From Eid to Ramadan: A reading schedule to complete the Qur’an
A few years ago, I came across an article on the Productive Muslim website about a Qur’an reading challenge. The idea was to use WhatsApp or another similar platform to encourage a group of people to recite the Qur’an daily. Since that was something I struggled with, I set one up.
This is the point in the story where I should say that I was inspired and encouraged to read more consistently, but it wasn’t. I kept the group running, posting as regularly as I could to remind everyone of what verses we needed to read for that day but I struggled to get through them myself. This period coincided with the time that I had two young children, 19 months apart, and I made all.the.excuses – I’m exhausted, X needs this, Y needs that, I’ve got to do this for Z first, and the house needed cleaning and the work needed doing and more and more time would go by with me neglecting recitation.
In 2019, it just so happened that I had structured the verses such that it took us from the end of one Ramadan to the beginning of another to complete the entire Qur’an. Except I hadn’t – I had missed days here and there and hadn’t really completed anything.
That year, at the end of Ramadan (whilst in labour with my third child), I fervently made a du’a for my relationship with the Qur’an to improve. This time, when we began again after Eid ul Fitr in 2019, I managed to stay consistent and completed a full reading before Ramadan 2020 and since then have completed a khitmah before every Ramadan up to 2023 alhamdullilah. In those years, I also completed an advanced tajweed course to refresh my tajweed and a khitmah class where we were required to read the entire Qur’an from cover to cover to a teacher, as well as working on familiarising myself with Qur’anic vocabulary using this book.
Reading schedule for 2024 - 2025
Lots of you followed along with the reading schedule last year and I’ve already been asked on Instagram when the new schedule will be up! If you’re new to the challenge, all that's required of you is to spend a few minutes each day with the Qur'an - reading approximately 20 verses (some days may have a few more, some have less) but the beauty of having a schedule like this is that it gives you a goal to work towards. Highlight the surahs as you go along or tick them off, anything that will help you visually see your progress from week to week, is motivating too! This year - as requested by loads of you - I’ve added a second version in the traditional order, so pick what suits you/ your group best!
Frequently asked questions
Why are the surahs in a random order for one of the schedules?
The surahs are ordered in revelation order, instead of the order that they appear in the Qur'an. There is something beautiful about reading the surahs in the order that they were revealed (ofcourse not all surahs were revealed in completion all at once, and that's another thing that is so fascinating about the Qur'an!) - you'll find yourself drawn to His words even more and you will probably find yourself reading tafseer books or the seerah of the Prophet (SAW) to understand the context better.
What do I do when I’m on my menses?
If you follow the opinion that you cannot read the Qur’an whilst menstruating, you can read more on days where you have extra time to compensate for that lost time. I've also factored in a buffer of a few days at the end of the schedule to allow you to catch up with any pending recitation before Ramadan 2025 begins (may Allah allow us to reach it)
Do you read the translation alongside the Arabic?
I highly recommend this, especially if you aren’t well-versed in Qur’anic Arabic. Reading the Qur’an is meant to be an interactive exercise, Allah (SWT) is speaking to us through it and we need to understand it in order to implement the lessons within it and seek comfort in it insha’Allah.
Qur’ an reading favourites:
Tab markers for frequently read surahs, du’as & much more
“And We send down of the Qur’an that which is healing and mercy for the believers.”
I pray this is of immense benefit to you and your families. If I've made any errors unintentionally, please let me know so I can correct them. May Allah make us all people of His book and may the Qur'an always be a source of comfort and guidance for us. Ameen.
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