美国国家公共电台 NPR Minnesota Teen Brings Home Top Prize In International Quran Competition

（单词翻译）

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

AHMED BURHAN MOHAMED: (Speaking Arabic).

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:

That's Ahmed Burhan Mohamed's award-winning recitation of the Quran, the holy book of Islam. He wowed judges with a nearly perfect oration¹ of the scripture² and took home the Dubai International Holy Quran Award in the United Arab Emirates. He's the first American to win the prestigious³ competition. He's also of Somali descent.

MOHAMED: Oh, I was very proud. It was like a dream come true. I didn't even - five years before that, I didn't even think of myself going to that competition. I was very surprised.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Many Muslim children learn how to read the Quran at some point in their life, but Ahmed is a hafiz, someone who has not only learned to read the Quran but memorized it - a huge feat⁴ for any 17-year-old.

MOHAMED: At first you don't actually want to learn it because you're a little kid who wants to play around most of the times. As you learn more and more, and as you become more mature, you become used to it, and you - it becomes a big part of your life.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: So what does it take to memorize an over-1400-year-old scripture?

MOHAMED: Every single time I got, like, free time, I would be reading the Quran - maybe on the bus, maybe at school, sometimes when I have, like, free periods. So it was very intense. You have to sacrifice a lot of time and put a lot of time into it. You can't be acting⁵ like most kids. You have to put more time into the book than you put into, like, other fun stuff.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Less time for video games and basketball. Ahmed says his whole purpose is to carry out the message of the book.

MOHAMED: So basically, I did all this - my motivation was memorizing my god's holy book and our god's holy book so I can implement⁶ it.

(Reciting Quran).

GARCIA-NAVARRO: And his favorite chapter, or surah, of the Quran to recite? Surah Rahman. He loves the rhythm and repetition, but he also loves the meaning, which is about giving back.