Dubai: At the age of 13 Mohammad Tariqul Islam from Bangladesh recited the Quran like a pro on Sunday, the penultimate night of Dubai International Holy Quran Award (DIHQA). He left the packed auditorium at Dubai Chambers awestruck with his powerful renditions from the passages of Quran.
Participating in his first international competition, the son of a Dhaka-based imam, produced arguably this year’s best performance so far.
First to take stage on the ninth night of the international competition that saw 103 contestants participating, Islam’s recitation has taken the race to the next level.
Having topped several national competitions in Bangladesh, Islam feels he has done well to earn the top honours in Dubai.
“I feel I have done well, by the grace of Allah. The way it went, I surprised myself a bit. I hope I have done well enough to leave others behind, as some of the other contestants have also done exceptionally well,” said Islam, who completed memorising the Quran in one year.
Starting at the age of 11, Islam completed memorising the Quran last year and he’s now pursuing studies in Hadith (Prophet Mohammad’s (PBUH) traditions).
Covering 114 chapters that range from a few verses to several hundred verses, the Quran is divided in 30 equal parts for the ease of memorisation, and Islam — according to his teacher Nisar Ahmad — used to memorise half of each part every day.
“What he managed to achieve is an astonishing feat. Not everyone can manage to memorise half of a part in a day. Islam then went on to win three national competitions, paving the way for his participation in Dubai. As a teacher I am so proud of his achievements and I believe he has a bright future ahead of him,” said Ahmad, who is a teacher of Quran in Dhaka.
Sunday night also another soulful performance by Saudi Arabian contestant Ahmad Abdul Aziz Al Obaidan.
The 23-year-old imam from the city of Buraida in central Saudi Arabia has participated in several international competitions, securing multiple top-five positions.
The competition will end on Tuesday with a beautiful recitation contest in which a few selected on the basis of their voice will participate.
The closing ceremony of the 21st DIHQA will be held at Dubai Scientific and Cultural Association Building on Wednesday.
