Similitude of those who recite the Holy Qur'an and those who do not

Hadhrat Abu Musa (Radhiyallaho anho) narrated that Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam) said:
"The example of a mo'min (believer) who reads the Qur'an is like that of citron which has a pleasant smell
and a sweet taste. The example of a mo'min who does not read the Qur'an is like that of a date, which has no
smell, though its taste is sweet. The munafiq (hypocrite) who does not read the Qur'an is like a wild gourd, which has a bitter taste and no smell, and the munafiq who reads the Qur'an is like a raihan [sweetsmelling
flower), which is fragrant but has a bitter taste. "(Bukhari, Muslim, Nasai, and Ibn Majah)



In this hadith an abstract quality of reading the Glorious Qur'an, has been compared to concrete objects in
order to illustrate the difference between reading and not reading the Holy Qur'an. Otherwise it is obvious that material objects of this world like citrons and dates cannot match the sweetness and perfume of the Qur'an. There are, however, special points in this similitude, which pertain to the deep knowledge of the Prophets and testify to the vast understanding of Rasulullah (Sallallaho alaihe wasallam).

Consider, for example, the citron, which gives flavour to the mouth, cleans the stomach and stimulates digestion. These are the qualities specially associated with the reading of the Qur'an since, fragrance in the mouth. internal purity and spiritual strength result from reading the Qur'an. It is also said that if there is citron in the house, no jinn can enter it. If it is true. then such is the speciality of the Qur'an. Some physicians say that citron strengthens the memory and it is reported in 'Ihya' by Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallaho anho) that three things, i.e., cleaning the teeth with miswak, fasting and reading the Holy Qur'an strengthen the memory.

In the book of Abu Dawood, it is mentioned at the conclusion of the hadith given above that a good companion is like a person having musk. Even if vou do not get musk, you will at least enjoy its fragrance. An evil companion is like a person with a furnace, near whom, even if you do not get blackened, vou certainly cannot avoid the smoke. It is, therefore. important that one should be very careful in choosing his companions, with whom he has to mix generally.