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Manners of Reciting the Qur’an
1. Purification
2. Getting Prepared for Recitation
3. Seeking Refuge with Allah upon Starting Recitation
4. Do not Disrupt the Recitation Unnecessarily
5. Slow Recitation Allows Comprehension
6. Saying “Sadaqa Allah ul-`Azheem (Allah Says the Truth)” and
Invoking Allah after
7.
Reciting the Whole Surah
8. Sacredness and the Due Glorification of the Copy of the Qur’an
9. Abandoning Recitation is Forbidden
10. Looking at its Writing
11. Not to Interpret It with a Material Thing from this World
12. Not to Reverse its Order in Recitation
13. Not to Recite It Vaguely
14. Not to Imitate Singers or Christians’ Tunes
15. Make Fine Its Calligraphy
16. Not to Disturb Others with Reciting
17. Not to Argue with Others about the Different Ways of Reciting
18. Not to Recite It in Markets
19. Not to Enter the Toilet with It
1.
Purification
Tirmidhi,
in his Nawadir Al-Usul, said: The Glorious Qur’an is sacred so
that one can not even touch it without being pure and safe from
filth. The same is applicable upon starting to recite it. Moreover,
one should use the siwak (tooth-stick) to clean and purify his
mouth, as it is the way the Qur’an takes.
Yazeed
Ibn Abu Malik said: Your mouths are a way taken by the Glorious
Qur’an, so, clean and purify them as much as you can.
2.
Getting Prepared for Recitation
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one dress well as if he is getting
prepared for meeting a royal prince, for he addresses Allah the
Almighty. One should direct his face towards the Qiblah. Abu Al-`Aaliyah
used to put his turban on along with his finest clothes and direct
his face towards the Qiblah. [Of course, this is not required all
the time].
Moreover,
one should rinse his mouth whenever he clears his throat. Shu`bah
narrated on the authority of Abu Hamzah after Ibn `Abbas that:
“He used to have before him a bowl to rinse his mouth each time
he cleared his throat, then began to make Dhikr (Remembrance of
Allah). He used to do this all the time.”
In
addition, one should pause or stop the recitation upon yawning
because he is considered to be addressing his Lord, and that
yawning is caused by Satan. Mujahed said: If you yawn while
reciting the Glorious Qur’an, stop reciting till you stop yawning
as a mark of your glorification of the Glorious Qur’an. And `Ikrimah
said the same.
3.
Seeking Refuge with Allah upon Starting Recitation
Upon
starting to recite the Glorious Qur’an, one should seek refuge
with Allah the Almighty from the cursed devil by saying, “A`udhu
billahi min Ash-Shaytan-ir-rajeem,” [I seek refuge with Allah
from the cursed devil]. He should say: “Bismi-llah ir-Rahman
ir-Raheem” (In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful)
if he starts the recitation from the beginning of the Surah or the
location he stopped at last time.
4.
Do not Disrupt the Recitation Unnecessarily
One
should not disrupt his recitation by speaking to others
unnecessarily. The Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should
recite it in privacy in order not to be interrupted by others. By
not reading in seclusion, one dismisses the seeking-of-refuge he
obtained upon starting to recite.
5.
Slow Recitation Allows Comprehension
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should recite it very slowly
and with full awareness to comprehend and understand all that he
reads. Moreover, one should ask for Allah’s Grace and Bounty upon
coming to a promising verse, and should seek Allah’s Refuge and
Help upon coming to a threatening verse. One should take heed of
its similitudes and attempt to realize their purposes. One should
articulate or pronounce all its letters rightly and properly, as he
is rewarded for each letter with ten blessings.
6.
Saying “Sadaqa Allah ul-`Azheem (Allah Says the Truth)” and
Invoking Allah after Recitation
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so after finishing the recitation, one
should say “Allah Says the Truth”, bear witness that the
Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, has truly delivered the
message, and testify that the Glorious Qur’an is all true. One
should say: “Our Lord! You have said the Truth. Your messengers
have delivered the message. We testify on all this. O Allah! Make
us bear witness of the truth and observe justice in all our
dealings.” Then, one should supplicate Allah, asking for His
Grace and Bounty.
One
should restart reciting the Glorious Qur’an when he comes to its
end in order not to render it disused or forsaken. The Messenger of
Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, when he finished reciting
the Glorious Qur’an, used to read about five verses from the
beginning in order not to render it deserted. Ibn `Abbas (May Allah
be pleased with him) narrated that a man came and said: O Messenger
of Allah! What is the best of all deeds? He said: Be like a man who
is constantly on the go. The man said: what is meant by “a man on
the go”? The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him,
said: He is reciter of the Glorious Qur’an who starts reciting it
from the beginning to its end, then starts from its beginning once
more; whenever he settles he travels again.
It
is recommended to gather one’s household together upon finishing
recitation of the Glorious Qur’an. Abu Bakr Al-Anbari said: Idris
told us that Khalaf told us that Waki` told us on the authority of
Mus`ar after Qatadah, that Anas Ibn Malik used to gather his
household when he came to finish reciting the Glorious Qur’an and
started to invoke Allah the Almighty.
Idris
told us that Khalaf told us that Jarir told us on the authority of
Mansour after Al-Hakam, who said: Mujahid, `Abdullah Ibn Ubai and
others used to frequently recite the Glorious Qur’an. And when
they come to finish reciting the whole Glorious Qur’an they
brought us because mercy descends upon finishing recitation of the
Qur’an.
Idris
told us that Khalaf told us that Hasheem told us on the authority
of Al-`Awwam after Ibrahim Al-Taimi, who said: The Angels pray and
supplicate for the sake of those who finish reciting the Glorious
Qur’an at the beginning of day till the evening comes, and for
those who finish it at the beginning of evening till the day comes.
He added: For this, they preferred to finish reciting it at the
beginning of either day or evening.
7.
Reciting the Whole Surah
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not pick up certain
verses from different surahs to read. It is narrated on the
authority of Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him,
that he passed by Bilal (May Allah be pleased with him) while he
was reciting certain verses from each surah. He ordered him to
recite the whole surah, or as was said by him, peace and blessings
be upon him.
8.
Sacredness and the Due Glorification of the Copy of the Qur’an
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so it should not be left open when it
is not in use. Nothing should be placed over it so that it is kept
exalted and higher than any other book of any kind. It is not
allowed for anyone to put it on the floor while reading.
If
the Qur’an is written on a (chalk or white) board, one should not
erase it from the board with spittle. Instead, one should wipe it
with pure and clean water. And, in case one washes or wipes it with
water, he should avoid pouring it out in impure places or footpaths
because the remnant water is sacred as well. Our ancestors used to
use that remnant water as a cure.
In
addition, the Qur’an’s old and worn out leaves should not be
used as covers for other leaves or books, for this seems to be
severe transgression. One should not take a copy of the Qur’an
for a pillow or to lean on it, nor should he hand it to others by
throwing it.
Moreover,
the copy of the Glorious Qur’an should not be miniaturized. Al-A`mash
narrated on the authority of Ibrahim after `Ali Ibn Abi Talib (May
Allah be pleased with him) who said: A copy of the Glorious
Qur’an should not be miniaturized. Ibn Kathir said: It was
narrated on the authority of `Umar Ibn Al-Khattab (May Allah be
pleased with him) that he noticed a tiny copy of the Glorious
Qur’an in the hands of a man. He asked him: Who wrote it? The man
said: I did. `Umar beat him with his staff and said: Glorify the
Glorious Qur’an.
It
was narrated on the authority of Prophet Muhammad, peace and
blessings be upon him, that he prohibited Muslims to say
“musaijid” (the diminutive form of masjid “mosque”) and
“musaihif” (the diminutive form of mushaf “copy of the
Qur’an”).
Also,
the Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so nothing other than its sheets
should be mixed with it or placed in between them. Moreover, it
should not be gilded or written with gold in order not to be
touched with the simple ornaments of this world. It was narrated on
the authority of Mughirah after Ibrahim that he disliked to
decorate the copy of the Glorious Qur’an or to write it with gold
or to mark beginnings of verses or to minimize its size.
It
was narrated on the authority of Abu Al-Darda’ who said: The
Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: If you
decorate your mosques and copies of the Glorious Qur’an, the
(vehement) wind will overwhelm you all.
When
Ibn `Abbas saw a copy of the Glorious Qur’an decorated with
silver, he said: In so doing, you will be seducing the thief, while
its true ornament and decoration are within it.
In
addition, it is sacred, so it should not be written on the ground
or on walls as done nowadays in modern mosques. Muhammad Ibn `Ali
Al-Shaqiqi narrated on the authority of his father after `Abdullah
Ibn Al-Mubarak after Sufian after Muhammad Ibn Al-Zubair, who said:
I listened to `Umar Ibn `Abdul-`Aziz while narrating hadiths of the
Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, saying: The Messenger of
Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, passed by some writings on
the ground and said to a young man from the Huzail tribe: What is
this? The young man said: Some part of the Glorious Qur’an,
written by a Jew. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him,
said: May Allah the Almighty curse him (the one) who did so. Do not
place the Book of Allah in other than its proper place.
Muhammad
Ibn Al-Zubair said: Once, `Umar Ibn `Abdul-`Aziz saw a son of his
writing something of the Glorious Qur’an on a wall and therefore,
he beat him.
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so if one soaked some writings of it
in water and washed with that water, seeking cure and treatment by
the blessing of Allah the Almighty, he should not pour the water
out on dirt or a filthy place or on a footpath. Instead, he should
place it aside in a place that is not usually walked or stepped on
by people. Or, he should pour it into a hole in the land and cover
it with pure dust, or pour it out into a running river to mix with
its waters.
9.
Abandoning Recitation is Forbidden
One
should look inside (read) some portions of the Glorious Qur’an
every day. Abu Musa said: I feel shame not to look inside (read)
some portions of my Lord’s Covenant every day even for once.
10.
Looking at its Writing
One
should give his eyes their happy share of looking at the writing of
the Glorious Qur’an, for when one reads something while looking
attentively at it, this gives him a great opportunity to realize
and comprehend its connotations and to capture all possible hints
and signals. It was narrated on the authority of Zaid Ibn Aslam
after `Ata’ Ibn Yasar after Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri (May Allah be
please with him) that: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings
be upon him, said: Allow your eyes to have their lot of worship.
This means looking at the Qur’an, reflecting on its content and
taking lessons out of its wonders.
In
addition, it was narrated on the authority of Makhul after `Ubadah
Ibn Al-Samit who said: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings
be upon him, said: The best act of worship observed by my Ummah
(nation) is reciting the Qur’an while looking at it.
11.
Not to Interpret It with a Material Thing from this World
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not liken any part of it
to any of the happenings of this world. `Amr Ibn Ziad Al-Hanzali
told us that Hushaim Ibn Bashir told us on the authority of Al-Mughirah
after Ibrahim, who said: He disliked to interpret or liken anything
of the Glorious Qur’an to anything of this doomed-to-vanish
world. This act is just like your saying to a man who comes to you
{Then didst thou come hither as ordained, O Moses!} (Taha, 40), or,
{Eat ye and drink ye, with full satisfaction; because of the (good)
that ye sent before you, in the days that are gone!} (Al-Haqqah,
24) when food is served and the like.
12.
Not to Reverse its Order in Recitation
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so it should not be reversed in
recitation (this means to recite its verses in reverse order or its
words backwards) as done by some people to show off. They are
mistaken about that.
13.
Not to Recite It Vaguely
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not recite it vaguely or
obscurely but should enunciate clearly.
14.
Not to Imitate Singers or Christians’ Tunes
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not read it with
melodies or tunes such as are used by godless or sinful people.
Also, one should not read it in the way Christians read in their
churches. All this is falsehood.
15.
Make Fine Its Calligraphy
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should write it with fine
handwriting. On the authority of Abu Hukaimah who said that he was
making copies of the Glorious Qur’an at Kufa and `Ali Ibn Abi
Talib (May Allah be pleased with him) looked at his writings and
said: Make fine your handwriting. Thus, I sharpened my pen and
resumed my work while `Ali was looking at me and said: Yes, just
like that; make it just fine as it was made so by Allah the
Almighty.
16.
Not to Disturb Others with Reciting
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not raise his voice with
it in such a way as to disturb others who may dislike what they
hear.
17.
Not to Argue with Others about the Different Ways of Reciting
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not argue with others
concerning the different ways of reciting it. Moreover, one is not
allowed to say to another, “It is not like this!” For it may be
that that way of reciting is right and authenticated, and by saying
so, one involves himself in wronging the Book of Allah the
Almighty.
18.
Not to Recite It in Markets
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not recite it in markets
or at foolish meetings and gatherings. Don’t forget that Allah
the Almighty mentions His servants and worshipers and praises them
for passing gently by foolish gatherings. That is for passing by
themselves; what about passing by those foolish gatherings while
reciting the Glorious Words of Allah, Lord of all creatures and
creation?
19.
Not to Enter the Toilet with It
The
Glorious Qur’an is sacred, so one should not make any portions of
it as jewelry and then enter the toilet room while wearing them.
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