The incident of arresting a young man who recited verses about Pharaoh inside the Grand Egyptian Museum sparked a wide wave of controversy, after some of those affiliated with official religious institutions condemned his action, describing it as “bad manners with the Qur’an” and that it carried a “dangerous insinuation”! This incident, despite its simplicity, reveals a deep defect in the intellectual and moral standard that governs public life today, and exposes the double standards by which people’s actions are judged under the systems based on secular thought.

Before that, the secular regime in Egypt, the land of Kinanah, began transforming the Muslim country that takes pride in its religion, creed, and ancient Islamic history, and began isolating it from this honor; at times by attributing it to the rotten Arab nationalism, at times to the filthy nationalism, and at other times to the polytheistic Pharaonism, all of which is a war against the country and the people and what they carry of beliefs and a deep Islamic history and present; therefore, it was not surprising that the mouthpieces of the regime denounced the young man’s recitation of the Qur’an which they fight and want to erase its verses and highlight the symbols of Pharaonic polytheism.

Reciting the Qur’an is a great act of worship, rewarded wherever the Muslim reads it. Allah Almighty said: [فَاقْرَءُوا مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ [“So recite what is easy [for you] of the Quran.” [Surat Al-Muzzammil:20].

He did not specify it for one place over another, nor one time over another. Recitation is permissible in the house, on the road, in the market, at the workplace, and in any pure place where remembrance is not prohibited. Rather, mentioning Allah in places where heedlessness prevails has great virtue. So how is it condemned today that the Qur’an be recited in a museum, a place that carries no polytheistic sanctity, contains no impurity, and where no apparent wrongdoing is practiced?!

The claim that reciting verses from the story of Pharaoh in the museum is “bad manners” or a “dangerous insinuation” is false in terms of Sharia and reason. The Qur’an is a book of guidance, revealed by Allah to be recited and reflected upon in every time and place. No one has the right to prevent its recitation or restrict it to mosques or official occasions. Rather, such recitation is a reminder of Allah’s signs in a place where the history of worldly kings who were tyrants is displayed—an appropriate reminder that aligns with the purpose of the Qur’an in admonition and reflection. Allah Almighty said:

[لَقَدْ كَانَ فِي قَصَصِهِمْ عِبْرَةٌ لأُولِي الألْبَابِ]

“There was certainly in their stories a lesson for those of understanding.” [Yusuf:111].

Has admonition become forbidden, remembrance suspicious, and the Qur’an a matter of doubt?!

What is even more alarming is that those who condemn a young man for reciting the Qur’an in the museum never raise their voices when musical concerts are held in the same place, or dances, statues, and songs containing falsehood are displayed. None of them says this is bad manners with history or a dangerous insinuation against heritage. But when they heard verses from the Book of Allah, their chests tightened, accusing the reciter of political insinuation and hidden intent! This reveals that the problem is not in the act of recitation, but in the hearts' attitude toward the Qur’an itself, for hearts accustomed to secularism cannot tolerate seeing deen present in public life except under official licensing and state direction.

The personal freedom that secular thought boasts collapses entirely at the first instance a Muslim shows commitment to his deen outside the framework assigned to him. If the young man had stood singing or playing music or taking heritage photos, no one would have objected; rather, his action might have been considered artistic expression or civilizational revival. But reciting the Qur’an that, according to them, is an encroachment on the sanctity of the place! What greater contradiction is there than forbidding remembrance while permitting entertainment in the same location?! This is the double standard that exposes the reality of the ideological systems governing today: they accept anything from a person except showing submission to Allah Almighty.

Moreover, describing the museum as a “house of shirk” or that reciting the story of Pharaoh there carries an “insult” is an arbitrary interpretation. The museum is not a temple where anyone is worshipped; it is a historical exhibition place that does not prevent a Muslim from remembering the fate of tyrants. Reminding others of Allah’s ways with His creation is not an insult but a fulfillment of the message, for Allah made the stories of the Qur’an a lesson for all people, not restricted to mosques or lectures. In fact, such recitation counters those who glorify Pharaonic relics and history by reminding them that those who transgressed before them drowned, and that sovereignty belongs only to Allah, without partner.

It is not known that the early generations specified certain places for reciting the Qur’an over others. Rather, they recited it in all circumstances, even in battlefields, travels, and markets. Ibn Mas‘ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “It is befitting for the carrier of the Qur’an to be known by his night when people are asleep, and by his day when people are eating.” A place is not sanctified by itself; it is sanctified by the remembrance of Allah within it. Whoever prevents recitation in a permissible place has prohibited a legitimate act of worship without evidence, and this is unwarranted intrusion into what no human owns.

This incident is not an isolated one but a manifestation of the ongoing struggle between an ideology that wants to restrict religion to corners and rituals, and another that views Islam as a way of life lived in all its details. The one who condemns today the recitation of verses about Pharaoh in the museum is the same one who justifies stripping public life of the rulings of Sharia under the pretext of civility and religious neutrality. Thus, the authority of whims replaces the authority of Allah, freedoms are sanctified when they serve falsehood, and suppressed when they speak the truth.

It is the right of the Muslim—rather, his duty—to manifest his religion everywhere, and to remind people of the words of their Lord whenever he can. The Qur’an is not a book to be concealed from reality or confined to official occasions; it is the light by which Allah guides whom He wills among His servants. Whoever finds his chest constricted at hearing its verses must know that the defect is in his heart, not in the reciter, and that Allah Almighty said:

[وَإِذَا ذُكِرَ اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ اشْمَأَزَّتْ قُلُوبُ الَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْآخِرَةِ]

“And when Allah alone is mentioned, the hearts of those who do not believe in the Hereafter shrink with aversion…” [Az-Zumar:45].

Thus, the one who should be honored is the one who recited the Qur’an in that place, not the one who should be arrested! And the one to be condemned is the one who prevents remembrance, not the one who excuses him! The Muslim recites the Book of Allah wherever he wishes, as long as he respects the etiquette of recitation. As for those who want to confiscate the Qur’an from public space under the guise of etiquette or sensitivity, they are not defending etiquette; they are defending secularism that suffocates Islam whenever it steps outside the mosque walls.

And so, no matter how tyrants attempt to forge a false identity for the Ummah of Islam and sever its connection with its creed and civilization, they can never alter the laws of Allah in His creation, nor prevent His true promise that sovereignty will belong to His believing servants. And soon, despite their noses and sorrow in their hearts, there will come a Khilafah Rashidah (rightly guided Caliphate) on the method of the Prophethood. We ask Allah that we be among its soldiers and witnesses.

[إِنَّ الْأَرْضَ لِلَّهِ يُورِثُهَا مَنْ يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ]

“Indeed, the earth belongs to Allah. He causes to inherit it whom He wills of His servants. And the [best] outcome is for the righteous.” [Al-A‘raf:128]