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Understanding and gaining the Knowledge of the Grand Qur'aan; the Guide and the "Vehicle" that drives to the destination
Grand Qur'aan is rendered facilitative to understand and comprehend by transcribing it in Arabic; the language of our guide lord, exalted universal Messenger Muhammad Sal'lallaa'hoalaih'wa'salam, and related to Arabian Peninsula.
Methods - Approaches of teaching/learning second - foreign language—learning and understanding Qur'aan
The existence of a variety of languages spoken by human beings, refer Ayah 30:22, has always necessitated and encouraged peoples to attempt to learn foreign - second languages. Various methods and approaches were employed under influence of advancements in theories and psychology of learning, these included, "the grammar-translation method", "the direct method", "Audio-Lingual method", "Silent Way", and "Total Physical Response".
The strategy - method - approach will however depend upon the primary goal of learning a second language. The primary goal could be learning to understand the language either in reading or listening. Or the intended goal for learning a second language could be to produce it, i.e., speaking and writing.
The experts are of the considered opinion that learning to speak and write is much more difficult than simply learning to understand. Learning to understand is easier as it requires recognition rather than the harder recall.
Our purpose is only to acquire the skill for understanding the meanings, perception and message of Grand Qur'aan. Our goal is not the learning of Arabic for communication, i.e., speaking and interaction with Arabs. Therefore, the most suitable strategy - method - approach for our goal is Grammar-Translation method, also known as classical method. Its name captures the main emphasis of this method—the study of grammatical aspects of language and the use of translation as a means of acquiring comprehension. It will enable us appreciate the all time classic Grand Qur'aan in its original language.
Oft repeated disadvantage associated with this method is the much rote memorization of grammatical aspects such as verb conjugations and recitation of rules that described language functions. But no such practice is needed for employing grammar-translation method for learning Arabic of Grand Qur''an. Its miraculous uniqueness is that its learning to understand is much easier as we can visually recognize nouns and verbs, grammatical units—prepositional, possessive and adjectival phrases, and other elements like subject and predicate, subject and object of verbs while just watching the text. This feature facilitates self comprehending the text by taking help from "teach yourself" books.
And its grammar would seem the easiest if we revisit grammar book of the target language, say English. Though we know reading and writing our mother-language, or English as second language, which will mostly be grammatically correct, but it is because of unconscious understanding of their grammar. We might not be able to consciously explain the rules of Urdu or English grammar to others. For learning to comprehend a book written in another language, Arabic of Grand Qur'aan, we must know consciously the grammar of at least one language.
For Urdu speaking people learning to understand Arabic of Qur'aan is very easy and simple. The most important determining factor how easily words are learned is "cognate factor". "Cognate" means the words that are the same or very similar in both languages. There are a vast number of words that are cognate in Arabic and Urdu. Though there are "false cognates" - words which appear similar, but have different meanings—it needs not any special strategy since their number is just few.
Encouraging facts:
1. Grand Qur'aan is rendered facilitative to understand and comprehend by transcribing it in Arabic-the language of our guide lord Muhammad Sal'lallaa'hoalaih'wa'salam and related to Arabian Peninsula. [19:97;44:58;54:17,22,32 and 40] We should trust Allah's proclamation. Those who propagate that Qur'aan is difficult to learn and comprehend are guilty of contradicting the emphatic declaration of Allah the Exalted.
2. A very small part of large vocabulary of Arabic is used in Qur'aan. The vocabulary will not pose a problem particularly for Urdu knowing people since majority of words of Qur'aan are already in their use. Moreover, thanks to computer technology, each word is now in access by a click on it. It needs emphasis, however, that each word of the vocabulary of Qur'aan is unique and non-substitutable pearl embedded at its place of occurrence in the text.
3. The prerequisite to read a book in foreign language is to learn grammar of that language. Learning grammar of Arabic from Qur'aan does not involve and require rote memorization like verb conjugations and paradigms.
4. The Rules are precise and few in volume in relation to the text of Qur'aan.
Pre-qualification for learning Arabic of Qur'aan if we have passion to personally comprehend its message:
(a) One can recite-read aloud distinctly, syllable
by syllable, just three Ayahs: 
Unitary
Verbal Passages of Qur'aan by recalling from memory, and by reading the written text. Please
remember, this is the first step of our guide lord in communicating and then
teaching the people to read and write Qur'aan. He is the first who
introduced writing tradition in Arabia who had earlier oral tradition.
(b) Listen frequently the recitation while watching the written text of Qur'aan. It will facilitate and quicken the process of acquiring skill in understanding the Lexical and Grammatical aspect of Arabic; the fundamental and inevitable tool for non-Arabs in knowing the Qur'aan.
(c) Determined resolve that we will not henceforth be like majority of readers who are passive and mute recipients of ideas gleaned from the printed page.
(d) We will consult the grammar books of our mother language or target language to refresh our memory to become conscious as to what is denoted and perceived by various elements in a text like noun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, prepositional phrase, possessive phrase, dependencies, etc.
(e) We will use auditory and visual faculties simultaneously while studying Qur'aan on computer screen. We will listen and watch syllables of text by moving the gaze in smooth pursuit. This is the basic requirement for attaining the purpose of reading.
Conditionality:
We undertake that we will follow the instructions of Qur'aan about its manners of reading, the most primary is:
Therefore, you people read that much text of the Qur'aan which has become self convenient- facilitating [having listened recitation]. [Ref 73:20]
We read the
definition of reading that it is a process to derive meaning in
written text.
The objective of reading is to
attain and perceive the thought, idea and message conveyed therein. Verb
"you
people read" emanates from Root "ق
ر ء" from which is also
the
Qur'aan. The basic
perception infolded in the Root is to collect a thing at one point,
compilation, and the process of gathering.
It thus changes the
scattered-separated-spread position of a thing into a collective whole.
When we carry out this process with regard to letters-alphabet-syllables
of a language-written material it produces and yields the product
:
written reading material collected together
and placed in one receptacle; it is the opposite of a shredded-scattered
state. Thus this word defines reading as a process of squeezing the
scattered text over the line/lines into a single focal point to
distinctly perceive the idea/thought/message of it.
It might seem a
strange phenomenon that another word:
made
from this Root also occurs in the Grand Qur'aan which denotes multiple
discharges of menstruation. One may wonder what menstruation has to do
with Root:
"ق
ر ء"
while
other words are conveying
perception of a compilation of written text and reading it.
We might understand the
delicacies and subtleties of Arabic language if we enquire what
menstruation are and what physical relationship does it have with the
basic perception of Root?
Menstruation is breaking of
the spread lining
[endometrium] of the
uterus which gets colleted together and is discharged.
Arabic Roots in their
perception in fact enfold all the physical realities relating both to
matter and life.
It is a language of precision
and scientific realties about matter and life relating to the semantic
field a word refers is infolded in it.
Let me assure that the day we start understanding and perceiving the contents in our own language, it is a matter of weeks not months, we will always be in search of time to open and read Qur'aan since we will find it inexhaustible. No reading of it is the final reading-no translation of it is the final and exhaustive translation; and no discussion ever runs it dry. This is one of the features that render a book great in timeline.
Lesson-1
Parts of Speech
The text of languages is typically divided into three categories:
1. Word
2. Phrase
3. Sentence
Grand Qur'aan is unique in all aspects related to books. It is in perfect sequence, corresponding and consistent with ground realities and perceptions of human beings. The first six words of Grand Qur'aan reproduced at the top show sequence of components of a text; Word, Phrase and then a sentence. We will try learning Grammar [Morphology and Syntax] following pedagogical-teaching strategy of Grand Qur'aan on need to know basis and later try understanding semantics [how meaning in language is created by the use and interrelationships of words, phrases, and sentences] gradually. The most encouraging and amazing particularity of Arabic of Qur'aan is that we will be able to visually recognize the words, phrases, and sentences too. This is what is termed as "Parsing - Syntactical analysis" of the text.
1. Word
The "Word" is defined in dictionaries as, "A sound or a combination of sounds, or its representation in writing or printing that symbolizes and communicates a meaning and may consist of a single morpheme or of a combination of morphemes.". In Arabic, the Word is called-. ٱلْكَلِمَة It is defined as an expression formulated for a singular meaning. We live in the world of Words. We first listen Words, thereby we copy-speak-articulate same Words. Listening facilitates reading the written Words, whereby we attain ability to reproduce-transcribe it with our own hands. Word is divided into three categories that are mutually exclusive and embrace all words in the language:
حَرفٌ (a) plural حروف -Particles:
This category is defined as those words that do not impart a meaning on their own. Roughly speaking, this is equivalent to what we know in English as prepositions, conjunctions, articles, interjections and other particles. Since they do not impart a meaning on their own, they are understood only when other words are mentioned along with them. In fact, their very purpose is to expose certain attributes in the words around them. Hence, any word that does not impart a meaning on its own accord, rather it helps expose attributes of other words, is a Particle. If this is not the case, then the word is either a Noun or a Verb.
اِسمٌ (b) plural. أسماء Noun:
This category is defined as
those words that impart a single meaning on their own and do
not need help of another word to explain its meanings. They do not afford
a tense. This is equivalent to what we know in English
as nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs.
In default state, they are always in
"Nominative" case, which is reflected by the vowel sign
ـُُ or the same
sign doubled ـُـُ,
on
the last consonant of the word.
فعل (c) plural أفعال Verb:
This category is defined as those words that impart a single meaning on their own describing some work, action, activity or state and afford a tense, i.e. past, present or future. This is exactly what is known in English as Verbs.
Parts of Speech-Words
1. Particle-حَرفٌ
By just recognizing and knowing few Particles we can recognize almost all Nouns of Grand Qur'aan, merely by seeing the text.
(i) حُرُوفُ الْجَرِّ: [Particles of attraction] Prepositions or Genitive Particles.
[a] Inseparable Prepositions; they consist of one consonant with its vowel.
[b] Separable Prepositions.
The First Word of Grand Qur'aan
is:
which starts with a
حَرفٌ-Prefixed Particle
بـِ
with its suffixed object Noun. It is termed as
Preposition. Like English, in Arabic also the Prepositions are
indeclinable words that introduce the object of a prepositional phrase. Indeclinable words are words that have only one possible form.
Particles do not follow
the template system and hence they do not have patterns. They are what
they are and they must be memorized as they are. However, please relax
since they are not much in number and initially just a dozen needs to be
remembered. In semantic terms the preposition functions to illustrate a logical,
temporal, or spatial relationship between the object of the
prepositional phrase and the other components of the sentence.
The importance of the role of the Particles
in Arabic text is reflected by the fact that the
Grand Qur'aan begins with a particle.
The First word is
.
Its first part is a Particle بـِ
. It comprises of consonant
ب of Arabic Alphabet and under it is a
small stroke which is a vowel sign
[ـِ]. This short vowel sign is termed in Urdu
as زير . Particle
بـِ ;
is inseparable meaning it is always
a prefix, is termed
amongst the category of Particles as حرف الجر-Preposition.
It exercises
influence and affects the attached noun by changing its default
nominative state to genitive state. The
noun, which was originally having on its last consonant either sign
ـُُ,
,ـُـُ
, is changed by this Prefixed
Particle-Preposition بـِ
to have this sign at its end
single or double
[ـِ]
.
The prefixed Particle بـِ along with the attached noun is called in Arabic and Urdu, جار و مجرور and in English it is called Prepositional Phrase. Let us repeat it orally with slightly loud voice:
جار و مجرور
بـِ حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
بـِ Inseparable Preposition + Noun-Genitive [Object noun of Preposition بـِ ]
Like learning driving in which the first step is to know and recognize the steering, accelerator, brake and clutch of vehicle, the first step in learning Arabic of Qur'aan and its grammar is to recognize and differentiate just three categories of Words of its text, i.e. Particle, Noun and Verb. The Grand Qur'aan is perhaps the only book of the Universes whose language Arabic and its grammar can be learnt in such manner that everything gets stored and saved in the Non-Declarative memory whereby at later stages the brain will automatically decode the grammar, like one's native language while listening or reading the Qur'aan. The only requirement as indicated in the Qur'aan is that we simultaneously use the faculty of listening and watching the constructs-builds-design-shape of words. By this our brain will automatically keep a duplicate copy of the data in the Non-Declarative memory while retaining "master folder" in the main memory as was done by our brain while we learnt driving a vehicle or native language in the age of infancy.
means and denotes "beginning
is with a name/code". Ponder for a while on
the first information given in Qur'aan. Learning and knowledge begins
with the name-code-noun. Nothing is saved in human memory unless its
name-code-verbal mirroring of an object is known or is assigned to it.
Let us first learn simple method of recognizing the Nouns in the Qur'aan. Recall that
Allah the Exalted had also first taught the Nouns-Names of the existing
objects to our First Father and the First Human being, Adam Alahissalam
[Refer
2:31].
بـِ
Inseparable Preposition
is prefixed ONLY
with a Noun. The last consonant of the
attached noun has vowel sign [ـِ]
.
This particle بـِ
will grant us the ability to visually recognize the Nouns in Qur'aan. Let us put our finger on the text
of Qur'aan and move it forward while carefully watching the words to
detect a word having in its beginning Preposition
بـِ
and a vowel sign
[ـِ]
at the end of word. We got it
.
Like
let us repeat orally with slightly loud voice:
جار و مجرور
بِ حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
بـِ Inseparable Preposition + Noun-Genitive [Object noun of Preposition]
If we see the
word after truncating بـِ
we see
and
we can authoritatively without consulting or referring a dictionary
tell that this word is certainly a Noun.
If we keep doing this exercise and visually locate just another such ten phrases and do the same act of repeating its grammatical structure loudly, we will thereby automatically know and recognize all such phrases and identify nouns in the text of Qur'aan, Allah the Exalted willing. Locate and list 25 single word Prepositional Phrases with Prefix بـِ and vowel sign [ـِ] at the end of word. After having practiced locating in sequence Prepositional Phrases with prefixed Preposition بـِ and suffixed Noun with apparent genitive sign, please just glance this List of Single Words in Alphabetical Order which are Prepositional Phrases with declinable Nouns showing genitive sign at the end.
The other Inseparable Prepositions are: [We need not use them for recognizing Nouns by sight]
(1)
تَـ,
Prefixed Particle-Preposition-used for swearing, it occurs only in this Phrase:
By Allah the Exalted.
(2)
لِـ
Prefixed Particle-Preposition denoting exclusivity, for;
Prepositional Phrase, meaning "exclusively for Allah the Exalted".
(3)
This is not conjoined with the following word.
When used as Preposition it is placed as near to its Object Noun as
possible. It is for swearing.
.................
It is said that prepositions are difficult to
define but are easy to understand. Grand Qur'aan begins with a prepositional phrase
reflective of the fact that it has been made easy to understand.
However, since our first objective is to attain
the ability of effortlessly recognizing the nouns of Grand Qur'aan merely
by seeing the text without consulting a dictionary-Lexicon we
restrict ourselves to visual study. The second type of Prepositions are
Separable Prepositions which means that they unlike prefixed
prepositions like بـِ ,
are also written separately from its object noun. Most frequently used are:
...
----
-- [
]
--
Let us put our finger on the text
of Qur'aan and move it forward while carefully watching the words to
detect these prepositions
followed by a word having at its end a single or double vowel sign
[ـِ] .
We found it
in
2:11 and then in
2:17
.
We know and can authoritatively tell everyone that the word after
is
a Noun. We should repeat the exercise:
جار و مجرور Prepositional Phrase
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of the Preposition]
جار و مجرور Prepositional Phrase
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of the Preposition]
جار و مجرور Prepositional Phrase
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of Preposition]
جار و مجرور Prepositional Phrase
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of the Preposition]
Prepositional Phrase جار و مجرور
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of the Preposition]
جار و مجرور Prepositional Phrase
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of the Preposition]
جار و مجرور Prepositional Phrase
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of the Preposition]
جار و مجرور Prepositional Phrase
حرف جر + اِسم مَجرُور
Separable Preposition +
Noun-Genitive [Object noun of the Preposition]
If we
keep doing this exercise and visually locate just another such ten
phrases and do the same act of repeating its grammatical structure
loudly we will thereby automatically know and recognize all such
phrases and identify nouns in the text of Qur'aan, Allah the Exalted
willing. [Locate and list 25 single word Prepositional Phrases with
followed by a single word with single or double vowel sign
[ـِ]
at the end of word.
We must realize and express
our gratitude to Allah the Exalted that by remembering
just five Prepositions
بـِ ;;
;;
we can recognize half of the text of Qur'aan
merely by seeing since Arabic speech
and text of Qur'aan comprises of Particles,
Nouns
and Verbs.
Lesson-2
Please devote some time for practicing recognizing the Nouns in the Qur'aan by sight with the help of Prepositions and below mentioned Visual signs typical to Nouns before we proceed to know their sub-classifications and other relevant information like gender, plurality etc. Once we acquire the skill of recognizing Nouns by sight, it will facilitate us quickly acquire the skill to recognize by sight the different Phrases in the text of Qur'aan, which is the second category of Text.
Peculiar features of Nouns:
1- They verbally mirror the image or perception of an existing reality; a tangible, physical thing having dimensions, or an abstract idea/thought/perception. The primary meanings, perception and functions of a Noun as are prevalent in English Grammar and Composition are with little modifications also applicable to Nouns of Arabic; "The part of speech (or word class) that is used to name or identify a person, place, thing, quality, or action. Adjective: nominal. Most nouns have both a singular and plural form, can be preceded by an article and/or one or more adjectives, and can serve as the head of a noun phrase". "A noun can function as a subject, direct object, indirect object, complement, appositive, or object of a preposition. In addition, nouns sometimes modify other nouns to form compound nouns".** .
2- The information is attributed to a noun as subject/topic [مبتدأ] of initiating discussion/discourse/conversation. Similarly, noun is used for attribution to another word, it is then the predicate-[خبر]. The Noun which is either Subject [مبتدأ] or Predicate [خبر], it will always be in Nominative state-indicators ـُُ or ـُـُ,
3. The Definite Article
is entered upon the Noun. This enables visual recognition of a Noun in the text of Qur'aan. Please glance the List of All Nouns in the Grand Qur'aan which are prefixed with Definite Article, [1781 Nouns-recurrence: 7436 about 10% of Miscellany]. Please orally repeat this peculiar feature about Nouns of Arabic a couple of times, whereby it will get entrenched in the Non Declarative memory of brain. Please remember that learning a Language is actually acquiring a skill which becomes easy when we do exercise like acquiring any other skill, say driving.
4. The Noun may have " tanwīn (تنوين)" reflected by double short vowel signs at the end of the word [ــًــٍــٌ tanwīn symbols] producing the sound of Nun-ن. This is yet another facility for visual recognition of Nouns in the text of Qur'aan. Just glance through the list [here] repeating orally this peculiar feature of Nouns for couple of times. It will enable its storage in non-declarative memory for ever, whereby we will effortlessly recognize such nouns which will enhance our reading proficiency.
5. Yet another visual identification mark of a Noun is that it does not end with a Jezm, while a verb does. For example seeing these words
-
ending with a Jezm, we will instantly know that these are NOT nouns but are verbs.
6. The genitive case reflected by vowel sign [ـِ .. -ٍ ] at the end of word is uniquely associated with noun.
Lesson-3
فعل (c) plural أفعال Verb:
We have learnt Particles by memorization and have learnt to recognize with their help the Nouns in Qur'aan and also by some other visible signs. Since there are only three categories of a Word we should be able to recognize the Verb automatically-effortlessly when we adjudge it not as Particle or Noun. However, further visible signs to recognize a Verb are:
(1) Lam
: Referred as Lam-al-Jahd. It is a Jussive Particle used to negate the past tense verb. It negates the Past Tense Verb in meanings while utilizing the present-tense in Jussive Mood:
(2) Particle
: This Particle is Subjunctive Particle. The Verb followed by it is Imperfect verb in Subjunctive Mood. Just remember this Particle and we will instantly recognize 104 verbs in Qur'aan;
(3)
-
: This Particle is Subjunctive Particle;
(4) Particle
-
: It is a Particle that precedes only a Verb;
(5) اْ: We are interested in acquiring skill to effortlessly recognize and differentiate the words in the text. This Aleph with a circle on top at the end of words like
--
--
should also be kept in memory as marker sign for verbs. It is called الألف-فارقة--it distinguishes the two words signifying that the preceding Waw is integral part of the preceding word.
(6) Feminine Ta: Words ending with ت-تْ are Feminine Verbs
---
(7) Heavy Noon:
Recap:
1. We need only to memorize few Prepositions like بـِ ;
2. We merely need to memorize that
3. We need to memorize Particles
Please remember above three points and do an exercise by putting finger on the text and move gaze smoothly forward. Firstly identify few nouns and then next times do it for recognizing verbs. This will give us the skill to effortlessly recognize three parts of the entire text of Qur'aan in just one or two hours. Having attained this skill do pay reverence to the Elevated Messenger and prostrate for Allah the Exalted to express gratitude that Qur'aan is made easy to learn and retain in memory.
Visual recognition of Phrases in text of Qur'aan.
Grammar:
Morphology and Syntax
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