I find that incredible - thats almost learning a whole book (of the 30 books in the Quran) of by heart every week, and thats in a foreign language.
Were there any special techniques. Do you regret that time lost becoming a hafiz, and do you think it helped you develop a better memory etc. How much of it do you remember now?
yes , they said I had very good memorizing power , so I memorized nearly 4 pages everyday , but I was always curious , so I would also look up the meaning of what I had just memorized in a Urdu Tafseer , that way I could now understand Quranic Arabic upto 80% , which in turn made memorizing other parts more and more easier and faster.
Speaking of special techniques, yes there were :The madrasah timings were 6:00 am to 1:30 pm , then again from 3:30pm to 9:30 pm . A total of 13-14 hours a day!
And you got beaten up with a 2 inch thick rubber pipe AND/OR the "Rehal" ( the wooden thing you keep Quran on while reading ) for making more than 3 mistakes while reciting
If you didnt finish memorizing in the time alloted , you were made "Murga" ( bending like a Cock/Hen ) which was particularly painful for me as I was obese , a few minutes more late and you were made into the "Unsupported chair" position which was aweful , Thank
I never got that punishment, but it was so inhumane and painful that I would cry just at seeing my friend being punished. I was so terrified of my Maulana that I once remember having peed in my pants, even after completing Hifz and joining school the memories of that madrasah haunted me for a while, My parents often threatened to take me to that Maulana whenever I mis-behaved .
I do not regret having wasted my time in Hifz, in fact I realize now that my Hifz was what that gave me the knowledge and insight in Quran , which has ultimately led me to this position. Also I feel that the memorizing has sharpened my memory, I can now very easily memorize anything and remember for a long time.
My parents make me recite at least a Juz ( part ) of Quran daily to them ( by heart ), so I still remember all of the Quran . This is the most difficult task I am forced into...
Topic: Muslim-no-more