There are seven states of consciousness which you must try to develop by remembering certain things, absorbing them and by frequently reminding yourself of them.



The Qur'anic Criteria of Inner Participation

First: Say to yourself: My Qur'an reading will not be truly tilawah unless my inner self participates in it as Allah desires it to participate.

So what does Allah desire? And how should you receive the Qur'an? The Qur'an itself in many places tells you vividly how it was received by the Prophet, blessings and peace be on him, and by his Companions, and by those whose hearts were gripped by it. Such Qur'anic verses you should try to remember, and, then, recollect and reflect upon them whenever you read the Qur'an. Some of these are:
'Those only are believers who, when Allah is mentioned, their hearts tremble; and when His verses are recited to them, they increase them in faith' (al-Anfal 8: 2).

'God has sent down the best discourse as a Book, fully consistent within itself, oft-repeated, whereat shiver the skins of those who fear their Lord; then their skins and hearts soften to the remembrance of Allah ' (al-Zumar 39: 23).

'When it is recited to them, they fall down upon their faces, prostrating, and say: Glory be to our Lord! Our Lord's promise is fulfilled. And they fall down upon their faces, weeping; and it increases them in humility ' (al-Isra' 17: 107-9).

'Whenever the verses of the Most-merciful are read unto them, they fall down, prostrating themselves and weeping' (Maryam 19: 58).

'And when they hear what has been sent down to the Messenger, you see their eyes overflow with tears because of what they have recognized of Truth. They cry: Our Lord! We believe; so You do write us down among the witnesses [to the Truth] ' (al-Ma'idah 5: 83) .