Is It Permissible to Recite the Quran in a Group?
Answered by Shaykh Anas al-Musa
Question
Is it permissible to recite the Quran in a group?
Answer
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all worlds, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger sent as a mercy to the worlds, our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, and his Family and Companions.
Meaning
Reciting the Quran in a group means that people gather in one place and recite the Quran together in a unified, audible voice. No one listens to another’s recitation, and the listener cannot identify or distinguish any of the readers’ voices due to the blending of the sounds.
The Hanafis and Malikis disliked this method of recitation because it abandons the obligation of listening and paying attention to the recitation, and it might lead to something forbidden, which is the cutting of Quranic letters and verses; as one’s breath runs out during recitation, he finds that his companions have gone ahead, so he leaves the rest of the verse or word to catch up with them, thus reciting the Quran incorrectly and out of its order, which is forbidden without dispute.
Two Opinions
Regarding group recitation of the Quran, there are two opinions among the scholars: the Hanafis and Malikis on one side, and the Shafi‘is and Hanbalis on the other side.
First Opinion: Hanafis and Malikis
As for the Hanafis and Malikis, they said it is disliked to recite in a group with one unified voice because this method of recitation includes abandoning listening and paying attention, which is commanded in the verse where Allah (Most High) says:
“When the Quran is recited, listen to it attentively and be silent, so you may be shown mercy.” [Quran, 7:204], and because it necessarily involves confusing one another. The basis for this prohibition is that listening to the Quran is a communal obligation. [Halabi, Mukhtasar Ghunyat al-Mutamalli fi Sharh Munyat al-Musalli]
Ibn ‘Abidin mentioned the issues arising from group recitation of the Quran in condolences, saying: “Because their habit is to recite in a unified voice that includes prolongation, and cutting some words, and starting from the middle of the words…” [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
In al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya, it states: “There is no harm in their gathering to recite (Surat) al-Ikhlas aloud upon finishing the Quran. However, it is preferable if one recites and the others listen, as stated in Qunya…” Then it says: “It is disliked for a group to recite the Quran together because it involves abandoning listening and paying attention, as commanded, as stated in Qunya.” [al-Fatawa al-‘Alamgiriyya; Tahawi, Hashiyat al-Tahawi ‘ala Maraqi al-Falah]
Ibn Wahb reported: “I said to Malik (Allah be pleased with him): What do you think about a group of people who gather and recite a single sura together until they complete it? He disapproved of that and criticized it, saying: This is not how people used to do it. Rather, one person would recite to another, presenting it to him.” [Ibn Hajj Maliki, al-Madkhal]
Second Opinion: Shafi‘is and Hanbalis
As for the Shafi‘is and Hanbalis, they explicitly stated that gathering to recite the Quran is recommended. Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) said:
“No people gather in one of the houses of Allah, reciting the Book of Allah and studying it among themselves, except that tranquility descends upon them, mercy covers them, the angels surround them, and Allah mentions them to those with Him.” [Muslim]
This clearly encourages group recitation of the Quran aloud, as participation in the recitation cannot be achieved silently. The general wording of the hadith allows for all forms of recitation, whether all recite in one voice, one recites while the others listen, or they follow him in recitation either in a single voice or separately.
Imam Nawawi said:
Know that the collective recitation of the Quran is recommended by clear evidence and the actions of the pious predecessors. It is authentically reported from the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) from the narrations of Abu Hurayra and Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased with them) that he said: “No group remembers Allah except that the angels surround them, mercy covers them, tranquility descends upon them, and Allah mentions them to those with Him.” [Tirmidhi]
Nawawi mentioned that Ibn Abi Dawud reported: “Abu Darda (Allah be pleased with him) used to study the Quran with a group, reciting together.” [Nawawi, al-Tibyan fi Adab Hamalat al-Quran]
Notes
The group study mentioned in the hadith, “No people gather in one of the houses of Allah, reciting the Book of Allah and studying it among themselves, except that tranquility descends upon them…”, indicates that they did not gather for recitation in a unified voice one after another; because the mutual study is either through teaching or presenting, which is what is narrated about them.
Some scholars have inferred the impermissibility of group recitation from the hadith, “Do not raise your voices over one another when reciting the Quran” [Malik; Ahmad], because it harms the neighbor who is reciting beside them, whether in prayer or outside of prayer. [Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr, al-Istidhkar]
They also cited the hadith of Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri (Allah be pleased with him), who said: “The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) observed I‘tikaf in the mosque and heard them reciting aloud. He drew back the curtain and said: ‘Behold, all of you are supplicating to your Lord; so do not harm one another, and do not raise your voices over one another ‘in recitation,’ or he said, ‘in prayer.’” [Abu Dawud]
Scholars have mentioned a method for group recitation, which is sequential recitation (reading in turns). Its method is that a group gathers, and some of them recite a tenth or a part or other portion, then stop, and another recites from where the first ended, then another recites, and this is permissible and good. Imam Malik (Allah be pleased with him) was asked about it and said there was no harm in it. [Nawawi, al-Tibyan fi Adab Hamalat al-Quran]
Recommendation
Regardless of the manner of Quran recitation, it is necessary for the reader to exhibit reverence, contemplation, and humility, for this is the desired goal of recitation. It is through this that hearts are illuminated, and souls are comforted. Many of the pious predecessors would spend the entire night or most of it reciting a single verse, contemplating it. Some of them would faint while reciting, and some even died from it. It is also recommended to cry or make oneself cry if one cannot, for crying during recitation is the attribute of the knowing and the mark of the righteous servants of Allah. Allah (Most High) says:
“And they fall down upon their faces weeping, and it increases them in humility.” [Quran, 17:109] [Nawawi, al-Adhkar]
May Allah bless the Prophet Muhammad and give him peace, and his Family and Companions.
And Allah knows best.
[Shaykh] Anas al-Musa
Shaykh Anas al-Musa, born in Hama, Syria, in 1974, is an erudite scholar of notable repute. He graduated from the Engineering Institute in Damascus, where he specialized in General Construction, and Al-Azhar University, Faculty of Usul al-Din, where he specialized in Hadith.
He studied under prominent scholars in Damascus, including Shaykh Abdul Rahman al-Shaghouri and Shaykh Adib al-Kallas, among others. Shaykh Anas has memorized the Quran and is proficient in the ten Mutawatir recitations, having studied under Shaykh Bakri al-Tarabishi and Shaykh Mowfaq ‘Ayun. He also graduated from the Iraqi Hadith School.
He has taught numerous Islamic subjects at Shari‘a institutes in Syria and Turkey. Shaykh Anas has served as an Imam and preacher for over 15 years and is a teacher of the Quran in its various readings and narrations.
Currently, he works as a teacher at SeekersGuidance and is responsible for academic guidance there. He has completed his Master’s degree in Hadith and is now pursuing his Ph.D. in the same field. Shaykh Anas al-Musa is married and resides in Istanbul.
