Where Did the Rules of Tajwid Come From? Did the Arabs Speak This Way? – Shaykh Anas al-Musa
Answered by Shaykh Anas al-Musa
Question
Where did we learn the rules of Tajwid with which we recite the Quran? Did the Arabs speak with them?
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.
Introduction to the Origins of Tajwid
The Noble Quran was revealed in the tongue of the Arabs, and the rules of Tajwid (the rules for the correct pronunciation of the letters and words of the Quran) by which we recite it were also present in their language. The Arabs spoke Arabic naturally and instinctively, adhering to the rules of pronunciation without effort. They pronounced the letters from their correct articulation points, elongated the letters that needed to be elongated, merged the letters that needed to be merged, pronounced the elevated letters with emphasis, and the lowered letters with a light tone, and so on with the rules of Tajwid that are documented today in books on Tajwid.
Codification of Tajwid Rules for Non-Arabs
The Arabs did not need to learn the rules of correct pronunciation (the rules of Tajwid) because they were part of their spoken language. These rules, which later scholars formulated as rules for correct pronunciation (the rules of Tajwid), were established when many non-Arabs embraced Islam. It became necessary to guide them to the correct way of pronunciation and its rules. These rules were summarized by Imam Ibn Jazari in his poem “al-Muqaddima” on what a Quran reader must know, where he said:
وَهُوَ: إِعْطَاءُ الحُرُوفِ حَقَّهَا
مِنْ صِفَةٍ لَهَا وَمُسْتَحَقَّهَا
Giving each letter its right
From its characteristics and its due,
وَرَدُّ كُلِّ وَاحِدٍ لِأَصْلِهِ
وَاللَّفْظُ فِي نَظِيرِهِ كَمِثْلِهِ
And returning each one to its origin
And the word in its counterpart as its example
مُكَمَّلاً مِنْ غَيْرِ مَا تَكَلُّفِ
بِاللُّطْفِ فِي النُّطْقِ بِلَا تَعَسُّفِ
Perfected without exaggeration,
With gentleness in pronunciation without overstraining.
The Role of Gabriel and the Prophet in Teaching Tajwid
Gabriel (peace be upon him) recited the Quran to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) with Tajwid, and the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) recited it as he received it from Gabriel (peace be upon him) in response to the command of Allah (Most High):
“So once We have recited a revelation (through Gabriel), follow its recitation (closely).” [Quran, 75:18]
Ibn Kathir said in his Tafsir of the aforementioned verse: “That is, when the angel recites it to you from Allah (Most High), listen to it, then recite it as he taught you.” [Ibn Kathir, Tafsir Ibn Kathir]
The Prophet’s Instruction to His Companions
The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) used to teach his companions the Quran. His companions followed this practice after him. This is supported by the narration of Ibn Mas‘ud, who was teaching a man to recite the Quran. The man recited the verse:
“إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ” [Quran, 9:60] without elongation. Ibn Mas‘ud said:
“The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) did not recite it to me like that. He recited it:
‘إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ’ [Quran, 9:60] and elongated it.” [Tabarani, Mu‘jam al-Kabir; Ibn Jazari, al-Nashr]
Qatada reported: Anas (Allah be pleased with him) was asked, “How was the recitation of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace)?” He replied, “It was elongated.” Then he recited: “In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,” elongating ‘In the name of Allah,’ and elongating ‘the Most Gracious,’ and elongating ‘the Most Merciful’.” [Bukhari]
Hafsa, the Mother of the Believers, described the recitation of the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) by saying, “He would recite the sura in a slow, measured tone, such that it would be longer than it would normally be.” [Muslim]
Transmission of Tajwid Through Generations
When we reflect on the Prophet’s presentation of the Quran to Gabriel (peace be upon him), as narrated by ‘Aisha from what Fatima (Allah be pleased with them) told her: “…Gabriel would review the Quran with him once every year, and he reviewed it with me twice this year, and I do not see this but as a sign that my time has come near…” [Bukhari]
Furthermore, it is narrated that the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) recited the Quran to Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b, as Anas Ibn Malik reported: The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) said to Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b,
“Allah has commanded me to recite to you: ‘Those who disbelieved…’ [Quran, 98:1].” Ubayy asked, “And did He mention me by name?” The Prophet replied, “Yes.” Then Ubayy wept. [Bukhari; Muslim]
This illustrates that the recitation was a Sunna that was followed. Thus, scholars were keen on learning the recitation from qualified teachers and acquiring the words from them through direct transmission. The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) recited to Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b to teach him the manner of recitation and its correct articulation, which was a tradition in teaching. This continued with the Companions who learned the Quran from him, reciting it to each other, and later this practice was carried on by the followers and their successors, reaching us through an unbroken, well-attested chain. [Qadi Iyad, Ikmal al-Mu‘allim; Ibn Mulqin, al-Tawdih; Aqila, al-Ziyada wa al-Nuksan]
The Importance of Learning from Qualified Teachers
This is further confirmed by the narration of Shaqiq Ibn Salama, who said: Abdullah Ibn Mas‘ud addressed us and said: “By Allah, I have taken from the mouth of the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) over seventy suras…” [Bukhari]
All of this indicates that the recitation is a followed Sunna. Imam Nawawi, in his commentary on the previous hadith of Ubayy Ibn Ka‘b, said:
“Scholars have differed on the wisdom behind the Prophet’s (Allah bless him and give him peace) recitation to Ubayy, and the preferred opinion is that the reason was for the Umma to follow this example in reciting to those who are proficient and virtuous, learning the etiquettes of recitation, and for no one to disdain doing so.” [Ahmad]
The Obligation of Proper Recitation
This means that it is a Sunna for the Umma, to ensure that students perfect their recitation with their teachers, correcting the pronunciation of letters and learning how to articulate them properly, among other things.
The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) guided us to learn the recitation from those who recite correctly. He said: “Whoever wishes to recite the Quran fresh as it was revealed, let him recite it like Ibn Umm ‘Abd’s recitation,” meaning Abdullah ibn Mas’ud. (10)
Allah (Most High) has spoken the truth when He says:
“Those We have given the Book follow it as it should be followed. It is they who (truly) believe in it. As for those who reject it, it is they who are the losers.” [Quran, 2:121]
Conclusion
Based on all the aforementioned points, the scholars considered recitation without Tajwid a form of error (lahan). They categorized the errors into two types: clear (jalli) and subtle (khafi). The subtle error is a fault that affects the words and is known specifically to the scholars of recitation and the masters of Tajwid, who learned it from the mouths of the scholars and preserved it from the words of the experts. As for the clear error, it is an obvious fault that can be recognized by both scholars of recitation and others.
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.
