notifications_active Weekly Meshkat-e Noor Session: Thursdays at 20:30 at Haj Reza Mosque
Dear teacher, we are encouraged to recite the Qur’an in Arabic. For those who do not know Arabic, reading a translation is also recommended so they can better understand it. But what about the supplications handed down from the Imams, peace be upon them? Is there virtue in reciting these in Arabic, or is it enough to understand their meaning? I am especially interested in the supplications in al-Ṣaḥīfa al-Sajjādiyya.
The Qur’an and transmitted supplications such as al-Ṣaḥīfa al-Sajjādiyya contain profound inner meanings, allusions, subtleties, and truths that no translation can fully convey. To rely on a translation alone is to settle for only a small share of this great treasury; it does not carry the virtue of reciting the Arabic text.
The Qur’an has inner dimensions and outward expressions, allusions and subtleties, truths and wonders, marvels and mysteries, as well as a heaven and stars, a heart and spirit, form and beauty—all of which can in no way be contained in any translation. To be content with translation alone is to settle for the barest share of this immense treasure. The Ṣaḥīfa Sajjādiyya and other transmitted works are likewise.