Imam Ja’ffar ibn Muhammad as-Sadiq (as) was once seen reciting verses from the Holy Quran during his prayer when suddenly he fell down unconscious. Later on, after he (as) regained his consciousness, somebody asked as to what had happened to him and the Imam (as) said,

“I was engrossed in recitation of the verses from the Holy Quran when suddenly I felt as though I was hearing them directly from the One who was revealing it (Allah)”. (Falaah al-Saail)

The Holy Quran consists of words of Allah (SWT). When we want Allah (SWT) to communicate to us, we must recite the Holy Quran. The learning point from the above incident is that we should strive to recite the Book of Allah with our minds and hearts focused in it such that we reach a stage whereby we feel that Allah (SWT) is personally talking to us.

KEEPING THE HOLY QURAN AT HOME

Imam as-Sadiq (as) has been reported saying:

“It gives me great pleasure to see the Holy Quran in a house because through its blessings, Shaytan keeps away from it”.

                                                                                   (Al-Kaafi)

Shaykh Ali Karimi states:

There is no doubt that Imam as-Sadiq (as) used to be extremely pleased to see the Holy Quran in a house and he (as) also used to stress on its importance. How disgraceful it is for those who claim to be the followers of this great Imam (as) to have replaced the Book of Allah with instruments of entertainment in their houses. If with the blessings of Quran, Shaytan distances himself from a house then know that with presence of entertainment instruments (Aalaat al-Laws), the house becomes the dwelling place of the accursed Shaytan. (Quran-o-‘Itrat)

Therefore a true Shia’h is one who keeps the Holy Quran in his house and derives benefits from its blessings, while at the same time takes utmost precaution in the possession of instruments, which pose serious threat to such blessings from being effective.

The Holy Quran should not only be kept in homes but Muslims must also recite them regularly. Abu Haroun Makfoof was a companion of Imam al-Baqir (as). In the days of Imam as-Sadiq (as), Abu Haroun’s landlord threw him out from his home on account of his affiliation with the Imam (as). Imam (as) told him:

“I have heard that you used to recite the Holy Quran extensively in that house. Know that in a house in which the Holy Quran is recited, a light (Noor) emanates from it and ascends towards the heavens because of which the house is considered the best of all (among the dwellers of the heavens)”. (Manaqib Aali Abi Talib)