The following videos were recorded at the 40th khatam sharif (prayer services held after 40 days) of Professor Hafiz Fateh Muhammad (may Allah Almighty have mercy on his soul), on 12 June 2005.
We specifically would like to thank ARN Videos (Leeds 12) for recording and allowing us to utilise these rare videos.
Shaykh Hafiz Fateh Muhammad sahib (May Allah have mercy on his soul) had immense love for the Holy Quran in his heart. He spent his entire life reciting and studying the book of Allah. At times, he will complete the full recitation of the Holy Qur’an in two days, without neglecting his daily responsibilities and duties.He believed and acted upon the saying of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), that inner peace, success in the affairs of this life and in the afterlife depends on a Muslim’s relationship with the word of Allah, the Holy Qur’an.
In order to instil the love of the Holy Quran in the hearts of the Muslims and a yearning to understand the communication of the Lord of the Heavens and the Earth with Man, Shaykh Hafiz Fateh Muhammad sahib held Quranic study circles at Madina Masjid (Leeds). Hafiz sahib started these study circles in mid 1990s for the general public and continued these at the newly built Makkah Masjid till 2005 when he passed away from this world.
During these 10 years, he almost covered half of the Holy Qur’an in the study circles. However, rather than starting from part 1 and going thorough the Holy Qur’an in a chronological order, Hafiz Fateh Muhammad sahib would select a surah with a theme, a theme that would be closer to the heart of the local community at a given time, and then explain the issues that are affecting the local community through the light of the Qur’an, using classical and modern exegeses.
For instance, in order to warn the Muslims of the consequences of heedlessness and disregard for the commandments of Allah,Hafiz Sahib covered Surah Hūd, which focuses on stories of earlier communities and what led to their destruction. Similarly, in order to explain the rules and regulations pertaining to marriage, divorce, trade, charity, fasting and Hajj etc, Hafiz Sahib went through Surah al-Baqarah in a period of around 6 months.Hafiz Sahib, in the Quranic study circles covered many surahs including surahs Aal-Imran, al-‘araf, Yusuf, Noor, al-Ahzab, Ya-Sin, al-Rahman , al-Mulk and 30th part (Juz) of the Qur’an.
Hafiz Sahib (many Allah have mercy on his soul) lectured, both in English and Urdu in order to cater for young and elderly people. He gave an in-depth analysis of the verses of the Holy Qoran explaining the structure of the verses through Arabic grammar and Arabic poetry, dealing with occasions of revelation, background to the verses, shedding light on the interpretations given by the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him) [Ahadith], the companions, the earlier and modern exegetes and scholars.
Some of these lectures have been recorded by those who attended the circles. In particular, we are thankful to brothers Pervaiz and Assan for sharing their recordings with us.
Insha-Allah, in this post Shaykh Hafiz Fateh Muhammad’s explanation of Surah Hood (Surah No. 11) will be uploaded in stages.
