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‘At Tajweed Al Muyasar’
(Simplified Tajweed)
Supervised by Dr.
Alee Al Hudhayfee.
King Fahd Qur’aan
Printing Complex. 2012
Selected
Passages Translated into English
by Umm ‘Abdir Rahmaan Tara Hashim. 1437/2016
Tajweed Definition (p14)
Linguistic meaning of ‘tajweed’: The root of the Arabic word
is ‘jawwada’ meaning to beautify. So tajweed means to beautify and perfect.
Technical meaning of ‘tajweed’: Articulating each letter of
the Qur’aan from its correct place of origins (in the mouth) along with giving
the letters their original characteristics and their derived ones.
Makhraj: The place where the letter originates and is
distinguished from others
Harf: Letter – a sound that relies on a place of origin.
Haq al Harf – Original Characteristics (صفات
اللازمة)
Mustahaq al Harf – Derived Characteristics (الصفات العرضية). Characteristics that come from the
original characteristics such as fatness – tafkheem coming from raising the back
of the tongue – isti’laa. Thinness – tarqeeq coming from lowering the back of
the tongue – istifaal; or temporary characteristics which occur in certain
circumstances such as the situations regarding the letter ‘raa’ where it is
sometimes fat and sometimes thin.
The Ruling of Tajweed (p15)
1.
Theory (Rules of Tajweed) – fard kifaayah –
communal obligation
2.
Practical (oral performance
of tajweed) – fard ‘ayn –
individual obligation upon every reader according to their ability.
Mistakes (p20)
Lahn Linguistic
meaning – a mistake
Technical
meaning – deviating from the correct way of reading the Qur’aan
Major mistake:
A mistake made to a word which changes the structure of the
word clearly. (This type of mistake) can be spotted by a tajweed specialist and
by the common lay person. This is a major mistake whether it changes the
meaning or not. For example,
1.
Changing a letter for
another letter ط
into ت طبع (sealed
over) تبع (were followed)
2.
Changing a vowel into
another vowel
أنعمتَ into أنعمتُ ‘tu’ instead of ‘ta’.
For example, Surah al Faatihah aayah 7: This
changes the meaning completely from ‘The path of those upon whom You have
bestowed favour’ to ‘The path of those upon whom ‘I’ have bestowed favour’. The
second sentence is wrong!!
3.
Changing a grammatical
ending (‘iraab) [Surah Hood 11:45]
ونادى نوحٌ ربَه (correct) Nooh called
upon his Lord.
ونادى نوحَا ربُه (incorrect) His Lord
called upon Nooh.
Minor Mistakes
A mistake made in perfecting the pronounciation and not to
do with correct pronounciation.
This minor mistake is only noticed by tajweed specialists
and not by the common lay person. For example,
1.
Incorrect lengthening of
the mudood (lengthened letters)
2.
Ghunnah (nazalization)
3.
Idhgaam (merging)
4.
Ikhfaa (concealing)
5.
Rules of laam and raa
whether fat or thin etc…
Ruling of Major Mistakes – haraam – prohibited
Ruling of Minor Mistakes – difference of opinion however, a
person who is not able to protect himself from falling into minor mistakes is
forgiven.
A Warning
against Innovations (and mistakes) in Recitation (p155-159)
It is agreed by the recitation specialists and the Imaams of
Recitation that the recitation of the Noble Qur’aan is performed in a specific
way which the reciter must legally and Islamically follow. This is to attain the
reward that Allaah promises the reciters who fear Allaah in their recitation.
This ‘way’ is manifest in the tajweed ‘perfecting and
beautifying’ the words of the Qur’aan and upholding its letters and beautifying
its performance. It is carried out by giving each letter its right regarding its
original and derived characteristics of perfection, beauty and tarteel (slow
and measured recitation). This is only achieved by articulating each letter
from its place of origin along with the known characteristics. This should be
accompanied by ease and simpleness and not going to excesses. This is what is
obligatory upon a Muslim to do regarding the recitation of his Lord’s Book and
he must not turn away from this as much as he is able to.
There is no doubt that this (type) of recitation fills the
heart with peace and tranquillity and it opens up the path to guidance for the
one reciting and the one listening to it. This way of recitation is how the
Noble Qur’aan was revealed and how Allaah ordered His Noble Messenger to recite
in the following aayah:
أَوْ زِدْ عَلَيْهِ وَرَتِّلِ الْقُرْآنَ
تَرْتِيلًا
Or add to it, and
recite the Qur'an with measured recitation.
Muzzamil [73:4]
This is how the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم
used to recite: each word clearly and each letter clearly.
However, that being said, some people who recite Qur’aan have
introduced innovations that are not allowed. They either go to extremes and
beyond the original limits or they fall short and they do this to attract the
people to listen to them.
Examples of this are:
1.
Going to extremes in
concealing letters (ikhfaa) so much so that it resemebles lengthening them
(mudood).
(Translator added example: كنتم – كونتم )
2.
Making Tanween or noon
saakinah occurring before ikhfaa letters as idhaar.
3.
Rounding the lips when
pronouncing fat letters that carry the ‘a’ vowel going to extremes in emphasis.
4.
Pronouncing thin letters
with imaalah (pronouncing the ‘a’ vowel leaning towards the ‘ya’ vowel).
5.
Allowing an adjoining
letter to influence the strong or weak characteristics of other letters.
(Translator’s examples:
خلق the laam is a thin
letter but when it comes in the middle of two fat letters then some people mistakenly make the laam fat
too.
بعض The ‘ba’ is a thin
letter but when people pronounce this word they mistakenly make it fat due to
the ض which is fat.
The ‘fat’ letters (tafkheem) are خص ضغط قظ (خ ص ض غ ط ق ظ)
6.
Going beyond the given
limits of lengthening (mudood). The mudood have a fixed limit that you stop at
beyond which it is not permissible to lengthen. The Schools of Thought of the
Reciters on this topic are known and recorded.
(Translator’s examples: صراط The alif here is a
normal 2 length count when continuing the recitation (and not stopping on it). It
cannot be lengthened beyond that according to whim to 4 or 5 counts.
7.
Producing an extra letter
before noon saakinah نْ due to going to excesses in ikhfaa or with noon and meem
mushaddahatayn نّ
مّ .
‘kasra’ turned into a long vowel ‘ya’ : إن ---- إين
Dammah turned into a long vowel ‘waw’ : كنتم ----كونتم
These are mistakes in recitation that must
be avoided because they are mistakes which could change the meaning.
Other examples: إمّ --- إيمّ
إنّ ---- إينّ
8.
a. Reducing a doubled
letter into a single one
الحجّ = الحجْجَ --- الحجَ = الحج [Surah al Baqarah
2:196]
b. Doubling a letter that should be single
especially if the letter is stopped on.
بعادْ ---بعادّ (بعادْدٍ) [Surah Al Fajr :6]
9.
Lengthening letters where
there is no madd
ملك يووووم الدين [1:4]
غييييير [1:7]
These ‘waw’ and ‘ya’ letters are ‘leen’
letters (َي َو) and not madd letters
(ِي ُو) so they are not
lengthened in continuous reading , only when they are stopped on.
10.
Going to excesses in
pronouncing the hamzah so the sound resembles someone vomiting.
11.
Not completing and
perfecting the vowel sounds. This leads to a deficient vowel which in turn
leads to a deficient letter.
The ‘u’ vowel (dammah) is not complete
unless you round your lips. If you do not round your lips the ‘u’ vowel (dammah)
is deficient and therefore your letter is deficient.
The ‘i’ vowel (kasrah) is not complete
unless you lower your chin. If you do not do this then it is deficient.
The ‘a’ vowel (fathah) is not complete
unless you open your mouth. If not then it is deficient.
Due to this, it is necessary to pronounce the
vowels on the letters properly so that it does not reduce the letter due to the
reduction of its vowel.
Shaykh Muhammad Makee Nasr al Jaraysee, the
author of ‘The Final Beneficial Speech on the Science of Tajweed’ نهاية القول المفيد في علم التجويد) )
p6-7 comments: “This means that the letters are reduced by the reduction of
their vowels. In this case it is worse than a major mistake because the
reduction of the body of the letter is worse than leaving the characteristics
of the letter (الصفات)” [1]
12.
Not pronouncing the first
letter you start with or the last letter you stop on clearly, so that you
cannot hear them and they disappear.
13.
The Bid’ah of Tahreef (تحريف) Gathering together and reciting in one
voice. Reciters take turns and stop and allow others to continue for a few
words then swap. They focus on the vocal aspects and do not see that they are
losing good deeds and falling short in respecting the Speech of Al Jabbaar, the
Compeller. All of this is forbidden haraam and we must not accept it. We must
refute and criticise the one that does it.
14.
Tar’eed (ترعيد)
Making your voice shake as if you are cold or in pain. It may also be
accompanied by musical patterns.
15.
Tatreeb (تطريب)
To recite Qur’aan with a tune, lengthening what should not be lengthened, or
going beyond the set limits of lengthening just to fit into the tune. So the
reciter introduces something not found in the rules.
These are some of the mistakes many people fall into when
reciting which are in opposition to the real rules of tajweed.
The recitation of the Qur’aan cannot be perfected unless a
person learns directly from the recognized skilled shuyookh.
Every reciter should aim to preserve the Book of Allaah
putting into practise the Speech of Allaah, the Exalted:
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا
لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ
Indeed, it is We who sent down the Qur'an
and indeed, We will be its guardian. [al Hijr :9]
[1] Translator
Note: In the Qur’aan schools in Saudi today not completing or perfecting the
vowel sounds is considered a minor mistake only unless the vowel is not clear
and changes from one vowel to another. Allaah Knows best.
