Read!

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

Proclaim! (or read!) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher, Who created-
Bacalah dengan (menyebut) nama Tuhanmu Yang menciptakan,

Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood:
Dia telah menciptakan manusia dari segumpal darah.

Proclaim! And thy Lord is Most Bountiful,-
Bacalah, dan Tuhanmulah Yang Maha Pemurah,

He Who taught (the use of) the pen,-
Yang mengajar (manusia) dengan perantaran kalam,

Taught man that which he knew not.
Dia mengajar kepada manusia apa yang tidak diketahuinya.

Day, but man doth transgress all bounds,
Ketahuilah! Sesungguhnya manusia benar-benar melampaui batas,

In that he looketh upon himself as self-sufficient.
karena dia melihat dirinya serba cukup.

Verily, to thy Lord is the return (of all).
Sesungguhnya hanya kepada Tuhanmulah kembali(mu).

Seest thou one who forbids-
Bagaimana pendapatmu tentang orang yang melarang,

A votary when he (turns) to pray?
seorang hamba ketika mengerjakan shalat,

Seest thou if he is on (the road of) Guidance?-
bagaimana pendapatmu jika orang yang melarang itu berada di atas kebenaran,

Or enjoins Righteousness?
atau dia menyuruh bertakwa (kepada Allah)?

Seest thou if he denies (Truth) and turns away?
Bagaimana pendapatmu jika orang yang melarang itu mendustakan dan berpaling?

Knoweth he not that Allah doth see?
Tidaklah dia mengetahui bahwa sesungguhnya Allah melihat segala perbuatannya?

Let him beware! If he desist not, We will drag him by the forelock,-
Ketahuilah, sungguh jika dia tidak berhenti (berbuat demikian) niscaya Kami tarik ubun-ubunnya

A lying, sinful forelock!
(yaitu) ubun-ubun orang yang mendustakan lagi durhaka

Then, let him call (for help) to his council (of comrades):
Maka biarlah dia memanggil golongannya (untuk menolongnya),

We will call on the angels of punishment (to deal with him)!
kelak Kami akan memanggil malaikat Zabaniyah (malaikat yang menyiksa orang-orang yang berdosa di dalam neraka.)

Day, heed him not: But bow down in adoration, and bring thyself the closer (to Allah.!)
sekali-kali jangan, janganlah kamu patuh kepadanya; dan sujudlah dan dekatkanlah (dirimu kepada Tuhan).

Intentionally, i listed down full verses (1-19) from Surah al-'Alaq. It is a 96th surah of the Holy Quran in order. Surah Al Alaq "Blood Clot (The Zygote)" was revealed in Mecca, Arabia upon Muhammad (peace be upon him) as the last Prophet and the Messenger of God Almighty .The surah has taken its title from verse 2. The surah describe; Man however differs from everything else. On the one hand he happens to be social and has to live alongside other people.

The first five verses of the Surah are universally admitted to be the first revelation which descended upon the Holy Prophet in Cave Hira' in a night in the month of Ramadan, 13 years before Hijrah. This date corresponds to 610 A.D. On that "Night of Destiny" when the Holy Prophet lay on the floor of the Cave, his mind locked in deep contemplation, these verses were revealed and the words became branded on his soul. These verses are the first act of mercy with which God blessed His servants (Kathir). In this Surah it is stated that just as the birth of man is the result of a gradual process of development, so is his spiritual evolution. The Prophets whose examples were cited in the preceding Surah attained to different stages of spiritual development, but the Holy Prophet represents in his person the best specimen of man's complete spiritual evolution.

The word Iqra' meaning read, recite, convey, proclaim or collect, the verse signifies that the Qur'an was meant to be read and proclaimed, to be collected and put together and then conveyed to the whole world. The mention of the Divine attribute Rabb. (Nourisher, Sustainer and Developer, Who sustains man through all the stages of his development), shows that man's moral development was to be gradual till it was to find full consummation in the Holy Prophet.

And the symbol of Pen mentioned in this Surah would play a very important part in committing the Qur'an to writing and in preserving and protecting it from being lost or interfered with. It further refers to the great contribution which "pen" was to make towards the propagation and dissemination of the spiritual sciences and Divine secrets revealed by the Qur'an and of the physical sciences to which the study of the Qur'an was to impart a great stimulus. It is really very significant that frequent mention should have been made of "pen" in a Book which was revealed among a people who had no respect for, and had made rare use of, it and which was revealed to a person who himself did not know how to read and write. [Source from HERE]

So, read, read, and read.... Reading is not narrow down only on books. There are various forms of reading nowadays; magazine, newspaper, e-book, blogs, webs, boards, etc., as long as the source of reading not against the Syari'ah and benefit to the readers. And please don't forget the importance kind of reading: al-Quran and it's meaning. It is the first 'medicine' to cure and purify your heart..

I am in love with this bookshelves. Many awesome creative bookshelves designs can be viewed HERE

** I read the whole book ICT (Critical Thinking: An Islamic Perspective by Dr. Mumtaz) twice for the paper on 5th April. Now wanna continue my reading on 'The Prau With the Silent Soul' by FT