'O Lord, what is the best act through which those near to You draw nearer?'

[Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal] said, "I saw the Lord of Power in my sleep, and said, 'O Lord, what is the best act through which those near to You draw nearer?' and He answered, 'Through [reciting] my word, O Ahmad.' I asked, 'With understanding, or without?' and He answered, 'With understanding and without.'

-Related in the biographical notes of Reliance of the Traveller: The Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law Umdat Al-Salik, pg. 1035.