necessarily
mean travelling on arduous journeys to distant lands as it once
used to. With discipline and commitment, the student can study
much in his own time
Here are some tips to help you along they way:
- Make Du’a: As with everything we work towards, we should
ask Allah to help us and make learning easy for us. We should
ask Allah to purify our intentions so that we truly learn
Arabic for the better understanding of the Qur’an and deen.
- Discipline yourself! Put a set amount of time aside every
day or twice a week for your Arabic studies and stick to it.
Remember a little study regularly is better than hours of
study once a month.
- Know your basics well: going step by step is the best way
to master any language, concentrating on improving your basic
reading and writing is the first step in learning Arabic, even
if it is repetitive. Then you can build on that firm
foundation.
- Invest in a good dictionary and Arabic books: A good
dictionary is the Hans Wehr or Al-Mawrid dictionary, available
in most Muslim bookshops and on the Internet too! Arabic words
are usually arranged under their three letter roots. Get used
to looking up words often and compile your own personal
vocabulary dictionary. Some good three-book sets you can start
working through are the three Madinah university books or the
Kitaab-ul Asaasi books.
- Enrol into a summer course: There are a few around every
summer and they are a great way to kick-start your learning.
They can be quite intensive so remember to revise and keep up
your study afterwards.
- Study Arabic as part of your full-time degree: If you are
going to study a degree, why not study a degree in Arabic or
one with Arabic as part of it?
- Study under an Arab friend or tutor: The importance of a
good teacher cannot be stressed enough. Although there is a
lot of self-study involved, a friend who knows Arabic or an
Arab brother or sister who you could go to regularly for
guidance would be very valuable. You could even start going
through your Arabic books with them.
- Organise a class locally: There must be like-minded
Muslims in your area who would like to study Arabic too. Maybe
you could get together and pay for a teacher to teach you
Arabic together at the local Masjid or in one of your homes.
Studying with friends is a good way to stay motivated.
- Study abroad in an Arab country: there are various good
courses running in countries such as Egypt which really speed
up your learning and can provide you with a nice experience.
People have found that a few months in an Arab country can be
more beneficial than a year or more of studying at home. Make
sure you keep up your studying when you get back though!
- Expose yourself to as much Arabic as you can: You can
listen to Arabic lecture tapes, visit Muslim countries, read
some Arabic everyday, and maybe get an Arab newspaper when you
become more proficient.
- Speak Arabic whenever you can: One of the biggest
obstacles to speaking Arabic is being shy about making
mistakes in speech and so not speaking at all. You must
overcome this shyness and use whatever you know whenever you
can. This is how you will eventually improve insha Allah.
Maybe you could meet some Arab brothers or sisters who only
speak Arabic. This way you’ll be forced to speak what you know
and they’ll be pleased that you’re making the effort.
- Relate your knowledge back to the Qur’an and other
worships: Don’t forget that your aim is to understand what you
recite of the Qur’an especially in your salaah and other
adhkaar. Try to recognise Arabic words as you come across them
in the Qur’an and apply your knowledge in understanding the
Qur’an. Ponder over and pay attention to the words in your
salaah.
May Allah help us all to master the language of the Qur’an and
to aid its spread throughout the Ummah.
