Jebril the reciter

Last night I prayed the Isha'a prayer behind Mohammed Jebril. He is my all-time favorite Quran reciter (I already said that before). A friend of mine was dragging me with him around the city, and we finally landed in the club for him to buy something. Upon the call for Isha'a prayer, I told him I'll go in and pray. I was pleasantly surprised to find Jebril leading the prayers.

Now all the issues that people may claim about him aside. I really don't care about all that (I've argued that before). All I care about is that he's a talented reciter with a superb voice, who can make you visualize the meaning of the verses, and feel the words with his tone of voice. The Quran has many beautiful aspects, the message and the meaning being the most important. But that's not all, the beautiful language, and the beautiful rhythm that it can be recited with is just awesome.

I love reading out loud, and I tend to do so when I read from the Quran (which was discouraged by al-Ghazali as mentioned here). My recitation is not perfect by any means, but I still enjoy my recitation of it.

Jebril's voice has a special place in my heart. The first time I went to a Taraweeh prayer was a long time ago in one of those laylatul kadr 'masses'. I was a kid then, and went to witness the awe that I heard his recitation creates!

The reasons for that first time might've been the wrong ones, but it picked up with me. I enjoyed it so much, I kept going every year. Only laylatul kadr (or the night of the 27th, since we're not sure when it is), then laylatul kadr and khatm alQuran, then the last 10 days, and now, almost every night of the month.

I think its actually preferrable to pray Taraweeh at your house, not in the mosque, but I just enjoy a good taraweeh prayer at the mosque behind a good imam, that I probably don't do it for the thawab, but mainly for my enjoyment.

I used to never be able to tear in a prayer. Your Amens following his supplications makes your heart feel inches away from God, yet it was hard for me to shed a tear. It felt bad actually, that one could be so hard and fearless! Most of my friends who would go with me were like that as well actually.

Its something with growing up and with age I suppose that makes you fear Allah more, and realize how vulnerable you are. Its something with age I suppose that makes you see your sins more clearly, and wonder if God the most Merciful would ever forgive you, and if you'll ever be able to reduce your sins. The older you get, the more time you've spent sinning, the less time you have to repent, the more tears you've accumulated to shed in your prayers.

At this time of my life, I don't need a sensational reciter to put me to tears. I'll prefer a less crowded mosque with a mediocre reciter over Jebril in an unpleasantly crowded street with people weeping and wailing that it hurts your ears.

After mending my reasons abit for going to Taraweeh, I'd still try to go pray them behind Jebril to get the benefit of both, the pleasure and the thawab. But I stopped going to his taraweeh prayers a while back after it turned into a mass idol worshipping party. Literally, surrounded by hunderds of thousands of people who seem to be partying. It takes Jebril half an hour to get from the mosques door to the imamah area because people want to touch him and take a peek at that 'saint'!

But I still love his recitation, and it was wonderful to pray behind him in a respectful setting like yesterday's.