Educational Methods in the Holy Quran

Occasion: a khatira delivered at Bayt Al-Karim on March 14, 2026Source: transcript of a recorded khatira by Dr. Ahmed Abou Seif, watch the original video on YouTube

Tonight we speak about the methodology of the Quran, and how the Quran built the character of the Muslim.

From guidance to ignorance

Human beings began with Adam. When Adam came down to this world, Allah, glorified and exalted, taught him what he was supposed to do and what he needed to do in his life; in fact, He taught him everything. But after that, ignorance crept in among people. We see a man killing his brother. We see people bringing corruption and misguided things, and then someone coming to worship idols. They were on the straight path at the beginning, but over time they began to drift away from it.

This was especially so in the time of jahiliyya, the time before Muhammad ﷺ came. We can call it an age of ignorance: they worshipped idols and did everything wrong, except for a few honorable qualities that stood as pillars of that community.

Then the Quran came to keep people on the track. Which track? The track of stability, the track of content. All of this came together to form the character of the Muslim. You are supposed to be different from the rest of the people.

A different standard

That is why we have our own methods and ethics. When we say lying, is it halal or haram? Haram. Why? Sometimes you can gain more money by lying; sometimes you can reach a higher position. But in our system, in Islam, it is haram, so you will never do it. Even if you could gain something behind the lie, you will not take it, because you say: this is haram, and I will never do it. Cheating is the same. It does not matter what opportunity comes to you, what you could put in your pocket or keep beside you in your bed, whatever this world might bring you, you will never do anything like that, because it is haram. Haram has no other ways around it.

So when people look at you, they find a different person, because this is a different character. You are a unique person in this world.

When the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ explained the reality of the Muslim's position, he showed us that people see you and watch you, all of them. For that reason you must be bright all the time, and nothing should scratch you or make you dirty in the eyes of the people around you.^[1] This is why the Quran came with a system to build that character.

Why the first word was "Read"

At the very beginning of the Quran we find the first verse that came to the Prophet ﷺ.^[2] You may ask yourself why this verse came first. Because the first thing that must be awakened is the mind of the human being.

Imagine I take care of your body before your mindset. What will that person become? He will become like the animals: fat, strong, full of desire, but unable to control the desire, because the part of him that should do the controlling is not working. He cannot say no, he cannot say yes, he cannot say "I want" or "I hate." He does whatever he likes without thinking about the consequences. So from the earliest beginning, the first command that came to the Prophet ﷺ was meant to wake up that mindset: to open the eyes to see, to open the ears and the mind, to start thinking and analyzing.

What does "read" mean?

I try to explain this word like so. What is the meaning of reading? You look at the page and see the words and the sentence, and you start reading, say, "In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Gracious." How did I do that? I saw that this is an I and this is an N, then T, H, E, and then N, A, M, E, and I followed the letters one by one to find the word. If two words were put together by mistake, with no space between them, could you still read them? Yes, because you understand; a person may be confused at first, but after a while he says, "I got it." But in a language like Chinese, you cannot read it unless you understand that language. And if something comes to me written in French, or Spanish, the letters may be the same, but the design of the letters makes the language different, and I cannot understand it, while they can.

What I am saying is that reading is following the steps of analyzing and understanding a case. The case may be one word or one sentence; it does not matter. I can read "this is..." and "this is...", but if I tell you, "This is a microphone," what will you say? "It is not a microphone." Why? Because you start reading its dimensions, the thing you are already seeing. You follow steps to understand what it is. Reading is not just looking at paper and decoding the letters. Reading letters is only a part of the big reading. When you look at the universe, you find yourself exploring the meaning of things, discovering what is happening there.

Once I understand reading this way, I understand that the first command to the Prophet ﷺ was not related only to letters. It was an order to read everything in the whole world, to gain knowledge, to be an educated person.

The educated person

Unfortunately, when we talk about educated people, we mean the PhD holders. But sometimes there is someone more knowledgeable than the PhD holders, without any of the degrees. He is smart enough; he has the information, the mindset of analysis, the way of thinking. We say, "Wow, this is an intelligent person." I am talking about his talent, not his degree. And there is someone with a PhD who cannot grasp the meaning or the reality of the situations in front of him. You know what I mean.

When Allah asks me to read, He asks me to read whether the road is clean or dirty. He asks me to read whether I need to straighten my hair. He asks me to read the situation of the things around me and in myself.

Take Muslims who come together, and when they finish, they leave their plates and the rest of the food behind them. Do you think those people can read? Is their mindset working or not? It is not, because they cannot grasp the importance of moving the thing from here to there, the importance of putting things in the right position, the importance of cleaning up as you go. Subhan Allah. These are minor things, but we are talking about the design of the mentality of the Muslim.

If someone is yelling at people in the street, how do you describe him? You say he is a crazy person. Why? Because he could not read the situation or the position; he cannot deal with people according to their situation. But if someone is fighting with another and yelling at him, you may say he is the same person, who lost his control because of his temper at that moment or the position he was in.

So the Quran begins its orders to the whole of humanity with this word, and as we said, it does not mean just reading letters. It means: understand the cases, understand the position, understand the mentality, understand the situation, understand what is going on around you.

"In the name of your Lord"

Subhan Allah, when Allah ordered the Prophet ﷺ to read, He asked him to read in the name of his Lord. Why is that important? Because reading will lead me to know a great deal about this universe. But I might use it in the wrong direction. Take AI today: most people have at least a humble idea or opinion about it, and everybody is using it. Whatever comes to your mind, you ask it, even "What is the mood of my wife tonight?" One woman asked it, "Do you think my husband is cheating on me?" It told her, "Yes, your husband is cheating on you." She asked, "How did you know?" It said, "You are using your husband's phone, and he is usually asking me how to keep things hidden." It already had the information. You are laughing, and that is good; it looks like a joke. But if this is what happens when we use these tools in the right way, what about the wrong way? That is why you must keep Allah in mind, even before discovering the information, and even before taking the next step to get more.

When Allah guided us, He guided us from the beginning to what we need to do and what direction we should take to achieve our goals. Why does He say "your Lord," and not simply "Allah"? Because I cannot return to Allah unless I affirm the One who created me, and so I must follow His direction. Nobody has more authority over me than Allah; He alone controls me, my life, my temper, everything. So I read while watching Him.

Then consider the word that follows. Think of an unborn child in his mother's womb, connected to her. Picture something connected to a lamp or a fan: if it is not connected directly and strongly, it will fall, because the connection is not there. When Allah says this, He shows you that you are already connected with Allah, and once you cut that connection you are alone and will not find that support any more. Allah will not protect you, because you chose your way against the other way. Connect yourself with Allah. He gives me the example of my first step in this world, when I was there and could not even realize where my position was or where my spot was; I had no consciousness of it.

And then, again, comes the next word: once you find yourself in that position with Allah, He gives you more. He chooses to describe Himself as the Most Generous, to show you that He will not give you step by step; once you move yourself toward Allah, He gives you everything. Don't worry, He will cover all your needs.

Inspiration on the way

This also touches on inspiration, and on what Allah inspires in me. Even right now, sometimes I choose a route for a lecture: I will go from this point to that point. But suddenly I look at someone and he gives me another idea. Where did it come from? From Allah, glorified and exalted, who guided me to talk about you, or about that issue. I do not know, but maybe you are suffering with something and you came to the masjid.

A few months ago I was in a masjid, giving several talks one after another. In the second one I had my preparation; I was going to talk about points one, two, three. But I saw a man coming in, and I looked at his face; he looked scared. I do not know what was going on with him, but I started my talk with "Don't be scared," as an introduction to make people more aware of the existence of Allah and more encouraged to come closer to Him: don't be scared, because Allah is with you. Once I said that, his face changed, and I realized this person needed that talk. I continued with "Don't be scared, because of..." one, two, three, up to eight; all of it came to my mind, though I had not prepared it. Allah sent him his provision through my talk, and that is the whole matter. Sometimes we take one direction, but Allah gives us another. I can understand that Allah will give you whatever you can imagine and beyond your imagination, once you go in the direction He has shown.

The first pillar

This is the first step. There are four pillars for building the character of the Muslim based on the theology of the Quran, as we find when we think deeply about these verses. The first is building the methodology of knowledge in the human being: first thing, and before anything.

Watch your steps

If we are to watch our steps, we need to watch our actions. When you go somewhere, be careful about your Islam, because you are showing your identity, your dignity, your name, your religion. Everyone around you, once they look at you, will realize you are a Muslim. It is especially clear in how you dress, and our sisters, when they go through the stores, have the hijab, and everybody knows they are Muslim.

If we do something wrong, such as, as I mentioned, leaving your plate behind you and going to pray, do you think Allah will accept your prayer while you are causing a hard time for somebody else, who will have to clean up behind you for nothing? If you are in a rush, or under pressure, or have some special reason, that is fine. But if I have nothing, and I am leaving my hardship for another person, by Allah, it is not halal. And I am not talking only about the masjid; it is common everywhere. I am talking about when you go anywhere: what do people expect from you as a Muslim? How do you show yourself, and how do you build your credibility in the minds of those who come to watch and say, "This is the Muslim, and what will he do?"

I ask Allah to accept from all of us. I think it is time for the prayer, and I do not want to take a long time.

--- ^[1]: Editor's note (توثيق المحرر): the Prophetic wording the speaker cites is not clear in the transcript, so it is not quoted here; only the meaning he gave is kept. ^[2]: Editor's note (توثيق المحرر): the Arabic wording of the verses the speaker cites in this khatira did not survive in the transcript. The context (the first verse revealed, and the commentary on "read," "your Lord," and "the Most Generous") points to the opening of Surat al-ʿAlaq (96); the identification of the surah is the editor's.