I know that there are many people who want a secret code that will enable them to memorize everything they encounter. They want to be Bukhari's, Shafi`ee's and much more.
Well, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that there does exist such a du`a, recommended by the Prophet Muhammad, SallAllahu `Alaihi wa Sallam, to his cousin `Ali. Thing is, though, it is quite a lengthy du`a and involves memorizing (or at least learning how to read fluently, for those who choose to pray with an open Qur'an) 4 Surahs from 2 1/2 - 6 pages in length, waking up once a week for Tahajjud (though I would recommend making this a regular, daily habit), and reading these 4 Surahs in that prayer. But that's not even the bad news.
The bad news (which is actually good news in disguise) is that this du`a will have almost no effect unless a serious effort is made to adhere to the obedience of Allah. There are two sides to this reason.
Firstly, when an individual is making the same du`a continuously for a period of time, it is unreasonable for that person to be simultaneously involved in disobeying and showing active ungratefulness to Allah, and still expect for his du`as to be accepted.
Secondly, the large majority of sins that Muslims are involved in today harm not only the soul, but also the brain and its ability to function. Things like music, movies, relationships outside of marriage, pornography, masturbation, drugs, alcohol and many others have an adverse effect on the thinking process as well as the physical make-up of the brain. I intend to expound on this topic of sins much more in the future, because it is something that many people, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, are unaware of.
In all honesty, I personally think that the moral reformation of a person alone will have a much greater impact on their ability to memorize than if this du`a is used without the proper, Islamic moral foundation.
Now.. The long awaited...
Hadhrat Ibn 'Abbas (Radhiyallaho anho) reports that he was once in the company of Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) when Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallaho anho) came in and said "0, Prophet of Allah! you are dearer to me than my father and mother. I try to memorize the Qur'an but cannot do so, as it vanishes from my memory." Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) said, "Shall I tell you of a method that will benefit you as well as those to whom it is conveyed by you? You will then be able to retain whatever you learn." At the request of Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallaho anho) Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) said, "When the night preceding Friday comes, rise up in its last third portion, if possible, for that would be excellent, because this is the best part of the night, as this is the time when angels descend and prayers are specially granted at this hour. It was for this time that Hadhrat Yaqub (Alayhis salaam) had been waiting when he had said to his sons that he would, in the near future, pray to his Lord for forgivenes,s for them. If it be difficult to get up at that time, then you should do so in the middle part of the night and if even that be not possible, offer the four
rak'aat in the early part of the night. After reciting surah Fatihah in each rak'aat, surah Yaaseen should be recited in
the first rak'at, surah Dukhaan in the second, surah Alif Laam Meem Sajdah in the third and surah Mulk in the
fourth. After completing at-tahiyaat (glorification of Allah in the sitting posture in salat) you should praise and glorify
Almighty Allah abundantly, invoke peace and blessings on me and on all the Prophets, and seek forgiveness for all believers and those Muslim brethern who have passed away before you, and then recite the following du'a."
Before the du'a it may be mentioned that several forms of 'hamd-o-thana' (praise and glorification), etc., which are
required to be recited before this du'a are reported in other ahadith given in 'Shurooh-e-Hisn' and 'Munaajaat Maqbul'.
Those who can consult these books should themselves find the details and thereby enrich their du'a.
After this, the following du'a which was taught by Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) to Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallaho
anho):
اللَّهُمَّ ارْحَمْنِي بِتَرْكِ الْمَعَاصِي أَبَدًا مَا أَبْقَيْتَنِي وَارْحَمْنِي أَنْ أَتَكَلَّفَ مَا لَا يَعْنِينِي وَارْزُقْنِي حُسْنَ النَّظَرِ فِيمَا يُرْضِيكَ عَنِّي اللَّهُمَّ بَدِيعَ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ذَا الْجَلَالِ وَالْإِكْرَامِ وَالْعِزَّةِ الَّتِي لَا تُرَامُ أَسْأَلُكَ يَا أَللَّهُ يَا رَحْمَنُ بِجَلَالِكَ وَنُورِ وَجْهِكَ أَنْ تُلْزِمَ قَلْبِي حِفْظَ كِتَابِكَ كَمَا عَلَّمْتَنِي وَارْزُقْنِي أَنْ أَتْلُوَهُ عَلَى النَّحْوِ الَّذِي يُرْضِيكَ عَنِّيَ اللَّهُمَّ بَدِيعَ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ذَا الْجَلَالِ وَالْإِكْرَامِ وَالْعِزَّةِ الَّتِي لَا تُرَامُ أَسْأَلُكَ يَا أَللَّهُ يَا رَحْمَنُ بِجَلَالِكَ وَنُورِ وَجْهِكَ أَنْ تُنَوِّرَ بِكِتَابِكَ بَصَرِي وَأَنْ تُطْلِقَ بِهِ لِسَانِي وَأَنْ تُفَرِّجَ بِهِ عَنْ قَلْبِي وَأَنْ تَشْرَحَ بِهِ صَدْرِي وَأَنْ تَغْسِلَ بِهِ بَدَنِي فَإِنَّهُ لَا يُعِينُنِي عَلَى الْحَقِّ غَيْرُكَ وَلَا يُؤْتِيهِ إِلَّا أَنْتَ وَلَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ الْعَلِيِّ الْعَظِيمِ
(Oh, Allah! have mercy upon me, so that I always abstain from sinful deeds as long as I am alive, be kind to me so that I do not toil in vain pursuits, and bless me with solace in that which pleases Thee. Oh, Allah! the Originator of Heavens and Earth, Master of Glory and Honour, Lord of such Majesty, attainment of which cannot even be conceived. Oh, Allah! the Most Beneficent, I pray in the name of Thy Majesty and Effulgence of Thy Countenance, to impose upon by heart
the merqorizing of Thy Book, as Thou hast taught me the same, and grant me such a manner of recitation as
pleases Thee. Oh, Allah! the Originator of Heavens and Earth, Master of Glory and Honour, Lord of such Majesty,
attainment of which cannot even be conceived! 0, Allah, the Most Beneficent I pray in the name of Thy Majesty and Effulgence of Thy Countenance, to illumine my visioq with the noor of Thy Book, bless my tongue with a flow in its reading, and through its blessing remove heaviness of my heart, open my mind, and wash away (the sins of) my body. Certainly there is none except Thee to support me in the cause of truth, and none except Thee can fulfil this desire of mine. There can be no safeguard (against evil) nor any power (over virtue) except with tlle help of Allah, the Most
High, the Most Great.)
Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) further said to Hadhrat Ali-(Radhiyallaho anho), "Repeat this act for three,
five or seven Fridays. If Allah so wills, your prayer will .certainly be granted. I swear by Him Who made me Prophet
that acceptance of His prayer will never be missed by any believer.'. Ibn 'Abbas (Radhiyallaho anho) reports that hardly had five or seven Fridays passed when Hadhrat 'Ali (Radhiyallaho anho) came to Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) and said, "Previously I used to learn about four ayaat but I was not able to retain them, and now I learn about forty and I can remember them as clearly as if I have the Qur'an open before me. Previously when I heard a hadith and then repeated it I could not retain it, and now I hear ahadith and, when I narrate them to others, I do not miss a single
word."
I myself can somewhat testify to this miracle. I had used this du`a on and off while I was memorizing Qur'an. When I began using this du`a, I was able to memorize 1 page of Qur'an (15 lines) in about 2 hours, and was unable to learn more than this 1 page each day. As I continued memorizing Qur'an I was quickly learning 1 page in single hour, and could learn from 2 to 3 pages each day. As I neared completion of the Qur'an, I was managing a single page in 15 to 20 minutes, and could learn more than 8 pages a day consistently.
May Allah increase you in memory, make the Qur'an a means of guidance for you, and bring you pleasure from His obedience.
Well, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that there does exist such a du`a, recommended by the Prophet Muhammad, SallAllahu `Alaihi wa Sallam, to his cousin `Ali. Thing is, though, it is quite a lengthy du`a and involves memorizing (or at least learning how to read fluently, for those who choose to pray with an open Qur'an) 4 Surahs from 2 1/2 - 6 pages in length, waking up once a week for Tahajjud (though I would recommend making this a regular, daily habit), and reading these 4 Surahs in that prayer. But that's not even the bad news.
The bad news (which is actually good news in disguise) is that this du`a will have almost no effect unless a serious effort is made to adhere to the obedience of Allah. There are two sides to this reason.
Firstly, when an individual is making the same du`a continuously for a period of time, it is unreasonable for that person to be simultaneously involved in disobeying and showing active ungratefulness to Allah, and still expect for his du`as to be accepted.
Secondly, the large majority of sins that Muslims are involved in today harm not only the soul, but also the brain and its ability to function. Things like music, movies, relationships outside of marriage, pornography, masturbation, drugs, alcohol and many others have an adverse effect on the thinking process as well as the physical make-up of the brain. I intend to expound on this topic of sins much more in the future, because it is something that many people, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, are unaware of.
In all honesty, I personally think that the moral reformation of a person alone will have a much greater impact on their ability to memorize than if this du`a is used without the proper, Islamic moral foundation.
Now.. The long awaited...
Hadhrat Ibn 'Abbas (Radhiyallaho anho) reports that he was once in the company of Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) when Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallaho anho) came in and said "0, Prophet of Allah! you are dearer to me than my father and mother. I try to memorize the Qur'an but cannot do so, as it vanishes from my memory." Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) said, "Shall I tell you of a method that will benefit you as well as those to whom it is conveyed by you? You will then be able to retain whatever you learn." At the request of Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallaho anho) Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) said, "When the night preceding Friday comes, rise up in its last third portion, if possible, for that would be excellent, because this is the best part of the night, as this is the time when angels descend and prayers are specially granted at this hour. It was for this time that Hadhrat Yaqub (Alayhis salaam) had been waiting when he had said to his sons that he would, in the near future, pray to his Lord for forgivenes,s for them. If it be difficult to get up at that time, then you should do so in the middle part of the night and if even that be not possible, offer the four
rak'aat in the early part of the night. After reciting surah Fatihah in each rak'aat, surah Yaaseen should be recited in
the first rak'at, surah Dukhaan in the second, surah Alif Laam Meem Sajdah in the third and surah Mulk in the
fourth. After completing at-tahiyaat (glorification of Allah in the sitting posture in salat) you should praise and glorify
Almighty Allah abundantly, invoke peace and blessings on me and on all the Prophets, and seek forgiveness for all believers and those Muslim brethern who have passed away before you, and then recite the following du'a."
Before the du'a it may be mentioned that several forms of 'hamd-o-thana' (praise and glorification), etc., which are
required to be recited before this du'a are reported in other ahadith given in 'Shurooh-e-Hisn' and 'Munaajaat Maqbul'.
Those who can consult these books should themselves find the details and thereby enrich their du'a.
After this, the following du'a which was taught by Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) to Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallaho
anho):
اللَّهُمَّ ارْحَمْنِي بِتَرْكِ الْمَعَاصِي أَبَدًا مَا أَبْقَيْتَنِي وَارْحَمْنِي أَنْ أَتَكَلَّفَ مَا لَا يَعْنِينِي وَارْزُقْنِي حُسْنَ النَّظَرِ فِيمَا يُرْضِيكَ عَنِّي اللَّهُمَّ بَدِيعَ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ذَا الْجَلَالِ وَالْإِكْرَامِ وَالْعِزَّةِ الَّتِي لَا تُرَامُ أَسْأَلُكَ يَا أَللَّهُ يَا رَحْمَنُ بِجَلَالِكَ وَنُورِ وَجْهِكَ أَنْ تُلْزِمَ قَلْبِي حِفْظَ كِتَابِكَ كَمَا عَلَّمْتَنِي وَارْزُقْنِي أَنْ أَتْلُوَهُ عَلَى النَّحْوِ الَّذِي يُرْضِيكَ عَنِّيَ اللَّهُمَّ بَدِيعَ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ذَا الْجَلَالِ وَالْإِكْرَامِ وَالْعِزَّةِ الَّتِي لَا تُرَامُ أَسْأَلُكَ يَا أَللَّهُ يَا رَحْمَنُ بِجَلَالِكَ وَنُورِ وَجْهِكَ أَنْ تُنَوِّرَ بِكِتَابِكَ بَصَرِي وَأَنْ تُطْلِقَ بِهِ لِسَانِي وَأَنْ تُفَرِّجَ بِهِ عَنْ قَلْبِي وَأَنْ تَشْرَحَ بِهِ صَدْرِي وَأَنْ تَغْسِلَ بِهِ بَدَنِي فَإِنَّهُ لَا يُعِينُنِي عَلَى الْحَقِّ غَيْرُكَ وَلَا يُؤْتِيهِ إِلَّا أَنْتَ وَلَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ الْعَلِيِّ الْعَظِيمِ
(Oh, Allah! have mercy upon me, so that I always abstain from sinful deeds as long as I am alive, be kind to me so that I do not toil in vain pursuits, and bless me with solace in that which pleases Thee. Oh, Allah! the Originator of Heavens and Earth, Master of Glory and Honour, Lord of such Majesty, attainment of which cannot even be conceived. Oh, Allah! the Most Beneficent, I pray in the name of Thy Majesty and Effulgence of Thy Countenance, to impose upon by heart
the merqorizing of Thy Book, as Thou hast taught me the same, and grant me such a manner of recitation as
pleases Thee. Oh, Allah! the Originator of Heavens and Earth, Master of Glory and Honour, Lord of such Majesty,
attainment of which cannot even be conceived! 0, Allah, the Most Beneficent I pray in the name of Thy Majesty and Effulgence of Thy Countenance, to illumine my visioq with the noor of Thy Book, bless my tongue with a flow in its reading, and through its blessing remove heaviness of my heart, open my mind, and wash away (the sins of) my body. Certainly there is none except Thee to support me in the cause of truth, and none except Thee can fulfil this desire of mine. There can be no safeguard (against evil) nor any power (over virtue) except with tlle help of Allah, the Most
High, the Most Great.)
Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) further said to Hadhrat Ali-(Radhiyallaho anho), "Repeat this act for three,
five or seven Fridays. If Allah so wills, your prayer will .certainly be granted. I swear by Him Who made me Prophet
that acceptance of His prayer will never be missed by any believer.'. Ibn 'Abbas (Radhiyallaho anho) reports that hardly had five or seven Fridays passed when Hadhrat 'Ali (Radhiyallaho anho) came to Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) and said, "Previously I used to learn about four ayaat but I was not able to retain them, and now I learn about forty and I can remember them as clearly as if I have the Qur'an open before me. Previously when I heard a hadith and then repeated it I could not retain it, and now I hear ahadith and, when I narrate them to others, I do not miss a single
word."
I myself can somewhat testify to this miracle. I had used this du`a on and off while I was memorizing Qur'an. When I began using this du`a, I was able to memorize 1 page of Qur'an (15 lines) in about 2 hours, and was unable to learn more than this 1 page each day. As I continued memorizing Qur'an I was quickly learning 1 page in single hour, and could learn from 2 to 3 pages each day. As I neared completion of the Qur'an, I was managing a single page in 15 to 20 minutes, and could learn more than 8 pages a day consistently.
May Allah increase you in memory, make the Qur'an a means of guidance for you, and bring you pleasure from His obedience.