Memorizing the Holy Book at 70

Muhammad Humaidan | Arab News

JEDDAH: The love for the Holy Book and a determination to memorize it enabled a Saudi to overcome age and other barriers to fulfill a life’s ambition. Though he was above 70, Abdullah Muhammad Musa was able to memorize the Holy Qur’an and graduate with honors from the Qur’an Memorization Group for Adults at King Abdul Aziz Mosque here. He scored an average of 91 percent.

“When I was young, I memorized two chapters of the Holy Book but later forgot them completely, carried away by the cares of life,” Musa told Arab News. He, however, made it clear that his love for the Qur’an was always there and it was this love that pushed him to fulfill his dream at such an advanced age.

He joined the special courses being held at mosques during the evenings for old men. “This gave old people like me and employees a chance to learn the Book of Allah,” he said.

Musa said he began memorizing the Qur’an at King Abdul Aziz Mosque where he was able to learn 10 chapters by heart. “At first I faced great difficulty in pronunciation and Tajweed but was later able to overcome these problems,” he recalled.

He later joined the Qur’an memorization circle at Salah Karamah Mosque where he memorized all the 30 chapters of the Holy Book in two and a half years. “I used to memorize two to three pages every day during the day and in the evenings I would go to King Abdul Aziz Mosque to revise about two chapters of the Holy Book,” he said.

Musa said without the encouragement and assistance from his wife and sons his quest to learn the Qur’an would have been unfulfilled. Despite his age, Musa walked daily for about six km from his house to the two mosques where he studied the Qur’an.