Remembrance of Allah — Page 41
Methods of Performing Dhikr Obligatory and Voluntary Dhikr Now the question remains: ‘What are the methods of performing these forms of dhikr ?’ Concerning this it should be remembered that there are two categories of dhikr: those that are obligatory, and those that are voluntary. There is no need here to mention anything about the obligatory types of dhikr because, by the grace of God, the people of our Jam a ‘at do indeed carry these out. So what remains are the voluntary forms of dhikr and there is a need to say something about them. However, since this is a lengthy topic, I leave it for now and wish to explain how the Quran should be recited. Concerning this it should be remembered that one should establish a certain fixed amount that must be read every day. It should not be the case that the Holy Quran is picked up at some random time for some portion to be read from it. On the contrary, it should be read regularly and according to a fixed appointed measure. Irregular reading—that is, reading it sometimes—does