Imam Jafar ibn Muhammad Sadiq (A.S) was once seen reciting verses from the Holy Qur’an during his prayer when suddenly he fell down unconscious. Later on, after he (A.S) regained his consciousness, somebody asked as to what had happened to him and the Imam (A.S) said,
“I was engrossed in recitation of the verses from the Holy Qur’an when suddenly I felt as though I was hearing them directly from the One who was revealing it (Allah)”. (Falaah al-Saail)
The Holy Qur’an consists of words of Allah (SWT). When we want Allah (SWT) to communicate to us, we must recite the Holy Qur’an. 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 Qur`an at Home
Imam Sadiq (A.S) has been reported saying:
Shaykh Ali Karimi states:
There is no doubt that Imam Sadiq (A.S) used to be extremely pleased to see the Holy Qur’an in a house and he (A.S) also used to stress on its importance. How disgraceful it is for those who claim to be the followers of this great Imam (A.S) to have replaced the Book of Allah with instruments of entertainment in their houses. If with the blessings of Qur’an, Shaytan distances himself from a house then know that with presence of entertainment instruments (Aalaat al-Lahws), the house becomes the dwelling place of the accursed Shaytan. (Qur’an-o-‘Itrat)
The Holy Qur’an should not only be kept in homes but Muslims must also recite them regularly. Abu Haroun Makfoof was a companion of Imam Baqir (A.S). In the days of Imam Sadiq (A.S), Abu Haroun’s landlord threw him out from his home on account of his affiliation with the Imam (A.S). Imam (A.S) told him:
“I have heard that you used to recite the Holy Qur’an extensively in that house. Know that in a house in which the Holy Qur’an 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)