I don’t exactly remember when I came across his video first on YouTube but when I happened to see it after a long while again this Thursday night, it shook me. Really, I cannot describe with adequate words how I felt listening to him, watching him. He must be hardly eight in the video, young Hassan bin Abdullah Al Awadh, but his voice moves the heart.

So there I was at 1 am listening to him over and over and over again. Then I downloaded the audio into my iPod and listened to him before bed, the next morning, during my evening walk, when I got angry over something, on my way to back from college… you get the picture. By now, I’m sure I’ve gone on enough of a ramble to really stretch your patience.

(Translation of the recited verses available here: http://www.ummah.net/what-is-islam/quran/noble/nobe036.htm)

Who’s young Hassan then? A young boy who’s recited the initial verses of Surah Ya Seen in a video on YouTube, son of an Imam of a masjid in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. When they first put his video on YouTube, I don’t think they had an idea how would much people would love it… that it would trigger off a sharing spree. People ask if he has a CD out. The more inquisitive minds want to know who he is. Where does he live? Who taught him?

The Quran is not an ordinary book, it is the Word of Allah(swt) and when recited, especially by a Qari with an exquisite voice, it is difficult to stay dry-eyed. The eyes automatically well up with tears, a fluttery sensation fills the heart and you know it is not something any man could put forward. If you can understand Arabic to any extent, it carries massive weight and immediately affects you, feeling as if there’s no-one else around… just you and your Lord. The words have direct impact, anger and sadness subsides, leaving an intense motivation to get up, make something of yourself and please Allah(swt) the way he wants you to!

Watching and listening to Hassan made me wonder about so many things. The powerful words of Surah Ya Seen were themselves enough to prompt self analysis. However, it also made me wonder about the reciter himself, whom Allah(swt) has blessed with such a beautiful voice. It is evident that he is in the constant company of the best reciters, who’ve taught him so well MashAllah. I also thought about the kind of environment he must have at home that he’s reciting with all the intricate rules of Tajweed at an age so tender. His mother, what an amazing woman she must be to have raised such a sweet child, MashAllah! What lessons did she teach him, setting the solid foundation for a soul that seeks to purify itself? Really, the beautiful tones in which this child recites indicates all these things about his life – his inner self literally shines through… that’s how it is with reciting the Quran with a sincere heart.

I also wondered about his future. I hope and pray he becomes a scholar of Islam through the magnificent talents that he has, that Allah(swt) has made known to us about him. We need these young children to grow up in Islam, nurtured by sincere and upright Muslim families, to become the leaders of tomorrow. Confident in their faith, trusting in Allah(swt), drawing closer to Him through His Words… that is the process of purification that produces strong believers.

Hassan has recited other portions of the Quran and a small handful of videos of him during a visit to Bosnia in 2007 show him to be about twelve or thirteen years old. His voice has matured slightly with age, lowering in pitch, but of course that does not reduce the beauty of the recitation in any way. In fact, it made me so happy to know he’s reciting and will possibly come forward as a well known Qari as he grows older InshAllah. Based on his videos, he seems like a modest young boy, nonetheless confident… a mark of a person well grounded in faith, may Allah add strength to it! Only those with strong faith can remain modest and shy while so much attention is turned towards him but the Shaitan is always at play and thus, I pray for Hassan sincerely.

I’ve learned so much from Hassan just listening to him recite those verses full of meaning. I’ve also learned about the importance of giving children the right upbringing and the massive benefits of doing that. Hassan proves you can become very knowledgeable in the Quran even at a young age. Very frankly, if I ever have a son, I’d be greatly blessed in so many ways if I could teach him, guide him, inspire him to be like the cute little boy who moved my heart with his sweet voice. Alhumdolillah, I have Hassan’s example right before me to inspire and motivate my own self for something so crucial and so rewarding.

It is possible to learn a lesson in more ways than one. Take ‘gratitude’, for example. You could read and read about being grateful to Allah for what you have, think about it, put it into practice too but sometimes, one little incident will teach you what gratitude really is.

For the past several months, I would often think about and wish for one gadget that I felt I could put to so many beneficial uses – an ipod! Not wanting to demand an expensive toy of my father but hoping to save up for it myself, I knew it would be some time before I could possibly obtain one. We were talking about a year atleast, if my articles kept getting published by the newspapers.

I wanted an ipod so badly – the possibilities were limitless. All those audio lectures available online, Tajweed tutorials, Tafseer sessions, Quran recitation… imagine if you could carry them wherever you went, in your pocket, to turn long periods of nothingness into learning experiences. During long and dull classes at University, I wouldn’t have to put my head down and go to sleep – I could learn Islam! But it was a long way away… or so I thought.

Last month, on Eid-al-Adhaa, I was left stunned when, as I opened a small package from someone, out came a sleek, shiny, black, business-card sized thing… an ipod nano! I let out a small scream right there. It took an hour or two to make sure the package was really meant for me and not a huge mistake. I can’t get into details on this blog about who actually gave the package to me but sufficient it is, to say that it came from a never-thought-it-was-possible source.

Suddenly, the very thing I’d been dreaming of having, especially in the days leading up to that day, was lying in my lap. It took some days to get used to having it and a few more before I was able to download good stuff into it. It was as amazing as I’d always dreamed it would be, making it possible for me to do long and cumbersome chores like cleaning out my room all the while listening to Yasir Qadhi discuss the Book of Tawheed or Salem Al-Amry giving advice in a lecture titled “O Muslims! Mind your footsteps!”.

With all the excitement and joy came an added responsbility – being grateful to Allah(swt), both, by feeling it within myself and also by, as another meaning of thankfulness to Allah entails, using the ipod nano in the right manner. That meant I should fulfill the promises I had made to Allah(swt) in my heart – “If I ever had an ipod, I would learn such-and-such from so-and-so!” or “Pleeeeease Allah, I’d absolutely love to have an ipod! It must be soooo cool to have it all the time with you!” So, after all that, getting an ipod was also a major test from Allah(swt). Would I remain grateful? Would I keep to my word? Would I use a blessing from Allah in the right manner – to come closer to Him?

The whole experience has also taught me another valuable lesson for life – if you really, really want something (that’s halal), just ask Allah(swt) for it and place your whole trust on Him. Don’t place your hope in money or specific people to get you what you want. In the end, everything comes from and returns to Allah(swt).

(Note: Being grateful to Allah(swt) does not mean one shouldn’t say “thankyou” to the person who serves as a “messenger” for the blessing – the one who handed the gift to you. In fact, as a reminder to myself, the gift should be thanked for by replying in the same manner. =) )

For those of you who’re even barely familiar with Tajweed, you’ll have an idea of what this post is about. And if you know some of the basics of Tajweed, you’ll realize what I mean when I say the ‘Art of Tajweed’. That’s exactly what Tajweed is – a beautiful art form. In fact, it’s one of the greatest expressions of arts, that soothes from within and also earns rewards from Allah (swt). [According to one Hadith, each letter of the Quran, when recited, earns ten rewards (or even more) from Allah (swt), such that even Alif-Laam-Raa is taken as three separate letters.]

Abu Hurairah (ra) reported that Allah’s messenger (saw) said, A thousand years before creating the heavens and the Earth, Allah recited Ta-Ha and Ya-Sin, and when the angels heard the recitation they said, ‘Happy are the people to whom this comes down, happy are the minds which carry this, and happy are the tongues which utter this.
[Darami transmitted it, at-Tirmidhi]

It’s amazing how an ordinary-sounding voice will usually blend into the crowds in normal speech but the same voice, when it recites the Quran while applying the rules of Tajweed, becomes so different, so beautiful that the ears are rivetted to it. No wonder Allah (swt) revealed the Quran in Arabic, for all humanity. The pronunciation of letters, the degrees in tones, nasalization and the different qualities are so well documented in Arabic that the script comes together as a well-defined, well-oiled machine. And, as with all machines, it must be run frequently to prevent rusting stemming from disuse.

As I learn more and more about Tajweed, I’ve learnt some lessons (from my teachers and some from my own observations) about being a student of the Quran recitation.

• Approach Tajweed and Quran recitation keeping in mind that these are the Words of Allah (swt) that I am reading and trying to recite in the way they were Revealed. This keeps one motivated and eager to progress quickly. The recitation will, InshAllah, also purify the heart and Nafs if the approach is right. 
• Practice daily, even if it is one small Surah. The tongue and throat need to be ‘reminded’ daily of their respective roles according to Tajweed rules. In time, even a simple word written on a page or Arabic script seen on TV will automatically be read in its correct form. 
• When practising your Tajweed, sit in a secluded part of the house (such as alone in a room) and recite loudly, yet slowly.
• Listen frequently to the short Surahs being recited by famous Qaris, such as Sheikh Hudhaify or Qari Abdul Basit. Sheikh Hudhaify is preferable because of his slow and measured tones – he’s a PhD in Tajweed!
• Whether driving to or from work, or when you’re working on the computer (as I am now), play the Quran recitation. Even if you’ve just started learning Tajweed, it always helps to have the recitation playing because you pick up the general tone and get a basic idea of how your recitation should sound too.
• Keep revising the basic Makharij often – you might think you know them and that’s how overconfidence gets you.
• Teach others – that’s the best way to retain what you’ve learnt and also to improve. Perhaps the letter you always struggled with might become easy upon you when you teach it to others.
• Try to memorize the translation of the short Surahs along with the Arabic so that when you recite, you know what you’re saying. That way, you’ll change your tone accordingly, when a question is being asked (in the Quran) or an excalamation is being made. It beautifies the Qirat.
• Always be humble! Never let yourself feel that you know more than others, or that you’re the best in your learning group. Remember that we are all students of the Quran and that even the apparent ‘best’ will never be THE best. Only Allah (swt) Recited and Revealed the Quran in Absolute Perfection and He rewards best, whom He deems worthy.