The vocabulary "murajaah" has become familiar among the public since the rise of Al-Quran memorizers or hafiz. However, many do not fully understand the meaning or philosophy behind the term "murajaah". They often consider murajaah as an activity to memorize the Al-Quran in groups. Therefore, the author feels the need to provide further explanation.

The word "murajaah" comes from the root word "raja'a" (رَجَعَ), which means to return or return. The process of repeating memorization is called murajaah because it can only be done after revisiting previously learned sections. This follows the grammatical pattern "wazan mufaa'alah" (مُفَاعَلَةٌ) from the verb form faa'ala yufaa'ilu (فَاعَلَ يُفَاعِلُ), which essentially describes an action carried out together. Therefore, murajaah was not initially done individually, but rather involved mutual assistance between fellow Quran memorizers.

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The Noble Struggle of Al-Quran Memorizers

Exchanging answers in discussions or chats, as described in the Arabic dictionary, can also be called murajaah. Imam Ilkiya al-Harasi (d. 504 H.) said that every time he memorized knowledge in the form of hadith, he would read it again with the help of his wife at home, even though his wife herself had not memorized it. This action carried out by Ilkiya al-Harasi was declared “murajaah”, similar to the deposit tradition.

Ada satu kejadian ketika Rasulullah Saw menyatakan, “Barangsiapa yang dihisab, berarti dia akan diadzab.” Kemudian, Siti Aisyah bertanya, “Bukankah ada hisab yang ringan bagi orang yang diberikan buku catatan amalnya dari tangan kanan?” Rasulullah Saw menjawab, “Hisab yang ringan bukanlah hisab yang mempertanggungjawabkan setiap amalnya satu per satu, tetapi hanya menunjukkan buku amalnya saja.” Tindakan yang dilakukan oleh Siti Aisyah dalam merujuk kepada hadits Imam al-Bukhari (w. 259 H.) disebut sebagai murajaah.

Siti Aisyah not only received knowledge from the Prophet that she did not understand without asking, but she clarified her understanding by asking him again. In this case, murajaah not only aims to strengthen memorization, but also to deepen understanding. Imam al-Bukhari (d. 504 H.) even included the story of Siti Aisyah's murajaah as a special chapter in his Sahih Book of Knowledge.

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When a researcher refers to primary sources to prove their research findings, it is also called murajaah. The word "referring" comes from the Arabic word "ruju'" (رُجُوْعٌ), which is the root of the word "murajaah." In the tradition of reading the Quran by sight (binnazhar) in the Indonesian archipelago, if there is a pause (waqaf) in an unfinished sentence, the reader must return to the beginning of the sentence to continue reading. This is also called murajaah.

There was an incident where Umar bin Khaththab passed by a group of people who were reciting the Quran in a group. Then, Umar asked them, "Are you reciting the Quran in pairs?" They replied, "We are reciting the Quran, some of us to others." The word Umar bin Khaththab used when asking them was "murajaah.".

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Murajaah and Tikrar Mean to Repeat, Different Processes

Thus, murajaah differs from takrir or tikrar. Although both mean repetition, takrir or tikrar is more related to repeating a lesson that has not been memorized until it is fully memorized. One technique known among Salaf scholars is increasing takrir, namely by repeating the lesson until it is memorized. Meanwhile, murajaah refers to repeating a lesson that has been memorized before its memory expires, with the aim of maintaining and improving its quality in various aspects such as fluency, understanding, practice, devotion, dhikr, and sincerity.

This can be done individually or in groups, or by making a deposit to a hafizh. So, reading it becomes an efficacious prayer that everyone hopes for.

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Rasulullah Saw pernah mengutip firman Allah, atau yang dikenal sebagai Hadits Qudsi, bahwa Allah Swt berfirman, “Barangsiapa yang disibukkan oleh Al-Quran sehingga tidak sempat meminta kepada-Ku, maka akan Aku berikan kepadanya sesuatu yang lebih baik dari yang diberikan kepada para peminta.”

In other words, murajaah is also a way for memorizers of the Koran to ask Allah in the best and most effective way. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why during the time of the companions and tabiin, they were given many gifts by Allah, even though their only dhikr and prayer was reading the Koran.

This is an explanation of what murajaah is, and the noble struggle of those who memorize the Koran. This article was inspired by KH. Deden Makhyarudin MA, founder of Indonesia Murajaah who provides guidance to many Qur'an hufaz students. Hope it is useful.

God knows best

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