What Is the Effect of Regular Quranic Recitation on the Soul?
Answered by Shaykh Anas al-Musa
Question
What is the effect of regular Quranic recitation on purifying and refining the soul?
Answer
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all worlds. Peace and blessings be upon the Messenger sent as a mercy to the worlds, our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, and his Family and Companions.
There is no doubt that the Quran has an undeniable impact on a person’s body, soul, and spirit, as confirmed by Allah’s words:
“(It is) Allah (Who) has sent down the best message—a Book of perfect consistency and repeated lessons—which causes the skin (and hearts) of those who fear their Lord to tremble, then their skin and hearts soften at the mention of (the mercy of) Allah. That is the guidance of Allah, through which He guides whoever He wills. But whoever Allah leaves to stray will be left with no guide.” [Quran, 39:23]
Among the most prominent effects of regular Quranic recitation are:
Tranquility and Peace
It instills tranquility and peace in the heart of the believer. Regular recitation removes anxiety, as Allah (Most High) says:
“…those who believe and whose hearts find comfort in the remembrance of Allah. Surely in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find comfort.” [Quran, 13:28]
Refining the Character and Improving Behavior
The Quran plants noble qualities in the heart of the believer, such as patience, modesty, and humility. Many verses emphasize these virtues, such as Luqman’s advice to his son:
“O, my dear son! Establish prayer, encourage what is good and forbid what is evil, and endure patiently whatever befalls you. Surely this is a resolve to aspire to. And do not turn your nose up to people, nor walk pridefully upon the earth. Surely, Allah does not like whoever is arrogant or boastful. Be moderate in your pace. And lower your voice, for the ugliest of all voices is certainly the braying of donkeys.” [Quran, 31:17-19]
Strengthening and Increasing Faith
Regular recitation solidifies faith in the heart and increases it, as Allah (Most High) says:
“Whenever a sura is revealed, some of them ask (mockingly), ‘Which of you has this increased in faith?’ As for the believers, it has increased them in faith and they rejoice.” [Quran, 9:124]
Finally, I advise you that nothing has a greater impact on purifying the soul than reciting the Quran with reflection, receiving its messages, and implementing them as a tangible reality in life.
May Allah bless the Prophet Muhammad and give him peace, and his Family and Companions.
Shaykh Anas al-Musa, born in Hama, Syria, in 1974, is an erudite scholar of notable repute. He graduated from the Engineering Institute in Damascus, where he specialized in General Construction, and Al-Azhar University, Faculty of Usul al-Din, where he specialized in Hadith.
He studied under prominent scholars in Damascus, including Shaykh Abdul Rahman al-Shaghouri and Shaykh Adib al-Kallas, among others. Shaykh Anas has memorized the Quran and is proficient in the ten Mutawatir recitations, having studied under Shaykh Bakri al-Tarabishi and Shaykh Mowfaq ‘Ayun. He also graduated from the Iraqi Hadith School.
He has taught numerous Islamic subjects at Shari‘a institutes in Syria and Turkey. Shaykh Anas has served as an Imam and preacher for over 15 years and is a teacher of the Quran in its various readings and narrations.
Currently, he works as a teacher at SeekersGuidance and is responsible for academic guidance there. He has completed his Master’s degree in Hadith and is now pursuing his Ph.D. in the same field. Shaykh Anas al-Musa is married and resides in Istanbul.