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MARVELS OF THE QUR’AN
Seven Keys to Unlock Seventy Meanings
October 15 – 17 via Zoom
Many of us find that our commitment to the Qur’an wanes after the waxing of Shawwāl’s crescent moon. We read less, reflect less, and are less engaged with the Book of Allah, until “next Ramadan” resets our spiritual priorities. And Allah says in His majestic Book: “Do they not reflect deeply on the Qur’an, or have hearts locked themselves out!” (Muḥammad 47:24). Yet there are keys to unlock doors of meaning to flood the heart, allowing it to, ultimately, mirror its own reflections on the Word of God. Indeed, every verse of which holds seventy meanings according to ʿAbd Allāh b. ʿAbbās. This seminar will cover seven such keys and cover various approaches to tadabbur, that divine invitation to contemplate the layered meanings of the Book of Allah and to inform our own reflections for personal and spiritual benefit. These include the interpretive tools of coherence, etymology, orthography, incantational pauses, Prophetic discourse, and the inward and outward etiquettes that will unearth for us layers of meaning beyond what is rendered in translation.
II | Grammar/Morphology
III | Etymology
IV | Orthography
V | Ellipsis
VI | Transition
VII | Prophetic Eloquence
All sessions are according to Eastern Time and will be uploaded to a private YouTube playlist for convenient viewing.
FRIDAY, OCT 15 | |
8:00 – 8:45 | Oriententions |
8:45 – 9:30 | Session I |
9:30 – 10:00 | Sūrat al-Mulk Ḥāfiẓ led by Mohammad Samir & ʿIshāʾ |
10:00 – 11:00 | Session II |
SATURDAY, OCT 16 | |
10:30 – 10:45 | Sūrat Yā Sīn |
10:45 – 12:00 | Session III – Sh. Mohamed Hag Magid |
12:00 – 2:00 | Lunch & Ẓuhr |
2:00 – 3:15 | Session IV |
3:15 – 4:00 | Khatm Recitation |
4:00 – 4:30 | Aṣr & Break |
4:30 – 6:00 | Session V |
6:00 – 7:30 |
Dinner & Maghrib |
7:30 – 9:00 |
Session VI |
9:00 – 9:30 | Unveiling of Winter Retreat & Nashīd |
9:30 – 9:45 |
Sūrat al-Mulk led by Ḥāfiẓ Mohammad Samir |
9:45 – 10:00 | ʿIshāʾ & Break |
10:00 – 11:00 |
Circle of Light & Duʿāʾ al-Khatm |
SUNDAY, OCT 17 | |
10:30 – 10:45 | Sūrat Yā Sīn |
10:45 – 12:00 | Session VII |
12:00 – 2:00 | Lunch & Ẓuhr |
2:00 – 3:15 | Session VIII (Tentative) |
SHAYKH MOHAMED HAG MAGID
Shaykh Mohamed Hag Magid is the Imam of All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) Center in Sterling, Virginia. He is the chairman of International Interfaith Peace Corps (IIPC). Shaykh Magid served as the President of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). Under his direction, the ADAMS Center has grown to be one of the largest Muslim community organizations in all of the United States. He also occupies the Chairmanship of the Fairfax County Faith Communities in Action. He is also the Vice Chairman of Muflehun, a think tank, which focuses on confronting violent extremist thought through research-driven preventative programs within a religious paradigm. Shaykh Magid has a long history of commitment to public service through organizations such as The Peaceful Families Project. He has co-authored three books “Before You Tie the Knot: A Guide for Couples,” “Reflections on the Qur’an,” and “Change from Within.” He has helped training and workshops for Imams and religious leaders, domestically and internationally, on the issue of violence against women. Shaykh Magid has written for the Washington Post and Huffington Post, and been profiled in Time Magazine and Wall Street Journal. He is the recipient for the Washingtonian of the Year 2009 and the Human Rights Award 2005 from Fairfax County.
EL-HAJJ HISHAM MAHMOUD
El-Hajj Hisham Mahmoud has studied theology, hadith, legal theory, jurisprudence, ethics, Qur'an recitation, and Arabic with scholars in Morocco, Mauritania, and Egypt. He has taught for more than a decade at Yale, Princeton, and Harvard, then left the Academy to institute Lanturna, an educational initiative that intends to establish learning collectives throughout North America. He continues to read with scholars and students in the United States. Currently, El-Hajj Hisham resides in Pennsylvania with his wife and four children.
ḤĀFIẒ MOHAMMAD SAMIR
Ḥāfiẓ Mohammad Samir has sought to honor the Qur’an his entire life, memorizing its letters at the age of 12, receiving one of the shortest chains of transmission (isnād) from Sh. Muhammad bin Younus al-Ghalban, learning some of its recitation styles, and has studied its derivative sciences including cantillation (tajwīd), occasions for revelation (asbāb al-nuzūl), and exegesis (tafsīr). A love for the Arabic language and its teaching led him to a curricular contribution to the Diyabat Literacy Institute, which serves 600 students in Upper Egypt and the Read and Memorize Qur’an Engagement Curriculum, used by more than 1,000 students around the world. He graduated from Georgetown this Spring with a degree in International Political Economy from its School of Foreign Service and resides near Washington D.C.
PRELIMINARY SESSION
Treasures from the Throne