3. Melodious voice:
It is also required for the proper recitation
of the Qur’an that a person should read it in the best manner and in
the
most melodious
voice
possible.
This is
necessary because almost
every
human being is gifted with a love for music and has a natural fondness for sweet and melodious sounds. Islam
is a
natural region; it does not curb any of our inherent tendencies but diverts them into
healthy channels. As we have an
instinctive
love for the beauty
of sight and the beauty
of sound,
we
insist upon a fascinating printing of the Holy
Qur’an and its recitation in
a soft melodious voice. The Prophet (SAW) has urged
us to:
Adorn the Qur’an
with your voices. (Narrated by Abu Daud &
Nasai)
He has also warned us against our negligence in this matter in
the
words:
One who does not recite the Qur’an in a
melodious voice is not
from us! (Narrated by Abu Daud)
And has given us the following tidings as a further inducement
for
melodious recitation:
Allah (SWT) does not listen to anything so attentively
as He listens to the Prophet (SAW) reciting the Qur’an
aloud in a
sweet voice. (Narrated
by
Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Daud, & Nasai)
It often happened
that, while going along
his
way, the Holy Prophet (SAW) heard a Companion (RAA) recite the
Qur’an in a sweet-sounding
voice. He would stop and stand
for
a long time listening to the Qur’an being recited and would appreciate it later on. Sometimes, he would ask a Companion (RAA) to
recite
the Qur’an to
him.
It
is stated in the books
of traditions that once he asked Abdullah Ibn Mas‘ud (RAA) to
recite the Qur’an to him.
The latter (much astonished at
the request) said: “Messenger of Allah! How can I
recite the Qur’an to you, while you are the person to whom it was revealed?” He
replied: “I like to hear it being recited by
others.” Accordingly, Abdullah Ibn
Mas‘ud
(RAA) began
to recite, and, as the Holy Prophet (SAW) sat
listening, his eyes welled up with tears which
could be seen trickling down his cheeks. On another occasion,
he heard a Companion (RAA) recite the Qur’an in a melodious
voice which he praised in the
words: “You have
been granted a share from the musical talent of the sons of Daud
(AS).”
Although a person should recite the Qur’an in
the most melodious
voice
he can produce because otherwise the
recitation will be far from satisfactory,
yet
to over-emphasize this aspect of
recitation is not without danger. When a melodious recitation is
the
outcome of mere show or affectation or when one takes to
it as a profession, it becomes a
serious perversion
and a reprehensible practice. We should, therefore, carefully guard against this danger; still we may seek
the
satisfaction of our love for the beauty
of sound in reciting the Qur’an or in hearing
it being recited
in a melodious
voice. Hence, everyone of us should read the Book of Allah (SWT) in
as nice a manner and as sweet a voice as it may be possible for him to
do.
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