Al-Qalam 
Sheikh Saeed Qalqili, an Imam at Masjid Al-Aqsa was an adjudicator at the National Quran Memorisation Competition while Sheikh Maher Al Muayqali, an Imam of the Grand Mosque in Makkah, was a guest, reports Nabeelah Shaikh.
Hufaadh from across South Africa gathered over the weekend in Tshwane to display their love and passion for the holy Quran.
Their beautiful voices captivated those gathered at the packed Masjid Al Noor in Laudium when they participated in the National Quran Memorisation competition.
A total of 40 Hufaadh from across South Africa, recited at the competition, with winners emerging in various categories for both males and females.
The competition is hosted annually by the South African National Quran Council (SANQC).
This year’s Master of Ceremony at the event was renowned Islamic scholar, Mufti Ismail Menk. Other special guests included Sheikh Maher Al Muayqali, an Imam of the Haram or the Grand Mosque, in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Sheikh Saeed Qalqili, an Imam at Masjid Al-Aqsa in Palestine, was also a guest and an adjudicator at the competition. Winners received cash prizes of between R15 000 – R5000 each, depending on where they were placed in the top three.
The competition saw four categories this year, with the full Quran category being one of the most important. Participants were adjudicated based on their Hifdh, Tajwid, Waqf, and fluent rendition.
“The event was a huge success. We have received feedback from those who attended, that they really enjoyed it. The mosque was full, the courtyard was full. The crowd really enjoyed the quality of the Quran recitation. It was just something else, listening to the Hufaadh recite,” said Ibrahim Wadee, a Coordinator at the SANQC.
Wadee says the SANQC has been in existence for 22 years and the competition was an important part of the Council.
“It’s an organisation that’s focused on serving the holy and noble Quran, and that is its primary objective. Spanning from just teaching it, from making it part of people’s lives to improving the level of reciting it in the country. We do all of this. SANQC also aims to further educate South Africa’s Hufaadh, about the various sciences of Tajwid and Qira’at,” said Wadee.
Participants
The SANQC is run by a group of dedicated volunteers whose skills range from administrators, graphic designers, accountants, travel agents, lawyers and Hufaadh.
“With regards to the national competition, what happens next is also very exciting. Depending on different countries, we normally get invited to different international Quran memorisation competitions. There are competitions in Tanzania, Saudi Arabia and Dubai annually. We look at our winners and select participants from there to attend these competitions,” said Wadee.
Wadee said it was also inspiring to see young children participating.
“We have nine-year-olds, 12-year-olds participating, among other age groups who participate every year. It was really good to see the youngsters come through and participate at such a high level. It was inspirational to listen to them reciting,” said Wadee.
He said the competition has a huge impact annually.
“We have students from the SANQC who have taken part or won in previous years, who are now furthering their studies in the Quran. And they have access to this education around the world, thanks to the opportunities created for them by SANQC. They learn through this that Hifdh is a lifelong journey, and is much more than just an afternoon Hifdh class,” said Wadee.
Wadee added that it was amazing to see the growth and expansion of the competition through the years. The SANQC was only in its third year of hosting the female side of the competition and there is now a real push to see more females being given the opportunity to participate in such platforms.
“The female competition is run by females. The volunteers and judges were females. The SANQC found female scholars in Quran, built them up, and made them adjudicate. This was a way to encourage female empowerment and to encourage females to participate. In our country, there is not much initiative for females to participate in this space. We aim to improve our female performance in the competition annually,” said Wadee.
