Background

I initially wanted to make a YouTube video on spending more time with the Quran during the month of Ramadan 1442 AH (mid April to mid May 2021). It was motivated by reflecting on how much time I actually spend on Spotify, and realizing how much better it could be used through the lens of Islam, especially when I realized I could attempt passively memorizing the Quran.

I have memorized entire surahs before purely through listening. I remembered distinctly it was Al-Ghashiyah (Surah 88) and it was because the mosque I went to for Friday prayers kept reciting it for a solid few years I lived near it. When I did get to trying to the stage of memorizing Al-Ghashiyah for class, I realized that I had already memorized it, albeit with some mistakes in the Arabic letters I heard.

So memorization through listening does work! But how well can it work?

During Ramadan 1442 AH, I set myself the target to memorize Al Baqarah (Surah 2) as much as possible by pure passive listening. At the time, I was listening to music during my commutes, my study sessions, and at work; so I decided to replace music listening with Quran listening as much as possible.

However, I quickly identified some issues. Namely, Al Baqarah is quite a large surah to tackle as a first project. Unlike modern music which lasts 3-5 minutes each, Al Baqarah takes at least around 2 hours to complete at a relatively fast pace. In contrast, Al Ghashiyah is more similar to modern music in that its recitations take 2-5 minutes to complete. This makes repetition quite hard to implement.

However, despite my failure to completely memorize Al Baqarah, I have learnt quite a few things in my journey - namely, how to listen to more Quran in my life.

tl;dr

(Possibly) memorize the Quran passively through recitation recordings.

Tips

Identify when you tend to listen to music

The only times I listen to music is when I’m in a loud (often chattering) environment and I would like to drown out the background noise. Ideally, yes, I should be working in a quiet environment for optimal productivity (according to science). However, some studies have shown that music is better for concentration than noise. Other studies show a minor difference in focus between background music and noise, but at least music is more enjoyable.

Now imagine if you replace (at least some of) that time with Quran recitations!

Identify your Quran tastes

Do you like fast or slow reciters? Do you like echoes/reverbs in the recording, similar to how you hear it at the mosque? Which readings/qira’at are you accustomed to (Hafs‘an ’Asim, Warsh)?

Here’s a short list of reciters I’ve listened to so far (with alternative Latinized-Arabic spellings):

• Bandar Baleela
• Fatih Seferagic
• Mishary Rashid al-Afasy
• Yasser Ad-Dussary / Al-Dossari

Unfortunately, I have noticed some recordings do contain distortion which I can only imagine stem from live recordings with low quality microphones or loud background noise eg. recordings of prayers at mosques. Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out a way to clean up the noise from the recordings thus until then, I suggest finding another recording of your favorite reciter.

Optionally, find reciters that recite at the same pace as you do. This way, you can try mimicking them in your 5 daily prayers!

Choosing which surah you listen to

This is also a matter of your goals. You can use this opportunity to listen to your favorite surahs. If you don’t have one yet, just set the next surah to memorize on repeat to passively memorize just like how you memorize the chorus of a song! Alternatively, you can put surahs you have once memorized to refresh your memory. It can help build up a rhythm if you are listening to the Quran during work or studies. Whichever approach you take, it’s sure to reward you with hasanat.

Reduce barriers to start playing the Quran!

Quran listening accessibility has never been easier. You have the choices between mosque live streams and clip replays, and even professional recordings of reciters! You can often find it in your favorite Quran app on your phone, so be sure to put your favorite Quran app front and center (or at least very accessible) on your phone home screen. On your computer, you can download recordings from websites like Quran Central, or stream from QuranicAudio. You can also bookmark these websites for even easier access.

Better yet, it’s all free!

(Optional) Increase barriers to start playing music

If your final goal is to completely phase out music listening from your life, then there are quite a number of things you can do.

If you use a streaming service, you could stop paying for their subscription to either terminate a source of music listening, or at least introduce adverts during your sessions to create some listening friction. You can uninstall the apps or music files stored locally on your device. You can go as far as filtering your network traffic on the router level to block certain DNS or HTTP requests, but the previous two little obstructions do add to to encourage me to listen to the Quran some more.

Final words

If you live in the modern world surrounded with Western media, I feel hearing music is inevitable - whether you are doing groceries or at your friend’s place. However, you can always make the conscious effort in the times within your control to listen to something that gives you rewards in the hereafter.

References

Furnham, A., & Strbac, L. (2002). Music is as distracting as noise: The differential distraction of background music and noise on the cognitive test performance of introverts and extraverts. Ergonomics, 45(3), 203–217. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140130210121932

Reynolds, J., McClelland, A., & Furnham, A. (2014). An investigation of cognitive test performance across conditions of silence, background noise and music as a function of neuroticism. Anxiety, Stress, & Coping, 27(4), 410–421. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615806.2013.864388

Gheewalla, F., McClelland, A., & Furnham, A. (2021). Effects of background noise and extraversion on reading comprehension performance. Ergonomics, 64(5), 593–599. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2020.1854352