The Purpose of Tajweed in Holy Quran

Know What is Tajweed - Listening to the Qur'an being read correctly is enough to soften even the hardest of hearts and Muslims and non-Muslims alike find it a profoundly moving experience even if they do not understand what is being said. We feel this even more in Ramadaan when we are in the Taraweeh prayers, and we can feel the difference if we go to a Masjid where the Tajweed rules of Qur'an recitation is not being observed as they should.

Every single Muslim has to recite Qur'an in Salah, but many of us do not understand that reciting the Qur'an correctly, observing the rules of recitation, is not an advanced science for expert reciters alone. Instead, it is an obligation upon every one of us whenever we recite the Quran tajweed rules.

The word Tajweed linguistically indicates 'proficiency' or 'doing something well.' It comes from the same source letters as the word 'Jayyid' in Arabic (meaning 'good'): Jeem, Waw, and Daal. When applied to the Qur'an, it means giving every letter of the Qur'an its rights and dues of characteristics when we recite the Qur'an and observing the rules that apply to those letters in different situations.

We give the letters their rights by observing the essential characteristics of each character that never leave it. And we provide them their dues by following the features of each letter that are present in them some of the time and not present at other times.

The Qur'an was revealed with Tajweed lessons rules applied to it. In other words, when the angel Jibreel (alaihis salaam) recited the words of Allah to the Prophet Muhammad (sallallaahu 'Alayhi wa Sallam), he told them in a certain way, and he explained the Prophet (sallallaahu 'Alayhi wa Sallam) how it was permissible to recite the Qur'an. So it is upon us to observe those rules so that we recite it in the way it was revealed.

At the time of the Prophet (sallallaahu 'Alayhi wa Sallam), there was no requirement for people to study Tajweed because they talked with what is now known as Tajweed, so it was natural for them. When the Arabs began mixing with the non-Arabs as Islam spread, mistakes in the Qur'an recitation started appearing, so the scholars had to record the rules. Now, because the everyday Arabic that Arabs speak has changed so much from the Classical Arabic with which the Qur'an was revealed, even Arabs have to study Tajweed.

The Qur'an is the word of Allah, and it's every syllable from Allah. Its recitation must be taken very seriously. The purpose of the Science of Tajweed, in essence, is to make the reciter proficient in reciting the Qur'an, observing the correct pronunciation of every letter with the rulings and characteristics which apply to each letter, without any exaggeration or deficiency.

And so through this, the reciter can recite the Qur'an upon the way of the Prophet (sallallaahu Alayhi wa Sallam) who received it from Jibreel, who received it from Allah (subhanahu wa ta'aala) in the Ancient Arabic dialect that it came down in.

Arabic letters each have a Makhraj - an exit or articulation point - in the mouth or throat from which they start, and they also each have Sifaat - attributes, or characteristics - particular to them.

Knowing the Makhraj and Sifaat of each letter is an essential part of Tajweed. Sometimes two letters have very related exits, which makes mixing them up easy. So if a person does not know the attributes of each letter, there is a danger that he will change the meaning of the words in the Qur'an recitation. Observing the rules of Tajweed in reciting protects the reciter from making mistakes in reciting the Qur'an.

Quran recitation with Tajweed an Important Present

The holy Quran is the divine speech of Almighty Allah. It is not an ordinary book, which is to be read in any of the ways or styles, one likes to. It was given and directed by Allah to His most trustworthy angel, Hazrat Jibraeel-e-Ameen, who then taught further to the most perfect and beloved Prophet Mohammad of Allah.

Then the Prophet Mohammad S.A.W taught to his companions, they then presented to Tabie’ens and then to Tab’a Tabie’ens, and then the chain continues and goes down to us. These teachings included the way of reciting as well.

This way of recitation was called the Science of Tajweed or just Tajweed-ul-Quran by the ulema/scholars of the late era.

Quran recitation with tajweed, Tajweed means to recite the Quran in a more conventional way such that every syllable is connected from its certain exit point, and it gets all its dues and rights. Tajweed is an exact and well-defined domain of the teachings of the Quran.

Hazrat Zaid bin Sabit said:  i.e., it is a followed Sunnah and adopted by the Salaf (the scholars of the early era) who were then followed by Khalaf (the scholars of the late-era).

Hazrat Abdullah Bin Masood said: i.e., the right of recitation of the Quran is to consider lawful, whatever of its (Quran) is allowed, and observed as unlawful, whatever of it is forbidden and one must recite it, in the way it was revealed by Allah (عزوجل ) and should not lead to any change or alteration in the vowel, or letter, or meaning or pronunciation, etc.

Hence, it is an accepted Sunnah, which we being Muslims are duty-bound to follow and complete it in our recitations. Its tajwid Quran reading must be taken very seriously. The goal of the Science of Tajweed in the real sense is to make the reciter proficient in reciting the Quran, observing the correct pronunciation of every letter with the rulings and characteristics which apply to each letter, without any addition or imperfection.

If a person does not have proper knowledge of the characteristics, then he might interchange the two words that have the same makhraj (exit point). This will ultimately change the meaning of the word that was not intended by Allah.

Some believe that Tajweed only means to recite the Quran in a beautiful or pleasant melodious voice, irrespective of whatever rules are applied. However, its primary purpose is to accurately

read with tajweed observe all the rules of recitation with full precision while protecting him from making mistakes along with a plus point of reciting it in a beautiful voice.

It is not an advanced science for expert reciters alone. Instead, it is a responsibility upon every one of us.

Dear students, let us use our valuable time in seeking the right knowledge, as this world is Faani and make this excellent book our friend, and talk with it, in the language of Tajweed correctly and memorize it, so that we get real pleasure from the beauty of its recitation.

Importance of reciting Quran with Tajweed and Tarteel

Qur’an reading is the recitation of the Qur’an, according to tajweed Quran & tarteel, as directed by the Prophet Muhammad S.A.W (PBUH).

What is Tarteel: When questioned about the meaning of tarteel, Imam Ali (PBUH) answered: It means that the Qur’an should be recited with Quran tajweed and with due attention to the rules of Waqf (pausing or stopping at the end of the verse).’

Tarteel (Arabic: ترتيل‎) is the Arabic word for hymnody. The name is commonly translated about the Qur'an as recitation, "in proper order" and "with no hurry." This word is used in chapter 73 named سورة المزمل, verse 4 of the Qur'an: "and read the Qur'an in slow, measured rhythmic tones."

What is Tajweed: Tajweed entirely means to read every letter correctly, i.e., from its origin of pronunciation together with the property of its accompanying notes.

Just as in any other language, we learn to pronounce the letters and words, e.g., in English, we read ‘ph’ stands for ‘f’ and not ‘p’ as in ‘phone/fone’ and not ‘pne’..similarly in the

Arabic language, we also have to learn the usual pronunciation of letters and words which we term ‘tajweed.’

Thus as a quoted example, the word ‘qalb’ (with Q) means ‘heart,’ if read ‘Kalb’ (with K) will now mean dog.

Tajweed also means ‘to improve’ and ‘to make better.’ The reading and pronunciation of every letter of the Qur’an from where the sound is thought to come with its proper characteristics such as lengthening (isti’laa), shortening (istifāl), thinning (tarqeeq), thickening (tafkheem) and other phonetic laws such as absorbing/merging (idghaam), pronouncing clearly (idh-haar), changing (iqlab) and covering (ikhfa).

Therefore we could say: Tajweed of the Qur’an is the knowledge and importance of the right rules of recitation so that the reading of the Qur’an is as close as practicable to the recitation of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

Although the Arabic language is read from right to left, Arabic numbers are read from left to right (as English numbers).

Some Suggestions for Beginners Reciting Tajweed of Quran

Learning the grammars of any new language is very hard for an adult. Therefore you need a lot of stamina and will power to accomplish this. Often you might get discouraged when, despite continuous attempts, you fail to produce the right sound. Learning Quran tajweed, during these times, remind yourself why you’re doing this. The Prophet (SAW) encouraged us thus in the following hadith.

The one who is expert in the recitation of the Qur’an will be with the honorable and obedient scribes (angels), and he who recites the Qur’an and gets it difficult to describe, doing his best to recite it in the best way possible, will have a double reward. [Bukhari and Muslim]

Many of us hold this notion that it is haram to recite the Quran if you don’t know how to do it properly. This belief is not just wrong; it is, in fact, harmful as if it prevents us from reciting the Quran. Allah said.

So fear Allah as much as you are able and listen and respond and spend in the way of Allah; it is more suitable for your selves. And whoever is preserved from the stinginess of his soul it is those who will be successful. [64:16]

So don’t be scared to recite Quran even if you’re terrible at it, tajweed learning is easy if you have the interest to learn because if you don’t try, you'll not get anything, how are you going to learn now?

Keep practicing. You don’t need a determined time and place to practice makhraj and sifaat. Just try pronouncing them whenever they come in memory – while daydreaming, having a break from work, or watching TV. Just try creating those sounds, just like a baby does. A baby blabbers whenever he/she feels like, not considering what others think, not getting embarrassed, just enjoying what he/she is doing, and learning a language at the same time.

Listen tajwid al Quran as much as you can of Quranic recitation. For beginners, it is best to select a slow monotonous recitation, e.g., Husayri (RH). Listen and try to repeat after it. You’ll find that soon you’re getting the hang of it.

When you acquire one rule of recitation, practice it and get the hang of it first before beginning on the next rule. If you try to learn too many rules at one go, there is a chance that you’ll get overwhelmed and might even feel like giving up. So make it slow and sure.

Common Quranic Tajweed Mistakes that should be clarified

It is essential that the Muslims read the Arabic letters and vowels to read the Quran using them, not a transliteration. Transliterations do not take into thought the several letters that sound related to the untrained ear but are very different in pronunciation.

The Quran is the word of Allah, revealed to man as a guide, and we have to be very careful when reading it, as best we can, with proper pronunciation. Learning a transliteration can point to a change in the application of the Holy Quran by mispronouncing its Arabic letters.

The first mistake, made by Arab and non-Arab Muslims like, is in getting inappropriate starts and stops. There are two problems with this mistake. The first issue is that the proper way to stop on a word is by putting a sukoon, or absence of a vowel on the last letter of the word.

It is not allowed to stop using the harakah, or vowel on the last letter of the word. Ilmu tajwid its rises second point of stopping is that of staying at a place that does not contradict the meaning intended by Almighty Allah, the Exalted.

The identical mistake can occur when starting up after stopping and holding breath. We cannot just start on the next word at random; that is, the object needs to be considered, and the start should be on a word that describes the absolute and perfect meaning, even if the reader needs to go back two or three words.

There are two most basic tajweed Qur'an mistakes made by non-Arabs: the timings of the vowels (madd letters in Arabic) and in the connection points of the letters.

The first type concerning the timing of the vowels (i.e., lengthening a vowel longer than one vowel count), and natural lengthening (making them smaller than they should be). Each vowel over a letter takes one count. So a kasrah takes the same timing as a fath, as does a dhammah, whenever the madd tajweed letters alif does not follow these letters; or a ya' with no vowel preceded by a kasrah, or wow with no consonant preceded by a dhammah).

Whereas Madd letters have two vowel counts if a hamzah or a sukoon does not follow them. All vowels, as said above, have equal timing in length. This is not valid for letters without vowels or saakin letters. The schedules of saakin letters vary depending on their features. The difference is in not a considerable length of time, though.

The Comprehensive Knowledge about Quranic Tajweed or Tajwid

Qoran tajwid means improvement and perfection. If you create something with tajwid, it indicates you are attempting to do it with the utmost quality and in the perfect way possible.

The term is technically used to apply to the science involved with correct recitation and pronunciation of the Qur’anic words and verses.

The relationship is open between the true meaning of the word and its technical usage; the literal sense revolves around perfecting an action or a performance, which is the recitation of the Quran with tajwid as far as the science of Tajwid is concerned.

After the speedy spread of Islam in its first centuries, especially among non-Arabs, Muslim scholars thought it necessary to put down a set of rules that serve as a reference for the Qur’an learners. So, Tajwid has been the reference for people who wished to read the Qur’an correctly.

This, however, does not negate the fact that the Qur’an cannot be read separately, without the help of a skilled teacher. The unique isnad-based system of learning the Qur’an continued to be the recognized way for teaching students how to recite the Qur’an and for training them on Tajwid.

In the isnad-based system, a student recites the whole Qur’an by heart, from the beginning to the end, fulfilling the rules of Tajweed to a certified Qur’an teacher, and then the student is approved by the teacher to be qualified to recite and teach the Qur’an. The certificate is called ijazah (license). A typical ijazah lists the teachers of the granting sheik (the isnad or sanad , an unbroken chain of teachers that goes back to the Prophet).

Tajwid, according to the scholars’ definition, is all about “articulating (the sound of) each word from its proper point of connection, and securing the correct pronunciation of the genuine characteristics of each sound as well as the occasional ones.”

Here, by ‘genuine,’ scholars mean the stable features of a sound without which the sound is never said correctly. The special features are those concerning a letter sound due to specific occasional reasons such as the place of the letter in a word, its tashkil, the features of the letters coming before or after it, etc.

A standard Tajwid book begins with an introduction explaining the significance and manners of reciting the Qur’an, the requirements of a correct recitation, the Islamic law of keeping Tajwid when reciting the Qur’an, and the types of reading in terms of speed. The main body of Tajwid, as explicitly stated in the above definition, is concerned with the correct pronunciation of the Qur’an.