Allah The Almighty Says (what means): {And We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], the Book in truth, confirming that which preceded it of the Scripture and as a criterion over it.} [Quran 5: 48]
Al-Bukhari narrated that Ibn ‘Abbaas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “’Al-Muhaymin’ (a description given to the Quran in the abovementioned verse) means Al-Ameen (the criterion, watcher or attesting to the soundness of something) i.e. the Quran is the criterion over every Divine Book that preceded it.”
It was narrated in Saheeh Al-Bukhari that Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that the Messenger of Allah, , said: “There can be no (lawful) envy except in two (matters): A man whom Allah has taught the Quran and he recites it night and day, and his neighbor listens to him and says, 'I wish I had been given what has been given to so-and-so, so that I might do what he does’; and a man whom Allah has given wealth and he spends it on what is just and right, whereupon another man might say, 'I wish I had been given what so-and-so has been given, for then I would do what he does.’”
It was also narrated in the same book on the authority of ‘Uthmaan, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet, , said: “The best among you are those who learn the Quran and teach it.” In another narration, the Prophet, , said: “The most superior among you are those who learn the Quran and teach it.”
It was narrated in Saheeh Muslim that ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said that the Messenger of Allah, , said: “The one who is skilled in the Quran will be with the noble and obedient scribes (i.e., the angels) and the one who recites the Quran and with great effort because it is difficult for him will have two rewards.”
Furthermore, the angels descend to listen to the one who recites the Noble Quran. This can be proved by what is mentioned in Saheeh Al-Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim from the Hadeeth of Usayd ibn Hudhayr, may Allah be pleased with him, in which he said, “While he was reciting Surat Al-Baqarah at night, and his horse was tied beside him, the horse was suddenly became startled and troubled. When he stopped reciting, the horse became quiet, and when he started again, the horse was startled again. Then he stopped reciting and his son, Yahya, was beside the horse and he was afraid that the horse might trample on him. When he took the boy away and looked towards the sky, he saw a cloud radiating with light that looked like lamps." The Prophet, , said to him: “Do you know what that was?” I (Usayd) replied, "No." The Prophet, , said: “Those were angels who came near you because of your voice and if you had kept on reciting till dawn, it would have remained there till morning when people would have seen them without them (the angels) concealing themselves from people.”
It was also narrated on the authority of Abu Moosa, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet, , said: “The example of the believer who recites the Quran and acts upon it is like that of a citron which tastes good and smells good. And the believer who does not recite the Quran and act upon it is like a date which is good in taste but has no smell. The example of the hypocrite who recites the Quran is like that of sweet basil which smells good but tastes bitter. The example of the hypocrite who does not recite the Quran is like the colocynth which tastes bitter and smells bad.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
It is recommended to listen to the Quran from those who learned it by heart. It is also recommended to weep on reciting and contemplating it. This can be proved by the Hadeeth narrated on the authority of Ibn Mas‘ood, may Allah be pleased with him, in which he said, “The Messenger of Allah once said to me:‘Recite to me (some of the Quran).’I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, should I recite to you when it has been revealed to you?’ He said,‘I like to hear it from others.’So I recited Soorat An-Nisaa’ until I reached the verse (which means): {So how [will it be] when We bring from every nation a witness and We bring you, [O Muhammad] against these [people] as a witness?} [Quran 4: 41] I lifted my head or a man beside me signaled to me, and so I lifted my head and saw his (the Prophet’s) tears falling.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
There are some chapters of the Noble Quran that have a special virtue such as Soorat Al-Faatihah. It was narrated that Abu Sa‘eed ibn Al-Mu‘alla, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "I was praying in the mosque when the Prophet called me, so I did not answer him and then I said, 'O Messenger of Allah, I was praying.' He said: ‘Did Allah The Almighty not say (what means):{Respond to Allah and to the Messenger when he calls you.} [Quran 8: 24]?’ Then he said to me:‘I will teach you the greatest chapter in the Quran before you leave the mosque.’ He held my hand and when he was about to leave the mosque, I said, `O Messenger of Allah, you said you would teach me the greatest chapter in the Quran.’ He said: ‘(Yes. It is) Al-Hamdu lillahi Rabbil-‘Aalameen (All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds) (i.e. Surat Al-Faatihah). It is the seven repeated (verses) and the Glorious Quran that I was given.’”
It was narrated concerning the virtues of the Noble Quran, Soorat Al-Baqarah and Soorat Aal ‘Imraan that Abu Umaamah Al-Baahili, may Allah be pleased with him, said that he heard the Messenger of Allah say: “Recite the Quran, because it will intercede on behalf of its people on the Day of Judgment. Recite the two lights, Al-Baqarah and Aal-‘Imraan, because they will come in the shape of two clouds, two shades or two lines of birds on the Day of Judgment and will argue on behalf of those who used to recite them. Recite Soorat Al-Baqarah, because reciting it brings blessings, and ignoring it brings regret and the sorceresses cannot overcome it.”[Muslim]
Aayat Al-Kursi is the greatest verse in the Book of Allah The Almighty. This can be proved by the Hadeeth narrated by Ubayy ibn Ka‘b, may Allah be pleased with him, where the Prophet, , said: “O Abu Al-Munthir (Ubayy’s nickname), which is the greatest verse in the Book of Allah?”Ubayy said, ‘Allahu la ilaaha illa Huwal-Hayyul-Qayyoom. (Allah - there is no deity except Him, The Ever-Living, The Sustainer of [all] existence).Thereupon the Prophet, , struck me on his breast and said: “Congratulations for having knowledge, O Abu Al-Munthir!”[Muslim]
It was also narrated in relation to the virtue of the last two verses of Soorat Al-Baqarah what Al-Bukhari and Muslim narrated from the Hadeeth of Abu Mas‘ood Al-Ansaari, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, , said: “Whoever recites the last two verses of Surat Al-Baqarah at night, they will be protection for him.”
As for the virtue of Soorat Al-Kahf, Abu Ad-Dardaa’, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet, , said: “Whoever memorizes ten verses from the beginning of Soorat Al-Kahf will be protected from the Antichrist.”[Muslim]
As for the virtues of reciting Qul huwa Allahu ahad (Soorat Al-Ikhlaas), it was narrated that Abu Sa‘eed Al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, that a man heard another man reciting Qul huwa Allahu ahad (Say, "He is Allah , [who is] One) [Surat Al-Ikhlaas] and he was repeating it over and over. So when morning came, the man went to the Prophet, , and mentioned that to him, and it was as though he felt it was not sufficient as it is so short. The Prophet, , said:“By The One in whose Hand my soul is, indeed it is equivalent to a third of the Quran.” [Al-Bukhari]
Furthermore, Abu Ad-Dardaa’, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet, , said (to his Companions): “Is one of you not able to recite third of the Quran in a single night?” They said: “How can we do that, O Messenger of Allah.”So he replied: “Qul huwa Allahu ahad is equivalent to one third of the Quran.” [Muslim]
As for the virtue of Al-Mu‘awwithatayn (the two Soorahs of Refuge (Al-Falaq and An-Naas)), ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, narrated that when the Prophet, , went to bed every night, he would hold his hands together and blow into them, and recite into them Qul huwa Allahu ahad, Qul a’oothu bi rabb il-falaq and Qul a’oothu bi rabb in-naas. Then he would wipe them over every part of his body that he could, starting with his head and face and the front of his body, and he would do that three times. [Al-Bukhari]