Tarteel The Obligations Muslims Owe to the Qur’an

5. Tarteel (Reading in slow, measured rhythmic tones):

The ideal way in which the Holy Book should be recited is that one should stand in post-midnight prayer before his Lord, with hands folded in all humility, and recite the Qur’an in a receptive state of mind, slowly and patiently, pausing at proper places so as to enable one’s heart to imbibe its influence. This kind  of  recitation  is  called  tarteel,  and  perhaps  the  most important instruction that was given to the Holy Prophet (SAW) in the earliest stage of his prophetic mission was to recite the Qur’an in this manner:

O you wrapped in garments! Stand (in prayer) by night. But not all night; half of it, or a little less, or a little more. And recite the Qur’an in slow, measured rhythmic tones.

(Al- Muzzammil 73:1-4)

Reading the Qur’an slowly and thoughtfully, making pauses at proper points in its text, has a resemblance with the mode of its revelation. As we all know, the whole Qur’an was not revealed at once but it has descended piecemeal at intervals. In the Surah entitled “Furqan,” by way of answering those who objected as to why the Qur’an was not revealed all at once, Allah (SWT) says addressing His Messenger (SAW):

…thus  (is  it  revealed)  that  We  may strengthen your  heart thereby, and we have revealed it to you in slow well-arranged stages, gradually.

(Al-Furqan 25:32)

This signifies that tarteel is an effective means of strengthening the heart’s convictions. Undoubtedly, reading the Qur’an on this pattern does the greatest good to the human heart. It often moves one to tears with intensity of feeling. While explaining tarteel, Allama Ibn Arabi (RA), the author of Ahkam- ul-Qur’an, has quoted the following tradition narrated on the authority of Hasan Ibn Ali (RAA):

Once the Holy Prophet (SAW) happened to pass by a person who was reading the Qur’an. He was reading it ayah by ayah, and the end of each he paused and wept. Allah’s Messenger (SAW) said to his Companions (RAA): “Have you heard Allah’s command: ‘Read the Qur’an in slow, measured tones.’ Look, here you have its demonstration.”

The  following  words  of  the  Holy  Prophet  (SAW) contain a similar instruction for tarteel, i.e., reading the Qur’an in slow rhythmic tones.

Recite the Qur’an and weep. (Narrated by Ibn Majah)

The Holy Prophet’s (SAW) own condition during the night prayer, which has been described in books of tradition, is a case in point. When he stood in his night prayer reciting the Qur’an slowly and thoughtfully, making short pauses in the recitation, holding a communion with his Lord, he would weep with such intensity of feeling that his breast would produce a sizzling sound as if it were a kettle on fire in which something was being cooked.

Source: The Obligations Muslims Owe to the Qur’an by Dr Israr Ahmad

To Be Continued....

Objective and Subjective Conditions

4. Objective and Subjective Conditions:

Reciting the Qur’an as it ought to be recited depends upon the fulfillment of a number of objective and subjective conditions. The objective conditions to be fulfilled are that one should perform ablution before starting the recitation, that he should sit facing the qibla, and that he should start the recitation with taa‘wwuz (seeking Allah’s protection against the Satan).

Subjectively, he should contemplate the greatness of the Book and the greatness of the Being who has revealed it, and should recite it with complete concentration and absorption, a deep feeling of submissiveness and humility, and utmost fervor and devotion.  

He  should  read  the  Book  of  Allah  (SWT)  with  a sincere and earnest desire to get at the truth, and with a firm resolve  to  transform  himself  according  to  its  teachings.  He should constantly ponder and deliberate over its meanings, not with a view to finding from it a confirmation of his own preconceived thoughts and theories but genuinely seeking from it the guidance that it offers. 

As explained above, the literal meaning of tilawat is “to follow or walk closely behind someone.” Therefore, in the real sense of the term, it demands an attitude of self-abandonment and receptivity. Such an attitude is, indeed, the essence of tilawat.

Source: The Obligations Muslims Owe to the Qur’an by Dr Israr Ahmad

To Be Continued....

Melodious Voice The Obligations Muslims Owe to the Qur’an

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.

Source: The Obligations Muslims Owe to the Qur’an by Dr Israr Ahmad

To Be Continued....

Daily Recitation of Qur'an

2. Daily Recitation:

If  we  wish  to  fulfill  our  obligation  of  reciting  the Qur’an, the second thing we are required to do is to include the recitation of the Qur’an in the daily routine of our life, and each one of us should recite a certain portion of the Holy Book regularly every day. The portion fixed for daily recitation can be different for different people. The maximum portion which has the  support  of  the  Holy  Prophet  (SAW)  is  one-third  of  the Qur’an. It means that ten parts should be recited each day so that the recitation of the whole Qur’an may be completed in three days. A minimum portion — and mind you, any thing less than this bare minimum could not even be imagined till recent years — could be one para daily, so that the whole Qur’an could be read in a month. In fact, this is the least amount of recitation which should be done every day and an amount less than this would not be worth the name.

The middle position between the maximum  and  minimum  is  that  one  should  read  the  whole Qur’an in a week. This, indeed, was the practice followed by the majority of the Companions (RAA) and the same according to a tradition was suggested to Abdullah Ibn Umar (RAA) by the Holy Prophet (SAW). It is for this reason that the Qur’an was divided into seven ahzaab (sections) in the time of the Companions (RAA).3 The first six of the ahzaab consist of three (excluding Surah Al-Fatiha), five, seven, nine, eleven, and thirteen Surahs respectively, and the seventh called Hizb-ul-mufassal consists of the rest of the Holy Book. Every hizb comprises of approximately four paras (parts), which can be recited quite satisfactorily in two hours.

Note-3:  It may be noted that the present division of the whole text into thirty parts and of each part into smaller sub-parts called ruku‘, was made much later.

Persons of a devout nature and staunch faith should do this amount of recitation daily. Both the common people and intellectuals must depend upon the regular recitation of the Noble Qur'an.

Book for the nourishment of their souls. To the average kind of men it will serve as an admonition or remembrance of God, and to the men of learning and intelligence, as a source of knowledge and food for thought. Even those who ponder over the meaning of the Qur’an day and night, who think deeply over its individual Surahs for years on end, and who pause for long over the subtle points  in  its  text,  cannot  do  without  this  regular  recitation. Indeed, they require its aid all the more in the noble task they have set before themselves. Actually, constant recitation of the Holy Book will  help  solve many of their problems and will continuously open up new vistas of thought before their minds.4

Note-4: It is a common experience of the devoted scholars of the Qur’an that when they are perplexed by an intellectual problem weighing upon their minds, they found that, during course of their recitation of the Qur’an, a clue to the solution of the problem suddenly struck their minds. They got the enlightenment from a passage of the Qur’an which they had read hundred times before, but as their mind was not preoccupied by the problem, the passage did not yield the interpretation relevant to its solution.

Source: The Obligations Muslims Owe to the Qur’an by Dr Israr Ahmad

To Be Continued....