Abu Dhabi, May 16th, 2008 (WAM) In an inspiring example giving every one hope that even disabled children can attain heights, an autistic boy aged 10 showed skill in memorizing the Holy Quran, the last divine revelation containing 114 chapters.

Few days after his birth the boy was named Hafiz by his parents, who hail from the southern Indian state of Kerala, without knowing that their son was going to live up to the letter and spirit of that Arabic name which connotes the 'memorizer of the Holy Book'.

The toddler, in the first years of his growth, used to scream and cry aloud almost all the time. His physical growth also was retarded and was not able to walk or speak properly until he was three years old. The parents were not able to get his disease diagnosed due to the lack of adequate facilities at that time in their township or the neighbourhood.

Once, as the child continuously screamed and cried, his mother, Faseela, played a recorded audio tape of Holy Quran recited by the Imam Sudais, the Imam of Makkah. To the surprise of Faseela, the boy became calm and started to listen.

In the following days the parents made it a practise that whenever the boy cried and screamed, they turned the tape recorder on to sooth him down. They noticed that the boy used to concentrate in a meditative mood.

When he fell asleep on some occasions listening to Quran, he insisted his parents to play the cassette exactly from the verse where he had stopped before he slept. This was the first indication that the boy was memorizing the verses without anyone knowing about it.

By the age of five Hafiz memorized most of the chapters of the Holy Book. Though he was not able to speak in articulate way, he muttered verses in his own style.

'Al Ittihad' Arabic newspaper reported that the boy and his mother, a teacher of chemistry by profession, came to UAE on a visit, on their way to Makkah to perform Omrah along with the boy's father Mohammed Asim who works in UAE. The Omrah was planned as per the boy's wish to meet Imam Sudais in Makkah.

Asim took the boy to a mosque in Ruwais, where the autistic child prodigy began to recite holy Quran on his own initiative. The Imam of the mosque and the people who were there for prayer surrounded the boy in utmost disbelief, as they noticed that he was an autistic patient.

Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2008.